Mental Real Estate Is Valuable -- Charge Accordingly

Don’t let anyone rent a space in your head, unless they’re a good tenant.

QuotesLife101.net

Who or What is Taking Up Too Much Space in Your Head?

And are they at least paying you RENT?

Didn’t think so.

In terms of people, when it comes to boundaries and dealing with our boundary-pushers, it is not just the time spent setting and enforcing boundaries with another person we need to be aware of; it is also the time and energy spent thinking, worrying, stressing, fussing, and fuming about the fact that we DO have to deal with them, as well as figuring out how best to.

When it comes to dealing with the people in our lives who want, expect and/or demand more from us than we are willing or able to give, it is important to be aware of how much time and mental energy we are expending on them…likely without them even realizing it (nor caring, probably).

I don’t think we necessarily always realize how much mental space WE are allowing another person to occupy in our head.

An incident (such as a nasty comment) that triggered the need to set a boundary may have only taken a few minutes in real time. But the emotional and mental aftermath—in our heads and hearts—can take up an awful lot of precious time and energy that could likely be spent far more productively.

Of course, it’s not just a person that might be consuming the lion’s share of our mental attention. It could be a recurring thought, idea, story, obsession, belief, worry, task to-do…you name it.

Whatever it is, if we are constantly thinking about the same thing, over and over again, we better be darn sure it is serving us in a positive way.

However, it seems to be human nature to allow someone or something to take up valuable real estate in our head far longer than is necessary—or helpful. Perhaps even to the point of becoming harmful.

Instead of stopping long enough to process and get clarity, then take action and move forward, we often get caught in a mental loop of thinking, fuming, fussing, worrying, stressing…thinking, fuming, fussing, worrying, stressing…and on and on, like an endless rollercoaster that isn’t even FUN.