Quote to Consider (and an action to take):

“You’ve got a lot of choices. If getting out of bed in the morning is a chore and you’re not smiling on a regular basis, try another choice.” ~Steven D. Woodhull

For the next 7 days, just observe how you feel when you get up in the morning.

If it’s a chore on the days you are “going to work” but not on the other days, then that’s something to notice.

If it’s NOT a chore on the days you’re going to work, but it is on the others, then that’s something to notice, too.

See if your face is comfortable going into a smile…and reflect on the last time someone said to you, “You are always smiling.” If you can’t remember the last time someone said that, then see if you can determine why.

See if you notice any patterns as you consciously observe your emotions and behaviors. Do you see any patterns, and in particular, do you notice a pattern that is more in your professional life or your personal life?

Once you have done your self-observations and considered the ideas in this article, then you may be able to identify ‘so what do I do?’ for yourself.  Or you may be looking for other resources to move away from ‘underwhelm’ to being ‘just whelmed.’

One of the free resources for moving toward being ‘just whelmed’ on a consistent basis is being part of the group (worldwide) who receive Meggin’s weekly emails (free!) at:

**I Want to Be Just Whelmed (http://www.JustWhelmed.com)

If you would prefer quick, short weekly tips, then the following site is another place to find suggestions and other tools to support you in your quest for peaceful productivity:

**Top Ten Productivity Tips (http://www.TopTenProductivityTips.com)

If you think you are only in “overwhelm” but not “underwhelm,” please don’t ignore this article.  Believe it or not, you may be in “underwhelm” part of the time or you certainly may know some others who are in “underwhelm” and they could use this information.

In thinking through the reasons why someone becomes (and stays) ‘underwhelmed’, I’ve identified the following three:

• Work (or a life) that doesn’t engage your talents, education, or passions.  Day in and day out, do you feel like you’re an “untapped resource?”  Well, that takes its toll.  

• Work (or a life) that involves people who are uncommitted, uninspired, and unworthy of your attention and talents.  Tell the truth…is the majority of your time spent working with and around people who ‘could care less,’ ‘have retired but still come to work,’ ‘are negative Nellies (or Neds),’ and just generally drain the energy and life right out of you?  

• Work (or a life) where you rarely get a chance to work on anything of importance.  Are you questioning–on a regular basis–why you’re even doing what you do?  Does it seem as if it doesn’t really matter to anyone, particularly in the ‘big scheme of things’? Do you wonder if you’re making a contribution?

If you are currently feeling underwhelmed, see if the feelings can be identified and put into one or more of the 3 categories listed above.  Think about it…right now, which of these is most problematic for you (if any of these are)?  And remember, it may be problematic for you if there are people around you who are underwhelmed.

In our next blog post we will talk about things you need to consider and observations you need to make.

And remember…

“It is our choices that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.” ~Joanne Kathleen Rowling

1. Overwhelmed
2. Underwhelmed, and
3. Just Whelmed

Be very clear on the fact that you are the only person who can distinguish between and among these three for yourself. Each person has a different tolerance overall…and that tolerance also varies depending on what else is going on in a person’s life. Take a look at the definitions below.  As you read through each of these sets of definitions, think about what other words you would add to what is already there? Make each definition your own by adding phrases, words, ideas that apply to you and your situation.

Overwhelmed:

overcome, engulfed, flooded, inundated, overpowered, swamped, frantic, frenetic, shut-down, out of control, crazed, anxious, and…

Underwhelmed:

frustrated, disappointed, discomfited, lethargic, unfocused, bored, and…

Just Whelmed:

productive, energized, jazzed, “in the zone,” challenged, and…

Create a little chart for yourself.  Just make 3 columns or 3 boxes (or whatever format works best for you). Label the 3 sections with “overwhelmed,” “underwhelmed,” and “just whelmed.”  You can then use this chart for the whole week or you can make one for each day; it’s up to you.

Observe yourself moving from one state of being to another and notate it on your chart when it happens. What you’re looking for are patterns in these shifts. For example, do shifts happen:

• at certain times of the day?
• around some people?
• with particular tasks?
• when you’re too hungry? or
• a myriad of other possibilities…

Keep an eye on what is happening and see if you can tell why it might be happening. You’re smart (that’s always the assumption I make). Smart people notice patterns if they’re paying attention. I’m just asking you to pay attention this week. 

Henry Ward Beecher said,

We sleep, but the loom of life never stops, and the pattern
which was weaving when the sun went down is weaving
when it comes up in the morning.

There are patterns in your life related to so many things…but this week, just notice the patterns that are there as you move between and among overwhelm, underwhelm, and “just whelmed.”  And if you would like to continue learning about these three different levels of ‘whelm,’  then the following sites are places to find suggestions and other tools to support you in your quest for peaceful productivity:

** I Just Want to be Whelmed (http://www.justwhelmed.com)

**Top Ten Productivity Tips (http://www.TopTenProductivityTips.com)

(c) 2009 by Meggin McIntosh, Ph.D., “The Ph.D. of Productivity”(tm). Through her company, Emphasis on Excellence, Inc., Meggin McIntosh changes what people know, feel, dream, and do. Sound interesting? It is!

“Negative interactions have 5 times the effect on mood than positive interactions” (p. 180). You can probably think of some negative interactions that have taken a toll on you. Here’s a personal example:

Once upon a time, I had a relationship that was pretty darn close to the most powerful one I have ever had in my life. It went really bad at the end. It took me seven years to forgive that person. I decided I wanted to ask for her forgiveness, even though I wasn’t sure what I had done that I needed to be forgiven for. However, I figured I wanted her to forgive me and so we met for dinner and with absolute sincerity, I asked her to forgive me. She said she would accept my apology. Then she just sat there. She did not say, “And Meggin, I would also like to apologize.” I kind of thought that might be coming, but it didn’t. She didn’t say anything and I was surprised and somewhat taken aback. But when I got back to my hotel room that night I thought, ‘Wow, my hostility toward her is over.’ It had been a remarkable amount of self-inflicted negative energy that I had stirred up for too many years. Once I was able to ask her to forgive me, then I was able to release that energy drain.

The lesson I learned from the experience was this: We need to take a look at whether we are holding onto old negative energy. Hostility is old anger. For over 7 years, I had toted around that old anger (hostility) and what a waste of energy. I was draining it right out of myself. And I wonder what ‘ucky’ stuff I then ‘put out there’ for others during this same time period?

Think about the emotions that you want to have in your life and in your space. Part of what you may have to do is to make room for them by minimizing whatever is draining your energy (and negative stuff definitely drains your energy).

Take the following steps and see what difference it can make for you:

• Ask and answer: Whose responsibility is it to remove the “energy drainers” in your life? It is not 100% under your control…but it’s extraordinary how much of it is.
• Identify those people, places, activities, tasks, etc., that drain your energy.
• One at a time, minimize your contact, interaction, involvement, or time invested with those ‘drainers.’
• Teach others what you’ve learned.
• Relish your responsibility for what is happening in your own life.

We all need less negative energy and more positive energy in our little lives and in our big Life.

You are invited to access more helpful (sometimes gentle and sometimes not-so-gentle) suggestions for how to keep from being OVERwhelmed or UNDERwhelmed, but instead to be ‘just whelmed.’ There’s a whole community (worldwide) who receive Meggin’s weekly emails (free!) at

**I Want to Be Just Whelmed (http://www.JustWhelmed.com)

If you would prefer quick, short weekly tips, then the follow site is another place to find suggestions and other tools to support you in your quest for peaceful productivity:

**Top Ten Productivity Tips (http://www.TopTenProductivityTips.com)

(c) 2009 by Meggin McIntosh, Ph.D., “The Ph.D. of Productivity”(tm). Through her company, Emphasis on Excellence, Inc., Meggin McIntosh changes what people know, feel, dream, and do. Sound interesting? It is!

Managing your energy–all the different types–is essential if you are going to lead a productive life. Other ideas related to managing your energy include:

• The energy around us is either positive, negative, or neutral.
• What you want more of is the positive energy.
• What you want less of is negative energy.

You might want to examine your own beliefs about energy and its importance, as well as what part your energy plays in whether you are overwhelmed, underwhelmed, or “just whelmed”?

Is there a cost to letting your energy be drained away?  Yes; the cost is massive.  To stop (or at least stem) that lost, you first have to know what it is that drains you.  Consider each of these categories

• People
• Events
• Tasks
• Thoughts
• Emotions
• Responsibilities
• Weather
• Other

Now, answer this question: What/who do you dread, resent, begrudge, dislike relative to any or all of the categories listed? Tell the truth to yourself. You know the answers.

You are invited to access more helpful (sometimes gentle and sometimes not-so-gentle) suggestions for how to keep from being OVERwhelmed or UNDERwhelmed, but instead to be ‘just whelmed.’ There’s a whole community (worldwide) who receive Meggin’s weekly emails (free!) at

**I Want to Be Just Whelmed (http://www.JustWhelmed.com)

If you would prefer quick, short weekly tips, then the follow site is another place to find suggestions and other tools to support you in your quest for peaceful productivity:

**Top Ten Productivity Tips (http://www.TopTenProductivityTips.com)

(c) 2009 by Meggin McIntosh, Ph.D., “The Ph.D. of Productivity”(tm). Through her company, Emphasis on Excellence, Inc., Meggin McIntosh changes what people know, feel, dream, and do. Sound interesting? It is!

Believe me, I am not going to suggest ‘extreme simplifying,’ i.e., selling all of your worldly possessions, quitting your job, moving to the woods without any type of power, and then just living off nature. I promise…not even close. I am going to suggest minor and – depending on your situation – major shifts that you can make that will reduce the overwhelm because it eliminates some of the choices.

The complexity of your life (and the overwhelm that accompanies it) didn’t just appear in the blink of an eye. Your life has grown gradually more complex, layer by layer, task by task, responsibility by responsibility. You can begin to reduce that complexity gradually until you’ve peeled it back to a point where you are ‘just whelmed.’

So, today, observe yourself – and those around you – and notice the times where something has become more difficult than it needs to be.  Begin to minimize the complexity by the choices you make.   Read tomorrow’s post for more specifics

And if the complexity of your everyday life is just one area that overwhelms you – and you would like to be ‘just whelmed,’ then you’re invited to join others (worldwide) who receive Meggin’s weekly emails (free!) at **I Want to Be Just Whelmed (http://www.JustWhelmed.com)

If you would prefer quick, short weekly tips, then the following site is another place to find suggestions and other tools to support you in your quest for peaceful productivity: **Top Ten Productivity Tips (http://www.TopTenProductivityTips.com)

(c) 2009 by Meggin McIntosh, Ph.D., “The Ph.D. of Productivity”(tm). Through her company, Emphasis on Excellence, Inc., Meggin McIntosh changes what people know, feel, dream, and do. Sound interesting? It is!