Have you ever thought about the importance of being aware of and understanding the season you are in? Everything in our personal lives, the life of an organization and even the life of a product has seasons.

There are seasons of intense productivity when a lot of activity is happening. This could be a launch season, a time of making new contacts, taking a product to market, establishing yourself in a new community. This type of season will typically involve a steep learning curve. The pace will be fast and furious. It will feel exciting and could be overwhelming.

Then there are seasons of transitioning from one familiar path to another maybe less known. At times like this, it’s a closing off period of time. There will be letting go of familiar processes, routines, certain relationships or products that have served your organization well. All of this whilst at the same time embracing the new, less familiar methods, places, communities. It could be a time of bitter sweet contemplation and celebration of what has been, alongside excitement and possibly anxiety of what is to come.

Then there are seasons in between of stagnancy, where you have seen little progress in any direction for what seems like a very long time. What I would call ‘flat’ seasons. You don’t feel the mountain top type of experience, or the desperate ‘get me out of here’ feeling. Things are just petering along; the pace feels normal, ordinary, nothing to write home about. You feel happy that nothing major is going wrong but maybe at times a little bored! As an organization there is no growth or decline, just the stable, predictable everyday events and sales. These seasons are the longest ones, taking up the majority of our years.

Then there are those difficult seasons which feel like a downward spiral. Everything that could go wrong goes wrong. Things that you never imagined would let you down start to crumble around you. All of a sudden you are fighting fires, dealing with problems in systems and process, sorting out relationships that have suddenly become difficult. It seems overwhelming and like it will never end. It could be that personally you are dealing with a tragedy that affects you deeply. As a person or an organization you have to go inward and process through what is going on and look at how to fix things. It’s a time to deal with unresolved issues, habits, routines that have not served you well. Perhaps relationships or teams that are not flourishing in the way they work together. It’s a time to maybe reflect and question your vision for your life and your organization and take a helicopter view to adjust, refine or re-direct.

My point about all this is each season has a rhythm and pace that suits it. By being aware of what season we are in we can find the best pace to match it and plan accordingly. Too many times I see clients and often do this myself, try to continue with a particular goal when it is clearly out of season. The problem is, if you are trying to push against the pace and natural rhythms of the season you are in, all you do is create stress and miss what it is that needs most attention. For example, if you are trying to start something new, learn new things or launch something and it is a particularly difficult season when unresolved issues have come to the surface, chances are your new venture may not succeed.

This may all sound simple and obvious and common sense, but how often do you stop and think, what is my current season? What is happening in my personal life, my work, my business? What doesn’t fit right now? What feels out of place? What do I need to say ‘no’ to right now? What just isn’t working and needs some time and space to fix it?

It’s important to set and maintain the right pace of life that suits you. Ask yourself: How is my pace? Is it one I am at peace with? Do I feel in step or slightly off balance? What would my ideal ‘load’ be right now? What do I need to adjust to be in alignment?

Alternatively, you may have been in a stagnant no movement type of season for too long and deep down you know it. Deep down you feel unsatisfied, discontent and you know there is more potential in you or in your organization. You know it’s time to change something, progress something, to grow. In this case it’s time to change the pace, to get up and get going!

Whatever, the season is right now for you, understanding it is just a season just a period of time, not forever, will help you to lean into whatever is on your plate now, enjoy it, do it well, make the most of it, and still plan and dream for the future.

If you want to plot your life on a life stage map and understand the clear common stages of your journey towards your calling and purpose – come along to our next Seasons Workshop or Contact Us to be coached through this life stage model.