Plans

Re-entry can be tough. Between the jet lag (and really, two hours doesn't feel as though it should be a huge difference, but it is) and tackling all the things that need to be done that you didn't do while you were gone... well, I still don't feel quite caught up. And I'm tired. For that reason, I'm resorting to sharing a quote from a book for you to ponder. 

I'm about halfway through Focus: The Hidden Driver of Excellence by Daniel Goleman. (I did get a little reading time on my trip.) I'm enjoying it and look forward to getting to read the rest of it. This quote is from the beginning of the book. I find it interesting because I think people mistakenly believe that they will only be content or happy if they never have negative thoughts run through their heads. This is an unrealistic idea. It is far better to frame what is going on in a different light.

"The biggest challenge for even the most focused, though, comes from the emotional turmoil of our lives, like a recent blow-up in a close relationship that keeps intruding into your thoughts. Such thoughts barge in for a good reason: to get us to think through what to do about what is upsetting us. The dividing line between fruitless rumination and productive reflection lies in whether or not we come up with some tentative solution or insight and then can let those distressing thoughts go -- or if, on the other hand, we just keep obsessing over the same loop of worry." (p. 14)

That hamster running on its wheel in our heads wants us to make a plan.  It's not a moral failing that we are worrying about something, but a sign that there is something that needs to be addressed. Instead of worrying about our worrying, it is better to face what's really happening head on and figure out what that hamster is trying to get us to pay attention to. and make a plan to address them. And sometimes addressing these things means we need to have a plan for how to have a plan. I think the WOOP idea from the book, Shift: Managing Your Emotions - So They Don't Manage You by Ethan Kross is a good place to start.

"Try using WOOP for an emotional challenge you're facing ...

W = Wish (write a wish that is important to you - challenging but feasible.)
O = Outcome (How will you feel when you accomplish this?)
O = Obstacle (What is the personal obstacle?)
P = Plan (What's the action you are going to take when faced with this obstacle?)

So fill in:  If  (obstacle), then (action)." (p. 21)


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