Bad Enough

Are you feeling the effects of the Blue Supermoon? Mercury and Venus along with Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto are also retrograde, so it's a good time to chillax. Rest, reflect, and recharge -- that's my recommendation.

Speaking of reflection, I've been contemplating this week's Seed:

"Sometimes things seem or look 'bad', yet we don't really step up to make them better. I call that bad, but not bad enough. What does it take?"

What's the first thing we do when something isn't to our liking ...? Complain! We might rant and rave and ultimately we'll find someone or something to blame. How does that work out? In my experience, not too well. I was wondering why our first response isn't, "How can we fix or at least improve this situation?".

One reason might be that we don't know how and/or we don't think it's possible. Also, we have been sort of trained, by the media, to get upset, be enraged, while at the same time feel disempowered. I've mentioned this before and it's worth going over again. When I teach stress management sessions, we have an exercise called STOP. Just like in freeze tag, when I say "stop", everyone has to cease any movement or fidgeting. Then, we close our eyes or look down and take note of how we're feeling. Where in our bodies are we tense or uncomfortable? After a bit, we start to simply watch our breath go in and out. People begin to notice, very quickly, that they start to feel calmer and clearer. What if we decided to do something different when things are "bad"? What if we paused, took a few breaths and figured out if there was something to be done, by us? What if we didn't wait for it to get worse? What if we chose not to complain about it, but instead focused on how to diffuse the energy or even see if anything good could come of it. What makes something bad, but not bad enough?? How bad does it have to get?!? When I'm working with people, in a class or a coaching situation, I always try to make it fun. How can we look at something differently or from another point of view. Like Wayne Dyer's book, instead of waiting to believe it when I see it, I'll see it when I believe it. We can't find a solution with the same energy as the "problem". That will only intensify the problem. Just like a dog "shakes it off" after a fight, we can learn to shake off the bad stuff and be open to something better. This is what I wish for you. Want to have some fun with me? Drop me a line with a good time to have the beverage of your choice and a chat. As one of my clients said, "I have connected with my authentic self. She [Barbara] is a wonderful coach who has set me on a path of continued personal growth." That could be you!