Repositioning Option
Hey Friend,
It's been a really fun week. Last Saturday night I saw the Black Keys in concert at the Armory. I like them, but don't love them. So I wasn't sure if I wanted to spend my Saturday evening with them. On the day of the concert I scored a reseller ticket for 30% below the retail price, so I thought that was worth it.
I also spoke at the North Dakota SHRM conference which was really enjoyable. I like downtown Bismarck. My lovely wife's oldest daughter was in town visiting. She lives in Hawaii so it filled Michelle's heart to have her home for a week. A speaker friend was in town so we spent a little time together. And of course, I edited the book layout in the moments in-between.
The Armory feels like a big open warehouse. There are no seats. I got there right as the opening act was starting and stayed towards the back. It was a full house. At the break I made my way up much closer and right in the middle. As a short guy, I planned on standing on my tip-toes, which I did off and on.
I had a great view except for one big guy in front of me who was both tall and wide. I leaned from side-to-side to see around him. Have you ever felt like everything was going really well for you except for this one thing that taints and impacts all the other things? Do you focus on it. Talk about it. Dwell on it?
OPTIONS
I could have moved once the human wall appeared in front of me. (Honestly, he showed up out of nowhere right as the show started). I decided to wait. In standing rooms like that, sometimes magically the audience shifts and drifts. When we find ourselves disappointed about a situation, person, consequence or outcome, we have options. Often it doesn't feel like it.
The thing that consumes our thoughts and attention negatively can be viewed differently. We have the option to deflate the pessimistic weight. So often however, we inflate the adversity churning up even more ugly emotions inside. We fixate on that one thing despite all the other good things happening all around us.
MINDSHIFT
What if this week you took a situation that seemed to possess all kinds of unpositive elements & chose to deflate it?
RATIO-MIX
The guy left to get his friends drinks once, then came back. 20 minutes later he left again and never came back. I was enjoying the show but had this nagging mental irritant - "he'll be back any minute, do you need to move?" Isn't it funny/not funny how even once something is out of our life it still takes up real space in our mind generating real emotions?
Why is that? Why do we give so much mental/emotional energy to the possibility of the unwanted? Some folks put all their attention there, literally missing the good right in front of them. What's your mix? The ratio between good reality and the imagined unwanted. It may have been reality once and feels like a legitimate threat. Currently though, it's just a thought in your mind.
MINDSHIFT
What if you came up with a number that reflected how much energy you put into the good and how much. you put into the bad - and then worked to adjust it?
REPOSITION
Before the encore, I moved towards the back of the room and went up on the landing where the bar is. That 30 inch elevation changed everything. I was above everyone's head. I was further back but my view of the stage was stellar. Repositioning changed me. I enjoyed the last couple of songs with no thoughts of being blocked.
Changing positions is possible. It may be mental or it may be physical, but it is an option for each of us. Seeing from a different vantage point defeats the negativity and floods us with relief. The usual suspects are at play to give us a mindshift: Gratitude. Hope. Faith. Confidence. Relationships.
For every haunting, daunting negative thought, there is a repositioning option that enables possibility!
SHIFTING
I hope this week you intentionally make a note of where threatening imaginations are creeping in and consciously choose to reposition to higher ground. Peace is available there. #ShiftAway
