Coaching Corner: Is it spring soon?
By "Coach" Marilou Butcher Roth
(February 2, 1018) Today, we eagerly await the decision of the nationally famous groundhog to determine if we will be chilled for much longer this winter. Although it never seems to matter whether or not that furry guy actually sees his shadow, it is fun to imagine how our hypothetical weather fate appears to be in his furry little paws!
How often, however, do you leave the fate of your individual experiences to the external situations of your lives? How often do you find yourself cursing at whatever or whomever, claiming that something is happening "to you." Not very comfortable is it? As long as you live your life at the mercy of externals, it will be challenging to find the peace you are seeking.
What if you could change your "to me" mindset to something working more in your favor? Let me pose a question to you – don't answer it without feeling into your answer. Here goes...are you willing to see situations as learning opportunities for you? You do not have to know how at this point – it is about your individual willingness to see things differently.
If you said no, that's OK – its where you are. If you said yes, begin to consider the vast amount of learning that comes to you. How many times have you seen situations that you judged as "bad," prove to beneficial when you look back at them? Yes – it happens!
Living your life in a "to me" place will not only bring continued stress and frustration, it will actually create even more situations that feel that way. Sorry guys, its just the way things work — I didn't make the rules!
This week, whether you said "yes" or "no" to the question above, pay attention to when you find yourself in that place where it feels like the world, people or events are working against you. Pause...take a deep breath, and open yourself, even if just a little, to the idea that perhaps this experience will provide you with something beneficial. Just give it a try!
And let's hope that Punxsutawney Phil does, or doesn't, see his shadow – whichever way it is supposed to go so that warmer weather finds us soon – I honestly can never remember!
