The most fundamental tool I know for making shifts in our lives is to deepen our personal awareness.
Our unconscious is an efficient and vast network that is often times calling the shots on how we feel, react and think. This can also translate into symptoms in our physical bodies. Getting to know what is happening behind the scenes is profoundly empowering for making new choices.
No matter what name you call it or how you develop it, this will be your greatest ally. Many people think that doing this has to be a difficult undertaking but you truly can start small and simple. Certainly there are many paths for discovering what works but here is a simple technique I like to call ‘Interrupting the Ordinary’.
Try this:
The next time you are doing some everyday, ordinary task, take a few minutes to notice what you notice. Make it a treasure hunt of observations. If you are brushing your teeth then notice how much much tension is in your hand, the contact of your fingers, the motion of your wrist, the thoughts that come to mind or the weight in your feet or hips. You can do the same inquiry while eating, sitting at your desk, taking a walk or just about anything. Try to find new layers of observation and just make note of them.
I know it might be challenging to believe that something so simple might have long-term benefits but it really does.
Simply Interrupting the Ordinary allows you to invite something new in the midst of the habitual pathway.
This helps you develop a connection to the unconscious flow and gradually build your ability to interact with the process. Learning to develop this engagement during routine tasks or innocuous events will help you build your skills for more stressful or triggering situations in the future. Regular practice of this throughout the day helps it to develop, get stronger and more flexible.
This proactive mental hygiene assists in creating space between thought and action, guides you towards seeing the design of your unconscious and gives opportunity to interrupt, interact and engage.
Now imagine having that skill in more challenging encounters. It will support you in noticing:
- the previously ‘invisible’ steps that lead up to your reaction
- what habits are the current default and if they are helpful
- and the ripple effect of these habits in your mind and body
Your ability to recognize or identify any of these empowers you to interact and make new choices. And it supports you in seeing possibilities for shifting patterns or habits you no longer need.
Thank you for reading and being curious about this amazing world that is YOU. Empowered, Vibrant and Learning to Live beyond limitation.
For companion video to this post click Here
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