It's Not Only What We Think

by: Judith Richardson

If we want to develop a deeper way of perceiving situations, of being with situations, consider being relaxed, open, and confident, not expecting or demanding anything in particular. Many of the clients I work with have learned “not” to like themselves – this is an invitation to make friends with ourselves—not just casual, in-passing friends, but intimate friends.   You see, brilliant people rarely take the time to reflect on what they do. Reflection assists you in learning from the future as it emerges. When we are not consciously aware of our evolving self, we can get stuck in an old self-image. 

 

The Engaging Leader is fully present as a natural expression, a natural creativity. Often we get caught up in the speed and pressures of daily life, and our mind and body become disconnected. 

The invitation is to dance with the space that is all around us -- to drop habitual patterns and cease to be locked into a solid sense of me and them, or “othering”.  With soft eyes there is the possibility of seeing the space, of experiencing each other beyond credentials, opinions, and concepts. We experience the basic healthiness and integrity of our communities and organizations. We begin to feel a sense of presence, of being right on the spot without an agenda. This is a discipline and brings objectivity to any situation – leading to curiosity rather than reaction of defensiveness.

 

Organizational life, where I do most of my work, may seem to some like a relatively odd place for spiritual growth; it is however rich with opportunity.  It is the full meal deal -- so much can go right and wrong. "Stuff" happens: unwanted complications come your way, the service you've been waiting for is long delayed and when it does come it is unsatisfactory, your bright idea is claimed by someone else, your working conditions are lacking and the royal "they" are not fixing them, try as you might you don't seem able to satisfy anyone, this one is angry at you, that one is disappointed, and the other one is not paying you the attention you feel you deserve. Right away in our habitual thinking we choose to be miserable – and tell ourselves that there are no choices.  We whine in the washroom and complain in the coffee room, make up stories in which we are either the hero or the victim, take revenge, do less than our best, comfort ourselves in righteousness, question the quality of our relationships with others, sabotage our contributions to our organization and to the world, attempt to build ourselves up by putting down others.

 

The beginning of spirituality comes with the awareness that we can see things not as the way things are, but as a choice. Possibilities -- another “way” begins to offer.  As we recognize choices, we are invited to abandon victimhood and righteousness; we accept responsibility for our condition and for the condition of our systems, we accept our place as co-creators of these conditions.

 

The foundation, the method, and the results of quieting your thoughts are the same. The foundation is your natural disposition to be as you are, to be with your world and your experiences as they are. The method is a reminder to relax and be natural in this way, bring humour to any situation. And the result is settling down with the natural processes of your body and mind, so that your human qualities of intelligence, warmth, and power can be strengthened and evolve.  We begin to realize that each moment can be mined for joy.

 

 

Posted in: Work-Life Balance