QUESTION
Sometimes I feel like I'm out of strength. I'm just tapped. What can I do?
ANSWER
When you need strength, turn inward. Take time to breath, reflect, and prioritize your energies. Don't try to do everything at once, or please everyone around you—that is the impossible. Focus on doing your best work.
You mature as far as your understanding of what it's going to take, and you increase your stamina. You don't let frustration overtake you when you're looking for change. — Eddie Vedder, American musician, multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter
Dealing with challenge and change can be a draining experience. Where do we recharge our batteries—the medicine cabinet? The grocery store? The gym? The bar? The yoga studio? Shopping?
Some of these activities are more constructive than others, but all of them offer a temporary energy boost. The best place to turn for stamina is inward and focus on your breath. It sounds silly to remind yourself to breathe, but how many times do you hold your breath waiting for an important answer? when you are deeply concentrating on something? when you feel attacked by someone?
Breathing in and out reminds us that we need both actions. Too much of one of the other and we’ve lost ourselves to panic, to lopsidedness.
The breath is a basic stabilizing force. Every system in the body relies on oxygen. From cognition to digestion, effective breathing can not only provide you with a greater sense of mental clarity, it can also help you sleep better, digest food more efficiently, improve your body's immune response, and reduce stress levels.
Today provides another opportunity to tap into your own source of strength. Challenge and change will always be there. Whatever the obstacle, you have the strength to face it and overcome it, one breath at a time.
MORE THOUGHTS…
A hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.”– Christopher Reeve, American actor
You have power over your mind – not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.” – Marcus Aurelius, Roman emperor, Stoic philosopher
Anyone can give up; it is the easiest thing in the world to do. But to hold it together when everyone would expect you to fall apart, now that is true strength. – Chris Bradford, American author and black belt martial artist
REMEMBER
Like a seed, we are equipped with everything we need to succeed. We don't require perfect conditions. In fact, persistence amidst challenge and change is what serves as the catalyst for growth.
PUTTING IT INTO PRACTICE
If our emotional batteries are depleted, it’s time to go against every instinct we have to “double down” and work harder. When we are depleted, we need to slow down, rest, eat good food and surround ourselves with nourishing people. It’s time to turn our anxiety and fear over to our grounding practice, whatever it is—faith, reflection, meditation, sports, art—so that we might return to our task with a refreshed mind.
GETTING REAL
Talk to a friend or trusted colleague about the times when you've both gained strength from your practice. How did you get started? What helped turn it into a consistent habit?
FOR REFLECTION
If you keep a journal for your own development, write down your thoughts about the best ways to find the stamina you need to deal more effectively with challenge and change.
NEXT
To perform well while under pressure, we need to train our minds to work more effectively. Making the right decisions, whether that is hashing out how artificial intelligence will evolve or ensuring naval ships are ready on time takes practice.
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