“When everything around you feels amiss, focus on getting grounded.” ~LMB
Life is a roller coaster of ups and downs, filled with ecstatic joys and tremendous hardships. These fluctuations can occur in relationships, careers, or the broader political and emotional climate of your community or the world. Regardless of where they happen, the approach to navigating these peaks and valleys remains the same:
Celebrate the peaks while grounding yourself during the valleys.
When you experience the peaks, take a moment to absorb them. Allow yourself to feel gratitude and express it aloud. Whether it’s the warm sun, blue skies, a promotion, or an unforgettable vacation, speaking your gratitude helps your mind engage with the moment and trains you to notice the gifts around you.
However, valleys can also be part of life. They can range from minor issues, like a child not listening, to significant challenges, such as infidelity or serious illness. These difficult moments can knock you off balance quickly. When faced with such valleys, your response may oscillate between blowing up—yelling or disrespecting others—and shutting down by withdrawing or silencing yourself.
Life’s most challenging moments often trigger knee-jerk reactions driven by fear, anger, or shame. These responses originate from a primitive part of the brain, making even minor setbacks feel overwhelming. Reacting mindlessly to stress and relationship issues is like a computer repair service using a sledgehammer for fixes—it causes more damage and ignores the underlying problems.
Instead, taking the time to ground yourself before reacting allows you to make the best choices, even under challenging situations. When life gets hard, take a moment to get grounded:
- Pause: Stop talking, reacting, or moving.
- Breathe: Take a “heart breath”—inhale deeply into your heart for a count of 4, hold it for 4, and exhale for a count of 4. The goal is to slow your heart rate and calm your nervous system.
- Think: Once calm, choose your option and follow through with that action using a Grounded Powerful Strength (GPS).
Allow yourself the time to get grounded before navigating life’s challenges. Mastering your GPS can be a game-changer. Train yourself to move out of reactivity and into a place of strength at home, work, and the world.
Challenge: Focusing on bringing your strongest, wisest, and most grounded self into play gives you the greatest chance of wielding the most positive results. During the most difficult times in your life, focus first on getting grounded.
When the world around you is spinning, get grounded. And when everything around you feels like total chaos, get grounded.
When the floor beneath your feet feels like it’s been pulled out from under you, get grounded.
When you feel like you’ve lost your anchor, get grounded.
