2020 Hindsight

Throughout all of last year, we investigated ways to gain greater Clarity. The DRIVEN team, along with folks from the C-IQ® community and readers of our blogs, have all been on a journey of Clarity through these surreal months. Reflecting on this journey, a common thread emerges: emotions have been the driver all along. As Van Gogh suggested, “Let’s not forget that the little emotions are the captains of our lives, and we obey them without realizing it.”

About

If you’ve been following DRIVEN’s Year of Clarity, you’ve explored the role of emotions extensively. Early in the year, my colleague Dominique Ara and I discussed how journaling can reveal an "attic of emotional history," making the invisible visible. This insight, combined with Van Gogh’s wisdom, inspired me to intentionally maintain my emotional energy throughout the year. Some key themes we covered include:

• Self-compassion as a foundation for emotional perspective. Dominique Ara explains: “For journaling to proceed toward the attic, one must be well-prepared. Climbing up to that rickety loft and investigating the souvenirs (and the baggage) of our lives takes emotional and spiritual fortification. The strongest emotional scrubber in the cabinet is self-compassion.”
• How to function during emotionally exhausting crises.
• How our emotional state shapes reality and how to perform a “reality self-check.”
• Building and supporting emotional resilience.

This exploration reveals that we can intentionally bring "hindsight" closer to moments worthy of reflection by strengthening our mindfulness muscle. This requires repeatedly bringing the mind back to the present, much like training a puppy, as Buddhist practitioner Jack Kornfield analogizes.

Minding Your Mindfulness

Join my colleagues and clients as we continue to practice mindfulness to enhance emotional wellbeing. Here are three techniques to try:

• 3-breath meditation: Before deep focus work, check in with yourself using this quick meditation. It sharpens focus in under a minute.
• Moments of Mindfulness (MOMs): Create intentional pauses to connect with your senses. Examples include savoring your first bite of food or pausing during a walk to listen to your surroundings.
• Recognize your "switch": Notice where in your body you feel stress (e.g., tightness in the chest, flushing, sweaty palms). Use the 3-breath meditation or MOMs to regain perspective. Try the R.A.I.N. of Anxiety Meditation to realign.

As we move into 2021, consider how you’ll bring your mind to the present more quickly. DRIVEN is here to support you through coaching.