*Watch the YouTube version
I LOVE triggers.
You know, those things that people say or do that really burn your ass and trigger a less-than-pleasant emotional response?
Ok, I’ll admit – I don’t necessarily love them in the moment. BUT, when seen in hindsight, triggers are GOLD..!
Just this past weekend I found myself knee deep in mucky self-doubt, all triggered by what I interpreted as rejection.
Yup, that particular trigger is an old friend of mine..
Here’s what happened:.
A friend that I haven’t seen in a while changed our plans to meet at the last minute. Things had changed for her and she re-prioritized her day.
Nothing wrong with that. Is there? Nope.
But that’s not how it felt for me in the moment.
I was already teetering on the brink of low emotion (u-huh, I’m human too) and this just nudged into the abyss of self-pity. And I fell..
Now, I won’t bore you with the sloppy details, suffice to say that after some serious puppy-love therapy (see last week’s musing) my emotional state improved, and I had access to a little more objectivity. Which offered a much needed shift in perspective.
You see, NONE of this was about my friend, or her actions.
It was ALL ME..
I CHOSE to interpret the situation as a measurement of my VALUE.
Quite simply, in a moment of insecurity, I perceived her action as a rejection of me.
That I wasn’t important enough.
And this perspective was MY choice..
Entirely.
Hence the feelings of self-pity (cue eye-roll).
But once I got a good grip on what REALLY happened, understood the trigger, I was able to shift in another direction. Just simply let it go.
And so to circle back to my earlier statement: I LOVE triggers.
Being able to recognise and shift old beliefs that occasionally get in the way, is PRICELESS.
Knowing that we’ve faced-down an old fear and shifted to a more empowering story is what gives us the confidence to do it again, and again. Expanding each and every time.
Which is the whole point. Isn’t it?
Simple, right..?