You know those moments that knock you off balance?
Perhaps a conversation takes an unexpected left turn, or you receive disappointing news? Maybe a meeting doesn’t go to plan, or you discover a mistake that you’re not sure how to fix? Or a worry or challenge you thought was sorted reappears in a new way?
We can’t avoid them - they happen to all of us and are part of the natural ups and downs of life - but we can understand what helps us come back to centre when they do. It helps to be prepared!
Some of my favourites are to get things out of my head and onto paper, to go for a walk (with a coffee or the dog or both), to lie down for 5 minutes, to buy myself some time to take a step back or a night to sleep on it, to talk it through with someone I trust. They all help me regain my balance, my energy and my perspective.
And what works can be different for each of us.
It depends whether we would rather be alone or have company, stillness or movement, a hug or some space, to talk it through or take our minds off it for a moment, to keep it in or let it out?
It may help to move inwards - to be alone, have some quiet time, a nap, take a breath, listen to some music.
It may be better to share outwards - to make sense of our thoughts and feelings in writing, or out loud, to voice note a friend or ask for support.
It may work to shake the energy out of our system through movement - a walk, run, dancing to a song, shaking out our hands, doing a few star jumps - or focus it on something creative and practical / hands on.
It also depends on the scale of the knock and the impact it’s had on us. Sometimes rebalancing is a 2-minute fix, sometimes we need more tools and more time.
There’s no one size fits all, so it’s useful to get to know what works for us.
Over time we can build a personal toolkit to draw on when we get knocked off balance. To have options to choose from depending on what we need in the moment. To help us come back to centre.
What helps you come back to centre?
And would it help to go in, out, or shake it all about?
Wishing you a wonderful week,
