What are you working on in 2023? How are you hoping to change or grow?
I’m excited to share some big projects with all of you—the heart of the emotional agility community—beginning with a new cast of characters (…among other things! Keep reading to find out). Creating a visual language that supports our collective growth has required some hard work and perseverance and, as with any budding project, it’s actually benefited from the moments when my team and I have rested and incubated ideas. (There is power in the pause.)
The best ideas often occur when we’re least expecting them, and patience is essential, because…
CHANGE IS A PROCESS; NOT AN EVENT.
Just as we have to wait for a spring thaw or an arriving train, life is full of moments that remind us to be patient. Nature favors evolution, not revolution. Regardless of how eager we are for a change to take place, we can’t rush the time it takes for something really meaningful to unfold.
Sometimes, of course, we get stuck. If you realize that you’ve been waiting too long for a change to occur, you might benefit from a shift in perspective. You never know what you’ll suddenly notice if you observe your situation from a distance.
When we’re pursuing what’s important to us, such as maintaining a healthy habit or transitioning into (or out of) a romantic relationship, it can also be helpful to acknowledge that some changes are quiet and subtle evolutions.
RECOGNIZE HOW YOU FIT INTO THE LARGER PICTURE.
Life, after all, is about balance. The balance between working and resting, learning and sharing, taking risks and standing on the solid ground of familiarity. It’s easy to forget about balance when we’re knee-deep in effort. But it’s still there.
It’s important to remember, as we toil toward a summit—whether that’s the completion of a project, an emotional, physical, or financial evolution, mastering a new skill, or making a deep shift in our lives—that there is something of value waiting for us on the other side. If we carry our compassion, curiosity, and courage with us, they will sustain and guide us along the way. And while we are all on our own journey, we can also be a community of companions, drawing on others for love and support. There is something exquisite in the knowledge that we don’t need to go it alone.
As we head into this new year, some of us may feel the enthusiasm of a fisherman with a trout on the line, a birdwatcher with a rare species in sight, and a skier on a bluebird day. Others might be experiencing the anxiety of a tightrope walker, the exhaustion of a mountain climber, the weight of loss. Many of us will encounter both. Life’s beauty is inseparable from its fragility.
As a community, you’ve been asking for more ways to engage with emotional agility as you walk through life. I’ll be sharing some exciting new developments this year, including:
- Emotional Agility Learning Journeys for select organizations—state-of-the-art online learning experiences that are a roadmap for real behavioral change. (Individuals can sign up for the waitlist here.)
- More free downloadable resources, here on this website,
- And a fresh visual language to help us explore emotional agility on social media. I’d love to connect with you there.
I’m so grateful for all of you. Let’s continue to grow together.
Take the Quiz