Pause, Listen, Engage!
This month's Tip is inspired by a peculiar mix of the current Six Nations Rugby series and the Health Secretary Andrew Lansley!
Taken, no doubt, from the referee's instructions to players before a scrum to 'crouch, touch, pause, engage' — last April the Coalition Government announced their intention to 'Pause, Listen and Engage' in order to consider all sides of the argument regarding their proposed Health and Social Care bill.
It struck me that this would be a brilliant 3-Step Strategy for all those times when we need to say "No".
Here's how it works.
Step One:
When you receive a request to do or get involved in something the first thing to do is to PAUSE. Instead of automatically saying "yes", find a way to put some space between the request and your response. This could be as simple as saying you'll get back to them in an hour, or let them know tomorrow or next week. It's really important to give yourself some thinking space.
Step Two:
The next step is to LISTEN ... to yourself. Is this something you genuinely want to do? Or is it something you feel you should do? Can you say yes to it wholeheartedly? By saying yes to this, what else in your life are you saying no to? How will this additional activity affect your life balance? What about your down time? Does it fit with your overall plan for the year? Does it accord with your values and what's really important to you?
Step Three:
Only when you've Paused and Listened can you then choose to ENGAGE — or not.
Pause, Listen, Engage — guard your precious time carefully — and have a great month!
© Annabel Sutton, Coaching Tips - 2012
Turn Up the Volume
Like an ability or a muscle, hearing your inner wisdom is strengthened by doing it. Robbie Gass
Some years ago a friend used an intriguing metaphor to describe what was happening to her. She explained that she kept hearing a certain message about what she should do next in her life. Because the message referred to a pretty radical life change — not something she wanted to take on board at the time — she kept trying to ignore it. She kept ‘turning down the volume’ (as you would on a radio) so that she couldn't hear it any longer. But, no matter how hard she tried to ignore it, as the months went by the message kept coming back — getting louder and louder until she couldn't ignore it any longer.
Have you ever had a similar experience? Are there messages right now that are trying to break through the static? Do you keep turning down the volume because it's too scary or uncomfortable to think about them? Or perhaps you haven't given yourself permission to explore the possibilities inherent in them?
While many of us use logic to make decisions and set our life course, I believe that it's really important to listen to our intuition as well. There are certainly times in my life when I've chosen to turn down the volume and have later regretted that I didn't listen more carefully.
In the relentlessly noisy world we live in it can be tough to quieten down enough to let the messages filter through. So you might have to take conscious steps to make space in your life for reflection. Many people find that meditation helps them to still the mind. In her wonderful book The Artist's Way Julia Cameron recommends writing a stream of consciousness first thing every morning. Perhaps taking a walk on your own — or making time to sit quietly — I know someone who does his best thinking when he's out running... whatever works for you.
So, my tip for this month is to keep your eyes and ears open. Listen and look for the messages. Turn up the volume and listen to your own wisdom. Most importantly, when you get an intuitive hit, pay attention to it even if it feels uncomfortable. Give yourself permission to consider all the possibilities. Who knows where they might take you?
Turn up the volume and have a great month!
© Annabel Sutton, Coaching Tips - 2012
