We all encounter those moments when our plans go terribly array or something unexpected (yet totally predictable in hindsight) throws a wrench in things. Those moments can be incredibly frustrating and devastatingly disappointing.
If we aren’t careful, we can get sucked into the pit of rumination where we agonize over every little detail. Rumination is when we keep playing a situation over and over again in our minds, and stress about the causes and consequences of our actions. Tasha Eurich defines rumination as the “single-minded fixation on our fears, shortcomings and insecurities.”
One of my favorite sayings for turning disappointment or frustration about a bad situation around is “Live and learn.”
One of my favorite sayings for turning disappointment or frustration about a bad situation around is “Live and learn.”
In fact, the saying has become a threshold that enables me to pass from rumination to insight. Just saying or writing, “live and learn” shifts my thinking from ruminating to working through it. It’s like a switch has been flipped where I stop feeling sorry for myself or filled with regret, and start taking charge of the only thing I can control – my own reaction!
So if you’re fixating on a bad situation, it’s time to stop ruminating and start to “live and learn!” Here are four reflection questions to get you started:
Journaling Prompts
What about this situation worked well?
What about this situation did not work well?
What was missing, that would have made this situation better?
How will you apply lessons learned from this situation moving forward?
What’s Rosabella Consulting Up To?
We’ve been up to so many fun things lately doing coaching, training and facilitation with clients!! And we’ll have more updates and new developments to share shortly…
In the mean time, mark your calendar for our next Journal Jam on May 17th at 9:30am. Join fellow journalers for camaraderie, inspiration and time to work on your craft. New and experienced journalers welcome. Participants will receive journaling prompts, coffee or tea and light snacks.
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