The danger of a goal

I re-read a blog post I like called "The best goal is no goal" this morning, which in turn got me thinking about the difference between a goal and a vision.

Viktor Frankl, in his classic book "Man's Search For Meaning", tells the story of a fellow inmate in the same concentration camp as him, who tells Viktor of his dream that the war will be over for him (the other inmate) by a certain date a few months in advance.

When the date is about to arrive and it's clear that nothing is going to happen, the fellow inmate falls ill, goes downhill rapidly and dies from typhoid the following day after his predicted date of escape.

Having very clear solid goals, whilst very motivating when striving towards them, can have the complete opposite effect and be the source of despondency when we have gone past them and are looking backwards having not achieved them.

And we all know that life cannot be predictable at the best of times.

Think of those poor people on a journey in their cars on the M5 the other day, who never completed their expected journeys.

For me, a vision is less structured than a goal, it doesn't necessarily have a definite end date, and often, although the 'what' of the goal may be reasonably clear, the 'how' is evolving as you move along.

A good vision also releases attachment to the 'how' with a liberal dose of curiosity, such as "That's not at all what I expected. I wonder how that can still help me achieve my vision?"

What if today...

What if today was the last day of your life, and you knew it?

What if today was going to be the best day of your life?

What if today you knew that an opportunity would show up that could transform your life for the better forever, but that opportunity would be hidden in an ordinary moment that, if you weren't aware, would disappear forever?

I read a quote from Thich Nhat Hanh on a blog this morning, just before I went out for my run. It was what sparked my above thoughts.

The quote was, very simply: "Smile, breathe and go slowly".

I think that piece of wisdom would serve in all of my above questions.

Removing the creative block

When I was running this morning, I realised that whenever I'm working hard trying to think of what I'm going to write for my blog post, it's never that successful.

It usually results in me thinking how the time is ticking away, which increases the pressure on me to come up with the right answer as soon as possible, which in turn makes it tougher still.

What I always end up doing is concentrating on my breathing while I run, and maybe taking stock of different parts of my body, to check in with how they're feeling.

When I let go of having to come up with a topic for my blog, and divert the conscious part of my brain by checking in to what's going on for me in the here and now, it gives the subconscious part of my brain permission and the space to do its thing, which is being creative.

My subconscious invariably comes up with the goods.

What can you do to divert the conscious you, and let your subconscious do the creative work?

HALT, don't go there

On my run this morning I was thinking about a very recent event where I reacted with what was not the most diplomatic or planned of responses.

This, in turn, raised the general temperature level of the discussion, which then, as a consequence, took a long time to come back down to room temperature.

I remembered the acronym HALT that I heard recently.

HALT stands for Hungry, Angry, Lonely, Tired.

HALT is a reminder to stop whatever it is that you're doing whenever you find yourself feeling hungry, angry, lonely or tired, and focus on taking care of yourself in whatever way is appropriate to take you out of that state.

So if you're hungry, concentrate on eating something; if you're angry do whatever you need to do (count to 10, go for a run or a walk, breathe deeply) to quell your anger; if you're lonely, telephone someone or go and see them; and if you're tired, get some rest, listen to some energising music, or even take some exercise.

Next time I'm feeling tired and am about to say something maybe I shouldn't, I'll try and remember to HALT myself.

Thoughts as medicine

I was puddle-jumping, fairly unsuccessfully I might add, around my mile-and-a-bit course at 5.30 this morning in the dark with the rain lashing down, and I was enjoying myself.

At one point I was thinking about the new Channel 4 series, The Food Hospital, where they are exploring using food as medicine.

The idea that's it's really important what we put into our bodies is not a new one to me, and it's always quite surprising on these sorts of TV shows how it seems to be a revelation to so many.

But the idea of being able to use food as medicine, I really love.

I would far rather be keeping myself healthy through the food I eat and my regular running than rely on pharmaceutical alternatives, which quite often come with their own unpredictable side effects.

The other thing that I think you can use as medicine is the thoughts and ideas that you allow to settle and take control of your mind.

Have you ever heard the expression "attitude is everything"?

I believe that to be true.

If your attitude is negative you tend to turn in on yourself, feeling sorry for yourself, wondering what the point is, expecting things to turn out badly, and then wondering "what's the point" when they do.

You're not someone others are drawn to when you're in "this space".

When your attitude is positive, you look outwards wondering what the day will hold, you feel joyful, expect things to turn out well, and even when they don't, you find the positive in the experience and look for the next step forward again.

You become someone that others like to be around because they feel the effect of your positive energy.

I met a lady on Monday, when I was coaching a group of 31 teaching assistants, who told me how she had healed herself of cancer by creating what she called an "alpha state" in her mind every morning.

She refused the chemotherapy she was recommended and managed to rid her body of the cancer that had started in one of her internal organs and spread to her lymphatic system in a period of six weeks.

She is now teaching her process to cancer sufferers and others who are trying to stay healthy.

To quote Mahatma Gandhi:

"A man is but the product of his thoughts. What he thinks, he becomes."