If you get reversed king Midas touch

What do we do when we feel that we're not living up to expectations?
I have to admit that I little while ago found myself back in the bottomless pit of unreasonably high expectations. It is a place where you might think high expectations would result in perfection. Alas, I find that it is much more like a reversed King Midas touch. No gold. Just crap. It is a place of little or no logic.

 

How do we make sense of it? Well first of all when we find ourselves there we must know that we usually are going about things all wrong. Take a step back and ask yourself:

• In the best of worlds what would I have done? What would the ultimate version of you have done? Then do that next time, or at least take a step in that general direction. 
• How can I make things easier? It is easy to get into negative self talk when experiencing that things aren't going as planned. When you find that happening stop it immediately. And don't blame yourself. Remind yourself as often as you can to be kind until it comes naturally. 
• Will this matter tomorrow? Next week? Next month? Next year? In ten years? Whatever it was it is surely not the end of the world. Honestly it does not serve anyone to worry. It might be helpful to put a restraint to either "ok I will think about this for 5 minutes" or I have thought about this three times, that is enough.
• "Have you tried turning it off and on again?" Our body and mind needs care. When we're stressed and feel we have much to do we might put or needs aside for this oh so important thing. That's a warning sign. Here we must practise restraint, responsibility and above all respect for ourselves. And if you find that warning is coming up often then maybe you need to reevaluate what you're juggling or re-plan your routines.
• Get your mind to a positive place by guided meditation or inspirational talks. It doesn't have to be for a long time. Even a few minutes or a moment can do the trick sometimes.

You can do anything you want.

But you cannot do everything at once.

The worldwide multi-tasking efficiency illusion madness must come to an end. 

And where does change begin?

You know it.

A decent human being.

The beginning of this post was hardest to write yet. 

Erased and replaced so many times. 

I prefer not to get political but considering circumstances the subject seems inevitable.

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When I was ten we had a pretend election in school. We got to vote for the president of USA and we got to choose between George W. Bush and Al Gore. I voted for Bush.

I had no idea what he stood for but his name was Bush and I thought it was funny. Imagine, a Bush for president in The States. And he won our pretend election. And the real one too.

I'd like to think that the voters of that election (2000) and this one (2016) did not vote out of the same grounds as I did as a ten-year-old. Because "it was funny." 

Because it's not.

Granted, Donald Trump may be different from conventional politicians, but is it really the force for change that USA needs? For a moment I felt the same kind of dread as was felt when Sweden Democrats entered parliament and then later became the third largest party in the Swedish Parliament. 

- - - - - - - -

We must not get infuriated or think that the ones with a opinion differing from ours are stupid. They have their reasons. Wether it is change, economy, personal gain, immigration politics, a sense of rebellion or because of not letting the family voting traditions down is of little importance to me. 

What I want to talk about today is a quality which is not valued very high in our society or amongst the people with power. A quality which any decent human being has. The quality which makes us help each other (be they close ones or strangers), bridge the gaps of fear or ignorance and replace it with understanding and acceptance. This quality is one that heals, builds and brings hope for humanity. 

I'm talking about compassion. 

And should not the people with power first and foremost be decent human beings? 

Why is compassion seemingly valued so little today? So far I have not seen any compassion from Donald Trump and this is one of the strongest reasons why I believe he will not make any wise decisions.

I refuse to think all hope is lost. Of course I am worried for a country which can elect someone who may base their decisions on the values opposing compassion. Someone who does not believe in climate change (as if it was some sort of conspiracy?) but acts out personal gain, out of fear or hate or judgement. A swelling ego without an open mind. 

It's a beautiful day. 

The sun is turning the early snow into subtle glitter and the sky is unapologetically blue.

I refuse to  surrender to fear or hopelessness.

There are decent human beings out there and we must strive to be part of them.

We must grow and nurture our compassion. It must not be mistaken for weakness. Because it can feel disempowering when we see only the problem and no given solution. It is actually a strength and the pain we feel when we can't help is just a pinpoint we're heading down the right path. 

I'd even go as far as to say compassion is a superhero strength. 

It can make us do incredible things. 

Believe in it.

Believe you have the power.

Don't fall into the trap of waiting for the hero.

Because it is you.

And if you need someone to pick you 

and tell you that you are the chosen one 

THEN I PICK YOU NOW

and if you feel unprepared for the task know that all heroes felt like that.

Your life has prepared you and will continue to do so

challenging you with opportunities for growth.

All change in the world starts with you.

If you want peace.

Find it within yourself first. 

Then show it to the world and help it feel it too.

If you don't know where to start there are a great deal of Ted Talks on the subject of compassion and empathy. Get inspired. Get empowered. Shake the world in a gentle way. 

Off to the yoga mat.

PEACE IN.

I DON'T HAVE TIME FOR THIS BEEP

So.

This week was hectic to say the least. Maybe it was for you too?

It's easy to when we have much going on to kind of let go of the good routines or our practise... and sometimes that might honestly be what we need. To feel good is not always obsessing about the healthy and forcing our rituals on ourselves when we already have a lot of strain. Sometimes a cup of hot chocolate can bring just as much feeling of goodness as the healthiest thing you can think of.

What I'm trying to say here is don't be too hard on yourself if you can't stick to it sometimes, especially when you feel you've already got the world on your shoulders. That's when you need that extra support. To feel the world got your back.

Don't color your day with a bad mood.

But then there's that inner struggle of I HAVE TO THIS AND I HAVE TO THAT AND AAAAAAH! So there's things to be done, 

but 

what you need the most is your breath. You can return to it at any time. Wherever you are. It takes no time and very little effort. Yet it gives much back. That's the beauty of it.

If you're stressed. Breathe. 

If you are in pain. Breathe. 

If you're upset. Breathe. 

If you're overwhelmed. Breathe. 

If you've had enough of reading this just give yourself a break and breathe instead. 

Surely you will get into that kind of situation again. Not all days can be a manifestation of flow. Of course you can prepare for the challenges, but when all is said and done... in the heat of the moment there might feel like there is only one way (there is never just one way!) and we might forget all about our brilliant techniques of stress management when we need them the most. 

When it happens just remind yourself.

Take a moment.

You can choose how to feel. 

You can choose a better way.

You got this.

You have time for this breath.