This is good because....

July 2, 2017

I am currently reading (okay, listening to on audiobook) the self-help book titled “You are a Badass”. I absolutely love it, and I highly recommend reading it or listening to it via Audible. It has fantastic positive thinking tips, and regularly intersperses exercises for you to practice what you are learning in the book. One of the exercises I have been trying recently is focused on shifting your mindset and seeing the good in difficult situations.

For this exercise, take a challenging and difficult situation, and reframe it by telling yourself: “This is good because…”

For example, I came down to the cruise ship café on deck 5 for a semi-quiet morning of writing time and maybe some knitting. The café happens to share the same space as the main piazza, which quite unexpectedly and for an unknown reason offered a circus act this morning.

This unexpected and confusing distraction was good because it gave me a really good story to blog about, once the leotard lady descended from the giant metal sphere and the piazza returned to its normal hum. Yes, I got pictures.

Following this exhibit of flexibility, fascination, and overall feeling of “what-the-f—k”, I was once again distracted by early afternoon trivia time (by the way, anyone know the name of the space shuttle in Odyssey?) (Never mind, we lost. It was called Discovery One. Wasn’t the deal breaker question but still upset that I didn’t know. Also, I wasn’t officially playing. Or listening. Or caring. But still.)

This was good because: While I was frustratingly trying to focus on writing, a middle-aged woman asked if she could set her stuff down on my table. I said sure, and figured since I was distracted already, I might as well chat while she waited for her coffee. We had a really nice conversation about her job as an emergency room nurse as it related to my work with kids on the autism spectrum. We discussed issues of stimulation and energies that people can bring into rooms and spaces and how one person’s energy can affect those around them.

Through this short exchange, I got to challenge myself socially, pushing myself outside my normal comfort zone (something I have been trying to do more of this trip). This is good because I am learning new conversation tactics and ways to relate with others, having quality conversations that feel genuine. I am learning to connect honestly and deeply, even if only in the time it takes to make two blended coffees and a panini sandwich.

Try this out for yourself. Next time a challenging situation arises, challenge yourself to find the positive perspective.  (“This is good because…”)

With love from the ocean (on our way to Tokoyo, Japan),

Rivi