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Being Aware of Triggers and Attachments
Being aware of what triggers strong emotions in us can help us to foster detachment and keep us on track with our goals.
Picture a person resting on the banks of a gently flowing river. The river flows by actively, but the person rests, peaceful, breathing easily, mindfully aware of the surroundings yet turned inward, feeling neither a desire to act nor a desire to be still, simply being.
Anytime we want, we can be the person on the banks
Rather than get caught up in the stream of our thoughts, swimming for dear life, we can consciously step onto the banks and choose to rest. We can watch the river flow by, notice our thoughts, yet recognize that our thoughts are not us. Our thoughts are just thoughts. We have the power to choose what to do with them. We can let them flow by. We can act on them. We can change them.
What is the person on the banks doing?
We can also use our person as an indicator of thoughts that carry emotional weight for us. Hmm, a thought flowed by in the stream and the person is sitting upright, peering after it! What’s that about? Hmm, another thought flowed by and the person is on their feet, ready to jump in! What is that about? Bit by bit, we get to know ourselves, to understand our triggers, our attachments, our emotions, and how what we think and feel affects how we act. Little by little, we grow our ability to act in the way we want.
Close your eyes
Suggested Action
Think about any times when an event happened and it caused you to lose focus. What was it about the event? Why did it generate that reaction? What systems could you put in place to have awareness of the trigger? Rehearse a different default response for the next time the trigger occurs.
Listen to Audio of this Tip: Audio 1m 54s: http://shinelikethesun.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/OntheBanks.mp3
(Sometimes hearing the tip causes you to process it differently.)
- June 5, 2024
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Leanne Cusumano Roque
