In a world of constant change, it is hardly surprising if events sometimes knock us off balance. This means that learning to recentre and ground ourselves is the first step to becoming antifragile. Inner Leadership provides a range of tools that help us do this quickly.
But even better than recovering quickly is not being knocked off balance in the first place. We achieve this when we deepen our connection with ourselves.
The relationship we have with ourselves is the most important relationship we have in our life. It is the only one that lasts our whole lifetime. And it affects the quality of every other relationship we have. This means that when we improve the quality of the relationship we have with ourselves we also improve all our other relationships, which not only expands the joy we experience in life but also the results we can achieve.
Like a tree putting down deeper roots, the deeper we build our relationship with ourselves the less likely we are to be blown over in a storm. And when times are calm, deeper roots enable us to spread out our ‘branches’ out further into larger challenges and roles.
Inner Leadership recommends four ways that we can achieve this deeper self-connection:
- Exercise
“Exercise is the single best thing you can do for your brain in terms of mood, memory, and learning,” says John Ratey, psychiatrist at Harvard Medical School. “Even 10 minutes of activity changes your brain.”
Mind and body are one system. We hold stresses from our minds as tensions in our bodies. So shifting the body is an effective way to shift and free the mind. As one example, Richard Branson says he gets four extra productive hours each day from a range of workouts that include swimming, rock climbing, running, weightlifting, and yoga.
. - Creativity
In a fast-changing world, the ability to innovate is becoming more important for everyone. Innovation is applied creativity, so when we develop our creative ‘muscles’ we also strengthen our ability to innovate.
Engaging with the arts is a powerful way to experiment with new ways of seeing the world and new types of solutions. And when you find the creative form that suits you, you will recharge your own batteries at the same time: ‘work’ becomes play.
. - Meditation
Steve Jobs, co-founder and CEO of Apple, was well known for practising Zen Buddhism. He said, “Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice.” Meditation reconnected him with that inner voice.
Since then, scientists have discovered that meditation and other forms of mindfulness also increase our ability to concentrate and manage our emotions. Gandhi used meditation to bring down an entire empire, non-violently.
All three of these methods can be combined with the fourth approach, which is:
- Spending Time in Nature
Any form of contact with nature can be beneficial but visits to hills or large bodies of water are especially beneficial. The benefits of ‘forest bathing‘ are also well known.
There’s no one ‘right way’ to deepen your connection with yourself. The key is to notice what you feel drawn towards, try it out, see what happens, then learn and repeat: exercise, meditation, creativity, and/or spending time in nature.
Find out what works for you.
How good is the relationship you have with yourself today? Do you criticise yourself for your ‘failures’ or accept your imperfections and support yourself to take the next step in creating whatever matters most to you? Would you benefit from adding more exercise, creativity, or meditation to your life or from spending more time in nature? When?
Adapted from Inner Leadership: a framework and tools for building inspiration in times of change.
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(And remember: you can’t learn to swim just by reading about swimming, you also have to do the practice.)
Photo By filtran via StockPholio.net