Ever felt like you’ve had enough? Fed up with dealing with problems or hearing about what’s going wrong in the world? We’ve all had days like that. We just want things to go right for one day. It’s totally normal to feel like that.
But what if I told you that you can do something about it? What would you say to that? I’m sure you’d say something like “Bring it on!”
OK, here’s what you can do to turn things around: change the channel.
Let me explain what I mean with an analogy. You’re sitting in front of the TV after dinner and you’re flipping through channels or looking at what’s playing. There’s a whole lot to choose from: comedy, romance, family-oriented, adventure, violence, drama, scary, etc. You choose one and start watching it. A few minutes into it, you realize you don’t like it at all so you switch the channel or look for something else to watch.
You can do the same thing in your life. There’s an infinite amount of things happening that you can focus on, for example: armed conflicts in certain parts of the world, politics, the pandemic, technical issues you had with your computer, yesterday’s confrontation with a colleague, etc. Or you can focus on the good things in your life: the promotion you got, the compliment your partner gave you, your loved ones, your best friend, your home, your health, your abundance. I can hear you say, “I’m not rich!” Yes, you are – 689 million people live in extreme poverty (statistics from the World Bank).
Now, it doesn’t mean you deny the existence of these events or issues or that you don’t do something about them if you can. You simply choose to focus on something that makes you feel good. Let’s use the TV analogy. You know there are other movies, shows and series playing, but you’re choosing a channel that you like better. Which makes total sense. Why would you watch something you don’t like or that makes you feel bad? To use a personal example, I don’t like scary movies or movies that contain too much violence because I don’t sleep well if I do and they don’t make feel good. I prefer comedy and adventure. They’re inspiring and uplifting.
It’s up to you. You can either choose to watch the channel that makes you feel bad and continue watching it even if it’s of no benefit to you whatsoever OR you can change the channel to one you like and that makes you feel good.
What happens when you focus on things that make you feel good – joy, love, gratitude, serenity, hope, amusement, inspiration or awe?
Your whole world changes. You don’t feel overwhelmed by the problems in the world or in your life. You feel empowered and inspired. From that place, you can deal with whatever comes up. If something “bad” happens and you have the ability to do something about it, you can jump in if you wish to. Otherwise, why waste your energy on something over which you have no control?
And when you know you can choose what you focus on, no matter what “bad” thing is happening at the moment, you know it’s only one aspect of life; one of the movies/series/shows playing on TV. You let it play. You just change the channel.
So, what do you want to watch today?
– Sylvie Grégoire