Hypnotized by conditions

Over the last week I have had the opportunity to observe many people I have known for a long time in a new habitat and under new conditions. It is interesting to watch how people change under various pressures and then, notice some of the same changes in myself. I am not immune to stress, but once I recognize its presence, I am able to mitigate it as a passing feeling and then carry on. Once it has been identified, it loses its power to control me because I am now aware of its presence.

I think many people spend the time worrying about the stress as if it is an issue, so then, it becomes an issue, it becomes a focus point and because it is unpleasant, they try to avoid the feeling. Avoidance is like running away from a tiger, you do not control the direction other than, away. Focusing on what is chasing you means not being able to focus on where you are actually going, as a lot of energy is spent looking backwards.

I don't know if you have noticed this but I think that you would in other people if observing them. If you see someone waling down the street and you think they look depressed, in which direction are their eyes pointing? What about if you see someone looking confident?

Next time you are walking down the street, try to pay attention to your mental state and where your are generally pointing. What you might notice is that when you are looking downward, you are probably in a worse mood, more closed off and reflecting on past, something that happened to you, or you did. When in a better mood, you will look more eyeline and be far more observant of the world around you. At least, that is what it is in my experience.

What I have noticed of late is that people (and likely myself) are finding it harder to concentrate and focus, it seems more difficult to spend time on one focal point with eyes moving much more than usual. I think this is because many people have a lot of things on their plate and mind, much of which they haven't dealt with earlier. Many things, much uncertainty - so their mind is wandering and cycling from topic to topic without being able to hold for an extended period of time what they might actually have to focus on.

It is interesting because in general and what might seem counter-intuitive to many, the cure to stress is work. Accomplishing what needs to be done reduces stress, avoidance will postpone and wind up increasing it, as eventually, it will have to be done anyway, often with less time and resources - so higher stress.

So many people feel that stress is something negative when I believe that it can be a positive force, something that indicates that we are challenged. While too much is obviously counter-productive, just enough and the flow state can be achieved - and just like lifting weights at a gym, the more the challenge is met, the easier it gets and the higher the weight can be increased.

This is a large part of the reason that there can be such large differences in how people act and react under stress, with those who are accustomed to it, having a higher tolerance and resilience. This means that they can behave normally and consistently for longer, and therefore both deal with whatever is at hand, as well as take opportunities that others do not even see, as they are looking down at their feet or unable to focus.

I wrote a piece about having disposable income and resources to invest in the bad times, however the most valuable resource that we have at our disposal is ourselves and our mind and body. Some people have energy in surplus to meet the world come what may, others continually shrink away, chased by the pressure into whatever corner they can find to feel safe.

There is one thing that is certain in all of this however, no one else can live our experience for us, so we best find ways to cope and deal as conditions are always changing and the weather is rarely fair.

Taraz
[ an original ]