The Need to Find Your Center
There is a need for many to pause and take time to find, return, or create a new center. The past few years have been tough for obvious reasons. And for many reasons, individuals find themselves under pressure with no fault of their own. I know I have had to recapture my center and gratefully I have battled back . . . and it hasn’t been the first time I have been knocked off my center - with discipline my intention is to keep centered, but more about that later.
Slow down, pause, and find your center.
Too many of us are burdened by stress, loneliness, separation, worry, and anxiety. Examples include:
Younger and middle-aged adults are the most likely to deal with debilitating chronic stress.
Gen Zers are the most stressed age group in many industrialized nations.
Millennials report the highest rates of anxiety, loneliness, and depression.
The CDC in June 2020 reports substantial increases in self-reported behavioral health symptoms in anxiety, depression, substance abuse, and thoughts of suicide.
And the list goes on.
What is Being Centered?
I want to offer a definition of what I mean by Being Centered or Finding Your Center because you won’t find a definition (go ahead Google it) unless you are into Yoga. To me the elements of Being Centered are:
Being happy with who you are. This doesn’t mean you can’t do better or be better. It actually means the opposite. It means you are very self-aware. Aware of the good parts of who you are and the “edges” that you have to keep working at so they don’t get in the way of doing remarkable things.
Being grateful. In October I published an article “Leading with Gratitude”. I wrote that article because I had forgotten how to lead with gratitude and that was one of the reasons I had lost my center. I am so grateful I have recaptured that and it is something I treasure and am spending time helping others learn to do.
Connecting. This is critical. Connecting on an interpersonal and personal level. Daring to make yourself vulnerable. Being empathetic. Taking time. Laughing. Loving. Many people have been and are continuing to isolate - it is dangerous.
Being Challenged. This can take many forms and comes from many avenues. The important thing is that you are being challenged to trigger your mind and creativity. Doing so sparks your desire to continually evolve and learn.
Find Joy. Everyone deserves joy - a feeling of happiness or delight or pleasure. Find it! Recently I had the opportunity to connect with friends that I have known for over five decades for the second time in six months. It was pure joy (and a bit insane). We are planning the next reunion. Another regular thing that my wife and I do to find joy is to spend time with our grandchildren. The joy that we receive is indescribable.
Being Centered
So how might you reclaim, find, or create your center? Two words - SLOW DOWN! That’s what I had to do. To be honest, I had to full stop.
If you haven’t heard Sissel sing Slow Down I recommend it (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFe84U__kt). Caution, it is faith-based. Regardless, your persuasion. The words are relevant to my recommendation:
Slow Down, Slow Down, Be Still, And Wait . . .
When one is off centered, stressed, lonely, disconnected, worried - it is time to Slow Down, Be Still, And Wait. It is time, to stop and find your center. This requires assessing the need to connect, find things to be grateful for, find your joy and return to happy. Have the courage to reach out to someone you trust to seek advice and counsel to help you get unstuck. Being Still doesn’t mean you have to be still alone. There was a time in the not so distant past when my oldest grandson sat with me in the ashes when he didn’t even realize I so desperately needed him to be with me, (and all along he thought I was the one to chase the monsters away).