Just when I’m about to do something that I know doesn’t support a goal I CLAIM is important to me, I get this feeling in my body that I can only describe as a combination of rebellion, regret, calm rationalization, reassurance and guilt. It all happens in milliseconds! Sometimes the feeling is pretty obvious, other times, it’s nearly imperceptible. But I feel it. Against my own will, my body reminds me what I’m doing will not serve me; That my actions will not support what my mind told me I needed to do.
More...
In a flash, it tries to check me. Do I listen to it? Depends on where my excuse-addiction tugs at me the most. If it’s in a hot new restaurant or favorite coastal vacation spot where the fried calamari are to die for, probably not. When it comes to pleasing my palate, my excuse-addiction is strong! Sometime way back, I had elevated eating food to an experience as opposed to mere sustenance. That’s when I fight the most with my body and try to make my brain bully it into submission. After a week or two of restaurant crawls or vacation bullying, my body ultimately gets me back when I step on the scale. “BAM! Two pounds up! No, wait… three! Take that!” For other areas of my life where I seem to have things somewhat under control, I seem to just “know” without a second thought, listen attentively and comply. In all scenarios, my body knows.
Through my years of working with clients in both private and corporate settings, I recall several times hearing the excuse of “not knowing” or “not realizing” they were supposed to take action on something it was clearly in their realm of responsibility to do. It wasn’t a miscommunication or a misunderstanding. They were simply waiting for someone else to tell them to do something they really didn’t want to deal with. With private clients, it’s easier to navigate past that excuse and dig deeper. Invariably, the excuse will change to reflect the fact that they were tired, scared, confused or resentful at some point. Instead of working to resolve and communicate those feelings, they chose to ignore their responsibility and play dumb, hoping we were all born yesterday and wouldn’t notice. How much do you want to bet that their bodies were giving them a fit?
How about you? What signals does your body send when you don’t support yourself or ignore responsibility?