Did you ever stop to wonder what life would be like if you were not able to experience emotions? Would life be easier? Less complicated? Or would it be dry and boring?
Think about it. Without anger, what would inspire us to fight for change? Without fear, would we jump into things that could potentially harm us ? What would connect us? What would take hold of our heart? What would break our heart? What would compel us to make a difference?
We were created to experience a wide range of emotions, AND they play such a critical role in living a meaningful and purposeful life.
And yet the reality is, in life, our emotions often get short-changed. In some cases, we learned to stuff, hide, ignore, and even “check our emotions at the door.” In other cases, if we wear our emotions on our sleeve, we are labeled as “over-emotional.” It seems we don’t know what to do with our emotions.
THE VALUE IN EMOTIONS
Here are three very important reasons why you want to choose to pay attention to your emotions.
Your emotions are a matter of the heart. And where your heart breaks, you will find a sense of purpose. Your emotions allow you to connect your daily actions outwardly with a meaningful purpose and more compelling life. Choose to listen to your heart. Choose to ask yourself, “What difference do I want to make?” Help your kids pay attention to their own emotions. Have conversations and ask them what breaks their heart? Help them to be aware of their feelings as they experience a variety of situations.
Your emotions provide you with data. They provide important information to help you navigate and thrive. You can name your emotions, and understand the meaning or messages behind them. Each basic emotion serves a purpose. Imagine what you are missing when you check these at the door!! When you are experiencing an emotion, model naming the emotion and begin to consider what message the emotion is sending. Our kids pay attention to how we handle our emotions. Teach them to embrace their emotions and use them to better understand a situation and all the moving parts. As your kids navigate life, help facilitate this process with them.
Emotions impact your thoughts and actions. Are you letting your emotions hi-jack your choices? When you are interacting with your family members, peers, co-workers, do you let your emotions overtake the course? Do your emotions send you to auto-pilot with an immediate reaction? As you become more self aware, take a 6 second pause and choose how you will respond to your emotions. Learn to navigate your emotions so that you get the best possible result.
Dealing with your emotions may seem like hard work at first, but with practice, your emotions will prove to be a valuable part of your being. People who are smart with their feelings don’t need to check their emotions at the door because they learned to navigate and be inspired by them.
Embrace your emotions and pay more attention to them. We were created to be emotional human beings. Checking them at the door is like leaving a part of yourself behind.
So how are you feeling today?