|
Look at all the good that you have, for a change.
For those of you who don't know, I spent 4 days in Miami last week preparing for the SuperBowl and documenting my experiences for a new GM Website called www.igotshotgun.com .
I was talking to a friend today and she was asking about the whole experience - and I think I am still processing what my feelings really are. To be honest with you, I felt a lot of frustration over the weekend, and I think that is what I am trying to deal with right now and resolve in my own thinking. While talking with my friend, it hit me that the frustration was stemming from the standpoint that I had set pretty high expectations. Not too high (I stay very balanced), but I was really prepared and excited to do a lot of filming - since that is what the contest was all about. Bottom line, because this is such a new project - and there were so many external (and internal) elements at play - a lot of what we were supposed to be doing fell through. As a result, a lot of what I filmed didn't get used, or events that I was supposed to film ended up not getting media coverage. So, that was pretty darn frustrating.
The last thing I want to do is look back on the experience and see it as a negative, or feel sad over "what could have been." During my conversation today, at one point I said to my friend, "If I were to take this weekend at face value - it would be a big positive!"
So why not take the weekend at face value?
What's wrong with "face value?"
We're told not to accept things at "face value," but could there be times when the best thing we can do is actually just look at an experience or situation for "what it is," instead of "what we wanted it to be?"
Expectation can be a fickle friend!
In essence, the only thing that made this weekend a negative was that my expectations weren't met. What I "thought was going to happen," and what "actually happened" ended up being two different things. But, take away my preconceived expectations, and here is what I did over those 4 days:
* Hung out with a good friend in South Beach
* Met a great group of talented guys working behind the scenes
* Played on the beach and streets of South Beach interviewing people and having fun
* Got to attend a Marley Brothers concert free with VIP access
* Ate authentic Cuban food for the first time
* Got my first ever pedicure and eyebrow wax (oh yeah)
* Attended two private parties that included NFL stars Jerome Bettis, Donovan McNabb, Marshall Faulk, Steve Young, and Michael Strahan (and many, many more!) ;)
* Went to SuperBowl XLI for free! (got a little wet)
Looking back, that looks pretty good to me! Instead of focusing on "what didn't happen," I am going to concentrate on what actually "did happen." This isn't easy, but it is the only thought that will produce a positive result.
Growing up in Christian Science and still practicing and living the principles as an adult - one of the key concepts I try to live by is the idea that "seeing the good" in any situation is the only perspective worth taking. Everything else is a distraction or illusion that tries to prevent us from the good that is actually going on. So, if my concept of God is an all-loving and perfect God - do I really expect that same God to allow negative experiences into my life?
Think about it. When you get mad at your spouse, or mad at your job, or mad at your own faults - most of your disappointment comes from an expectation that does not occur - so all we end up seeing is the bad of that situation. But what would happen if we took our current reality at "face value" and focused (make a list) of all the good that is going on in your life right now. Not "what could be," but "what is." Remember, "what could be" is living "there," but "what is" means you are living "here."
It is more than just being positive, it is choosing to see life for the good it always has to offer - and the more you are able to see that, the less "wrong" you will feel or experience.
Are you a doubter?
If so, give it a try. What do you have to lose? Let me know how you do!!
Hey, that's my blog for the week, just take it at face value!
Read more from this blogger at Travis Inc.
|
