This is an A-Z guide to showcase some unfamiliar concepts in resilience, originally shared on my LinkedIn and inspired by day-to-day insights from my own experience with burnout and my work as a resilience keynote speaker.
A is for Auto-Regulation.
When our nervous system is wigged out (fight or flight mode), we are more likely to seek out intense positive experiences to mask the negative effects on our bodies. Think action movies, sex, intense exercise. As a resilience keynote speaker, I remind audiences that this is fine, in moderation, but we should try to avoid getting stuck in the sympathetic part of the nervous system. Ideally, in moments of stress, we adopt soothing techniques to switch back into a parasympathetic state. As resilience keynote speaker, I offer the leaders I work with step-by-step practices to do just that.
One for today is Panoramic Vision.
When we are relaxed we have dilated vision, we see our entire environment. When we are excited or stressed, the aperture shrinks, we get tunnel vision. This is the mind-body connection in action.
It’s also bi directional. If we expand our view of the world, it sends an immediate cue to our nervous system, and our state relaxes.
How to do it:
Sit in your chair and expand your vision as far to the north, south, east and west of you. See as much of the ceiling the floor and walls as possible. Hold this view in a soft, relax way. See what happens!