Beating the Enemy

I so desperately wanted to blog about Hope today.

 

 

I have this fear that if I don’t, I will have to re-title my blog “Reality and some more Reality.”  There is actually great hope in my message today – but you may have to stick around until the end to get it.

 

This week I was overcome with how many of my clients struggle with stress.  Stress is a silent killer and nobody can overpower it.  It will win in the end (or maybe even in the middle…) if you let it.

 

The frightening thing as a coach is, that I am working with more and more people for whom stress is becoming a part of their life.  So much so, they actually believe it is just something they live with – and they are becoming quite adept at handling it.

 

Risking repetition I must state again – stress will beat you and it may do it in a way that could catch you off guard.  You must look at the symptoms/byproducts seriously, have the courage to ask tough questions, and re-think courses of action that may have become commonplace in your life.

 

My key coaching here is not just to fix the symptom, but rather go straight at the root of the problem.  Fixing the symptom is much like going to a dentist or orthodontist and telling them your jaw hurts because you grind your teeth at night (a symptom of an ailment known as Temporomandibular Joint Disorder – or TMJ).  The good doctor tells you that they can make you a fitted mouth piece to help you with the teeth grinding thing.  Problem solved!

 

Or is it?  I have always wondered if they shouldn’t further recommend 6 months of deep, restorative counseling to help you uncover why you are grinding at night to begin with.  But perhaps that is outside of the scope of their services.

 

The point is, if you are feeling beyond normal stress; do not just go cure the symptoms.  While it can be a good place to start, perhaps a coach or counselor could help you get to the root.

 

I am on a mission to help more and more clients remember that they cannot beat stress and that there is a way to live in this insane world and do amazing things, all the while limiting the stress.  The hope is that when you take some steps against a stressful life, you will begin a journey of becoming all that you were meant to be.  Peace to you. 

Comments

[John Gallagher]

Steve, I feel this post. I live this post right now. Thanks for all ou do to help. I did see a quote today from Seth Godin's blog that encouraged me to come back to provide some 'tough' love that I need sometimes, too..."People don't remember how you behave when everything is going great. They remember how you behave when you're under pressure, stressed out and at wits end." Thanks for being the encourager that you are. John