Stillness as the starting point to compassionate action

We are on the other side of time. Tick tock. The world is upside down, inside out and we are all trying to figure out how to relate to this new situation.

People come to me for coaching support with questions like these;

* I am stressed; can you help me get calm and clear?

* Everyone around me seems to be saving some part of the world; yet I am paralyzed.

* Why am I finding it so hard to move? I feel frozen.

* Am I doing enough?

Feelings that they are not doing enough - feelings of "I’m not enough".

Cultivating qualities of the Heart

Life as we knew it is no more. We are being asked to look inward. To see and most importantly, feel what the next best steps. For ourselves and for everyone around us. For years, I have been focused on what it means to develop the qualities of the heart better. How to be kind and generous to myself and others when we are suffering. To be with the suffering without having to change it, just dealing with reality exactly as it is. Sometimes, that's hard and it feels like we are not 'doing' anything. But that is not true. Being with someone and their suffering, even in silence, is sometimes the only and the best thing we can do.

Compassionate action

Serving others in the world is equal to serving yourself. And vice versa. There is no me, only we. This is how I see it; first you need have some compassion for yourself, only then you can move outward and see how and where you can support. One step at a time. This quarantine is asking us to find our own resilience in the midst of all the chaos.

To find our own steady centre so we can BE a steady centre for other people.

This is what we are being asked to do.

Put on your own oxygen mask first

“But HOW do I get there?”

Well, I guess it requires some wise action on your part. Get still first. Take yourself seriously, listen to the beat of your heart. Once you deal with your own fear and stress, you can help others deal with theirs. It's the well-known airhost(esses) phrase that is so relevant today: 'Put on your own oxygen mask first'. Being (self)compassionate is action in itself. You can start there!

From being Still to Creating

The world needs fresh perspectives that are supportive to us all, however big or small.

People who can lead in Being versus Doing first, and as we go from an outward to an inward focus; we move to a place of calm and peace. A place away from consuming and into creating. And there, we can get clear. In our own time.

Once you are in stillness, it will set you up for movement and you can start making waves.

Go make waves!

'Barbara writes about compassion and coaching and takes a positive approach on Health. She is an ICF credentialed professional coach, who helps individuals develop what are often referred to as ‘soft skills’ and what she call the ‘hard skills’; (self)compassion, (self)awareness, meditation. By connecting to yourself first, you become more aware, more resilient and start to live with a growth mindset.'

"By connecting to yourself first, you become more resilient."