We’ve all had moments in our lives where we are triggered by something external. In the moment, we feel an array of mixed emotions. Wouldn’t you like to be able to feel in control of your emotions in such a situation? With a new awareness, we can understand the difference in reacting vs responding.
Remember that time you were driving and someone cut you up in traffic?
You instantly felt triggered and reacted to what the person had done.
How dare they do that…
Those emotions you feel are completely valid. Your emotions are like a guidance system. They tell you when something is in or out of harmony with what you want.
But sometimes, it might be better to take a new perspective for the purpose of helping ourselves…
Video Version: Reacting vs Responding
Constant reaction causes suffering
When we constantly react to things in life, we suffer. Nobody wants to suffer. So let’s stop it!
We focus on the thing that we don’t like about a situation and give it a meaning to us. This focus determines how we feel. The same principle applies to how someone views their entire world.
Why is it that some people just seem so happy and others are constantly complaining, miserable, and finding what’s wrong in the world?
Read: 7 Traits of Happy People
Understanding that we cannot change many things in life allows you to begin to find acceptance of what is. We don’t need to waste our energy on things that we cannot control or change. They simply do not serve us.
It’s okay to feel those emotions, but having awareness is the key to changing how you respond.
Consider a different perspective
Using the car example above, consider an actual alternative possibility, other than the story you already created yourself.
What if the person who was a little eager to make the green light was actually rushing to the hospital because they’d just found out a loved one had been sent into an emergency.
If that were true, do you feel differently about the situation now?
The truth is, we never really know why others are doing what they’re doing. To us it may seem wrong, but we are viewing the world through our own lens.
Having empathy and not always being so narrow-minded will help you feel less negative emotions and it can also inspire others to do something positive too.
Know that you always have a choice
Although sometimes it may not seem like it, we do always have a choice in how we respond to something.
Is it really worth ruining your entire day because you spilled coffee over your shirt? It’s only going to affect you and stop you if you allow it.
If you keep focusing on it and begin getting on the path of negative thoughts.
Accept, allow, and let go.
Reacting vs Responding Key Differences
- Reacting gives away your power to someone or something else
- Responding comes from a calm state and peace of mind
- Reacting instantly causes you to feel negative emotions because you absorb it all
- Responding allows you to let go of the suffering and comes from a higher place
- Reacting comes from a lower state of conscious awareness
- Responding gives you control and time to consciously choose how you respond
- Reacting comes across as extremely unappealing to others
- Responding shows maturity, confidence, and secure in yourself
Learn the 7 Levels of Awareness.
If you’re looking to make some shifts in your life, check out the FREE Mindset Mastery Toolkit, which is designed to help you gain clarity, discover your purpose, change your limiting beliefs, and get you on your way to the life you want to live.