The Power of Seasons - In the Moment with Alex Manzi
Alex Manzi, an amazing coach and inspirational human, invited me to join him for a conversation about happiness. Here are some of my favorite nuggets from the conversation, but honestly these are just the tip of the iceberg. If you want to listen to our episode you can click the title above click HERE.
The Power of Identifying your Season.
Our lives move through a series of seasons (or chapters). And not just the seasons of the calendar. And these seasons are pretty granular. Your season is what your circumstance and container in life is right now. The beauty of knowing your season is that you can begin to understand the limitations, boundaries AND opportunities that come with each season. For example, one might consider the pandemic a season - that none of us chose. The reality is that during that season there were changes that each of us needed to adapt to. Those who chose to recognize this time as a new season - who were thoughtful about the transition - were more content and more able to focus on happiness building given the particular constraints of the season.
The Freedom of Living in the Moment.
Having clarity on your current season, really frees you up to find all the happiness that the present moment has to offer. Consider it through the lens of an analogy. If I dropped you somewhere cold in the winter but you were wearing shorts and a t-shirt, you’d be uncomfortable. But if I gave you a winter coat, you’d be that much more comfortable. It’s the same in our lives, right? If we forget to recognize that we’ve moved from summer to winter - metaphorically speaking - we’re uncomfortable. We might even find ourselves wishing we were still in summer. But if we can recognize and accept the container of our season, then we can bring an immediate increase in comfort and probably happiness.
The Gift of Defining What Is Essential In This Season.
Once you’ve identified the season you are in and you’ve decided that you are going to accept the limits AND opportunities it holds for you, it’s time to figure out what is most important to you - what is essential to your happiness in this season. Both Alex and I suggested different versions of taking stock of what’s in your life, and then putting it in order. Ultimately, the goal is to identify, from that list, your top priority. And then you can live in alignment with that unabashedly. Your top priority will be unique to you, and might change as your seasons change.
So I will ask you, what season are you in today?
