The Power of Disorientation: How to Transform and Thrive in 2023
In everyday life, we are surrounded and sometimes overwhelmed by disorienting events that we believe to be painful and unfortunate. The truth is that these events are gifts to utilize to raise our game on the Staircase of Life. In this blog post, I want to share with you how you can reframe and leverage these events so you can feel refreshed on the other side. Ready to climb more flights of stairs.
Transformation Through Disorientation
I’ve been to a lot of retreats. Many were okay and some were incredibly powerful and transformational. On a recent retreat I attended, I was reflecting on the arc of a well-run, well-put-together retreat. One that takes me deeply through an experience that changes me. What does that entail? How does one get shifted in a workshop, a weekend, a week, or even a year-long leadership training?
Simple: it includes a disorienting event.
This is to ensure that the participants are able to take the content as deeply as possible. In other words, if there is some kind of a struggle, you are able to use the challenge or disorienting event as fodder to practice whatever content, practices or materials the retreat is providing.
On my aforementioned recent retreat, there wasn’t a disorienting event per se. I was completely unaware of this until I subconsciously created one for myself in the form of an allergic reaction that had me in a panic regarding my health.
The Most Important Thing: Accept & Embrace
Understand what is happening TO YOU is always what is happening FOR you. Remember this and accept it deeply at your core.
Easier said than done. When something terrible is happening, we are hardwired to resist it. “This shouldn’t be happening”, “Why is this happening to me?”, “How can I make this pain go away?”
It’s really about embracing the bigger arc of your life. Imagine it and visualize it. Everything that has happened in your past has come here, right now. All of the events both good and bad have created this present moment.
Embrace that and sit in the wonder of that for a moment. Really take it in.
For me, this meant simply sitting with the fact that I accidentally ate something that caused a severe reaction in my body and mind. I accepted that I could not change this after the fact. And while it wasn't easy, embracing that there is a reason for this situation was absolutely freeing.
The 2 C’s - Claim & Commit
Now, claim that your life is happening for you. Claim your place in being an architect of your life. In both the good and the bad. Commit to shifting your disorienting events into learning in real-time.
One way to shift into this mindset is to practice "zooming out" to the bigger arc of your life. This involves taking a step back from the details of a particular situation and looking at it from a higher perspective. This can help you to gain a sense of perspective and understand how the situation fits into the bigger picture of your life.
When you can see the situation from this meta-view, it becomes less personal and easier to process.
What that looks like in life: I claimed that my allergic reaction was happening for me and I committed to use the opportunity to really take the learning of the retreat to the deepest level possible.
The Takeaway
It is often difficult to see how a disorienting event can be a good thing. But if you take a step back and embrace what is really happening under the surface, under your emotion and reaction, you will realize that these events are gifts. They happen FOR you, not TO you. And by committing to being an architect of your own life, you can leverage these situations to learn and grow in real time.
Your Challenge
I challenge you, as we move into 2023, to claim this year as a Year of Retreat. Embrace the disorienting events that will come your way and use them as an opportunity to retreat inward so that you can emerge refreshed on the other side.
What will you do differently this year when faced with difficult situations?
How will you embrace 2023 as a Year of Retreat?