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When the Game Changes

Guest post by: Lee Meadows

Article Overview: The overlapping worlds of business and sports are often used to explain, if only metaphorically, the human condition. As the economic cycle has taken its toll and too many starters find themselves on injury reserve, the process for returning to playing form involves a realignment of the head, heart and hands by way of a surgical reconstruction of the spirit. Jobs, careers and lifestyles are managed patterns of living, tied to individual competence, self-confidence and personal standards achieved through consistent play in a game in which the rules were known and respected

When the Game Changes

When the ‘pysche’ of head, heart and hands experiences an unforeseen disconnect, the path to reconstructive focus is a mental challenge that exceeds any physical demands. The economic rollercoaster is in a steep drop that has most riders clinging to the handlebar, screaming for it to end and hoping that there isn’t a deeper drop just over the next hill. The difference between screaming out of sheer joy and screaming out of innate fear is determined by whether the ride was voluntary or involuntary. When the majority of riders find themselves, involuntarily, on a ride not of their own choosing, then the inner template that guided what we think, how we feel and what we do is jolted into a chaotic downturn in which the landing results in an injurious mindset that becomes physically challenging. The patterns that brought predictability, consistency and stability are disrupted so that the head is left to figure out what the heart is feeling and what the hands need to do.

The overlapping worlds of business and sports are often used to explain, if only metaphorically, the human condition. As the economic cycle has taken its toll and too many starters find themselves on injury reserve, the process for returning to playing form involves a realignment of the head, heart and hands by way of a surgical reconstruction of the spirit. Jobs, careers and lifestyles are managed patterns of living, tied to individual competence, self-confidence and personal standards achieved through consistent play in a game in which the rules were known and respected. When the game changes, the rules are abandoned and other forces are unleashed, the real effort comes in knowing how NOT to be a victim, but to move forward and regain your sense of individual achievement and reclaim your right to existence. The process for returning to ‘form’ starts with surgically reconstructing those elements that were injured.

Most of what goes on in the ‘head’ is the culmination of consistent experiences that take place in our organizational ‘homes’. The automotive industry has been the organizational home for thousands of residents and a huge arena in which all of the players understood the game. We think automotive, and consequently, our job, career and lifestyle questions have an automotive answer. The current downturn has forced a kind of thinking outside the ‘chassis’ approach to reconstructing your mental processes to explore other kinds of answers. The head has to wrap itself around the notion that there are new questions to consider.

The heart feels the passion, drive and sense of purpose that fuels the spirit. It reacts to stability and instability, it can paralyze or propel and it does so knowing that your core being is completely tied to your outer self. When the self takes an unexpected hit, the results are felt and interpreted by the heart. Feelings are real and can be immobilizing if the heart does not understand what the head is now pondering.

Our hands tie us to activity. We do those things connected to our head and heart. We get use to consistent activity and, as is said in the sports world, we develop a ‘mental muscle’ for doing a certain thing. When we are no longer doing what we have developed a mental muscle to do, it impacts what the heart feels and what the head considers. Lack of activity feels like a lack of purpose that is tied to how we think about ourselves. All indications point to a reconstruction of internal and external connectors that keep us linked to our own sense of self-recovery. The trick is in knowing what process to use to heal your way back into the game. Every player knows that it takes time and it takes getting started!

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Article Tags: Business Leadership, Gamesmanship, Selfmotivation



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