Personal charater is defined as “the mental and moral qualities distinctive to an individual.”
When life cruises along in a familiar comfortable, happy pattern our positive traits take precedence in our lives while our flawed traits stay neatly tucked behind closed doors. However, when a crisis hits and our buttons are pushed, flawed character traits become all too apparent as they reveal themselves to us and to those around us.
Crisis –
According to an online dictionary: “a crisis is a time of intense difficulty, trouble, or danger.” It is a state of emergency in an unpredictable situation. Because of the disruption and upheaval caused and the resultant fear created, it carries tons of negative connotations .
Speaking or hearing the word crisis automatically triggers negative visions of difficult times for most people. However, it is also an opportunity for major changes, both inwardly and outwardly. It is a condition we’ve all experienced multiple times in our lives personally and collectively. For example, national disasters that cover larger areas and affect massive groups of people are certainly classified as a crisis.
Crisis are unpredictable, have a cognitive impact on us and test us emotionally and physiologically.
Some behaviors change for the better as they rise out of the ashes to new and greater levels of service. Others, giving in to fear, take a turn for the worse with rude and poor actions.
“Seeing” a fault/error is a negative view/angle that opens our thoughts to fear. When we shift our perceptions, we realize that a crisis is not necessarily a fault but an imbalance.
A crisis is a blunt indication that the scales have tipped and need balancing. It is an opportunity to learn about, restructure, rebalance and reboot who we are individually and collectively. To come out stronger, better adapted and ready to tackle life’s issues and problems with honesty, authenticity, and courage. To rise to the occasion, be a better person and create a better world, one a step at a time.
Crisis, when viewed correctly, are wise, great teachers. They push our buttons and allow us to “see” exactly who we really are through our reactions. when ind the silver lining and take it to heart, we extract the real purpose of any crisis – personal and/or collective growth.
Hidden within all crisis is a “diamond gem” waiting for our perceived attention.
Postive aspects of crisis – “Thunderstorms are as much our friends as the sunshine.”
Wakes us up – to who we really are and often shatters our perceived “reality” and the illusionary beliefs and ideas that have silently taken over. These false realities and illusions are deeply ingrained and real to us. Only the “shock of a crisis” is empowered to pierce through them and wake us from our otherwise unresponsive slumber. Sadly disease is often the shock we receive when we’ve been ignoring our health.
Promotes Change – it might be a bit painful at first as we work through the initial shock of a crisis, it may even rock us to the core, but in the end, it resurrects us to transformative change, to new and exciting beginnings.
Facing Fears – our demons love appearing at our darkest hour. Crisis is the opportunity given to us to “see” and become aware of the perpetrators, the fearful thoughts and beliefs that persecute and dictate to us throughout our live. It is an opportunity eliminate them through a cleansing process and rehab of our mind and our beliefs.
Meeting our authentic selves – oh how we love to hide sometimes! But there is no hiding in a crisis as we come face to face with any inauthentic self-images and false identities we have created. We become closer to and enjoy a truer, more authentic aspect of ourselves and the world around us.
Softens Hearts – when fear hits, even the toughest criminal or misfit can be softened to the core and begin trusting out of need. A crisis softens the hardest heart and toughens the weakest making us more supple and better adapted.
When a crisis hits, we cannot turn back time and make it not happen. Dwelling on negatives and beating ourselves up over the current situation we find ourselves in is not the solution! The only solution is to move through it and reap the silver lining hidden within. By accepting and learning valuable lessons, we alchemize and transform our lives. We experience something that in the end empowered to sync us to a deeper, more loving part of ourselves.
Crisis – a grand opportunity for personal or collective growth or both. It ultimately makes us wiser, stronger, and more adaptable as we learn to navigate life’s stormy weather.
As long as we are participating in the dance called life, crisis will be a natural part of it.
It is our reactions/responses to crisis and disruption that reveal our true character, our emotional strengths, and our personal weaknesses.
We’d be wise to build strength of character so that when crisis does hit, we do not react, but act consciously and one of the best ways to shape and build strength of character is through exercise.
Yep, exercise is the great character builder!
It not only builds strong, lean muscles, but it builds strength of character!
It is a proven winner when it comes to building self-confidence, self-esteem, positive perceptions and a healthy mindset, all built around self-love. It decreases our overall tension while elevating and stabilizing our mood. Fatigue is reduced but concentration and cognitive levels get a boost and because it gets our blood flowing, when bedtime comes, we sleep better.
We KNOW we are doing something that contributes to our health when we exercise and it just feels good. This feel good feeling stays with us, as we kick in endorphins—chemicals in the brain that act as natural painkiller, providing us a serious boost of self-love. Honesty, courage, leadership, and responsibility, all considered honorable traits of good character, are the result!
Regular, challenging exercise is part of a preventive approach to personal health. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!
IMPROVE YOUR GENERAL HEALTH AND BOLSTER YOUR IMMUNOLOGICAL PREPAREDNESS –
“Wellness Wake Up Call” helps you do just that!
For more tools and resources from Carolyn Hansen to assist you in attaining your health and fitness goals and achieving the success you desire in life, please visit:
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