As I wrote the title to this blog I was aware that it would sound a bit cringeworthy to some people as the word journey is used a lot on reality shows like Strictly Come Dancing.
But I have heard before an interesting analogy that I would like to share with you now about the synergy between the journey called ‘life’ and a journey in a car.
You see in a car the gear you use to get you to your destination will influence how easy the journey is and how much fuel (or energy) you use.
For example doing a long journey in reverse would be incredibly difficult, if you are driving in 1st, 2nd or 3rd you will burn a lot of fuel but not get there that fast. In the higher gears it requires less fuel (effort) and you arrive at your destination quicker.
The same goes for the journey of life, particularly when it comes to the energy of emotions and the above the line and below the line energies I talked about in the blog about the problem with thinking.
For ease, here is the chart of emotions again:
Most people will never truly experience apathy, or the sense of ‘I don’t care’ or ‘what’s the point’ from the position of having no energy to even get out of bed to fulfil the most basic of needs. The first low level emotion which people more easily recognise is that of grief and the energy of loss.
This is a low level emotion as it drains us of the energy to do other things.
Going back to the car analogy the emotion of fear is the first one where there is more ‘action’ and so this is like the equivalent of driving in 1st gear. Fight or flight instinct can generate movement but there is still only small levels of energy because there is also the tendency to freeze.
Lust is also another low gear energy. With lust this isn’t just about the sexu alenergy that most people think of, it is also about the lust or ‘drive’ towards achieving a goal. There is sufficient wanting to achieve something that action will be taken. This can even lead to massive action but there is somehow a sense that the results are never enough, or the right ones and so can often lead to frustration.
Anger feels like a higher level of emotion as it often has a lot of ‘energy’ behind it. But this energy is more like a ‘shotgun blast’ and explosive and so can be destructive and much of the energy is in fact wasted. Instead when this level of energy can be channelled effectively it can become more useful and powerful like a laser beam.
When you have worked really hard then this is when many people start to experience the emotion of pride. This is the first emotion that can feel good. However it is still a lower level emotion because what often follows is that people get ‘trapped’ in pride and more importantly perhaps prideful thoughts that could even be sub-conscious.
Thoughts like ‘Look how much I have achieved’ or ‘I am great because I did...’ can subconsciously become ‘I am better than them’ or ‘if they got off their backsides and did what was necessary’ and so on, which can then turn it back into a negative emotion.
Results can be achieved in pride but as it is still a lower-level emotion this means that you are still driving in the lower gears and so the amount of fuel (energy) used is still quite high meaning it feels like hard work.
There is an easier way than this which I will share with you next time.
But for now ask yourself, what gear are you driving in? Are you burning fuel excessively?
Or are you stuck with the handbrake on through fear of making changes or maybe you don’t know the destination postcode to put in your satnav.
For help with moving up the gear or for support to work out the destination you want to head towards, book a conversation with me and let’s explore how my coaching programmes could help you.
