12 August 2008
Successful Intentions Newsletter
Hi ,
This is your life!
How well have you lived it, so far?
Sometimes you get a view of your life as if standing on a mountain ridge and looking back across the valley. You can see the path that led you to where you're standing now. All the pitfalls and detours, the "blind alleys" and lucky short cuts. It all makes sense from the ridge top. But when you were down in the valley you often couldn't see the woods for the trees.
Can you make sense of your life's journey?
Being able to review your life and apply lessons from the past to solving today's dilemmas is one of the hallmarks of wisdom. Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Florida, Monika Ardelt, found a close relationship between "coping strategies" and wisdom.
When faced with a life dilemma those with higher measures of wisdom used:
- Mental distancing: Stepping back, reflecting on the situation, calming down, and taking time to look at the problem objectively.
- Active coping: Mentally reframing the problem as an interesting challenge or a puzzle rather than an unpleasant event, making the best of things.
- Application of life lessons: Learning from negative life experiences, accepting that life is unpredictable and uncertain.
By contrast, those who were rated relatively low on wisdom measures exhibited:
- Passive coping: Acceptance and/or reliance on God to deal with crises and obstacles in their life.
- Avoidance of reflection: Not pondering on the best way to deal with a crisis, making no attempt to reflect on the meaning of crisis and hardship in life.
Try the "Life Review" exercise, . Look back over your life as a "graph" of highs and lows. Try to plot significant events over months and years. What does your graph look like? What story does it tell? What are the important lessons for you?
To find out how to use your life's narrative journey to enhance your wisdom and help your clients make wiser decisions, register for the next Coaching for WisdomŪ two-day workshop in Sydney:
Wednesday September 17 - Thursday September 18.
The Coaching for WisdomŪ two-day workshop: Professional coach training - skill development, deep personal discovery, and reflection. At the Sydney campus of the Melbourne Business School, Pyrmont.
And you might also be interested in "Averting the March of Folly: Coaching for Wisdom in Leadership" at the Third IGCP (Interest Group in Coaching psychology) Conference in Sydney:
Friday August 22 - Saturday August 23.
The Third IGCP (Interest Group in Coaching Psychology) Symposium: Evidence-based coaching practice in Australia and Europe, including a report on outcomes from the Global Convention on Coaching. At Dockside Conference Centre, Darling Harbour, Sydney.
Keep your intentions clear,
Peter Webb
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