Marcus Clifford provides you with a Self-Preservation Kit to keep you well while you do heroic deeds to save the Print sector in the 21st Century.
I read an article in Printweek Online by Jo Francis about the ‘P’ word and drupa just as I was thinking about the art of self-preservation if you are working for an exhibitor at a two-week show. So, here are some links and thoughts about how practising some Positive Psychology exercises might help you reframe yourself and prosper more during the marathon exhibition challenge.
To reframe, you might consider yourself on a daily basis undertaking a heroic quest to save the printing sector in the 21st century. Cognitive reframing makes us look at things from a different angle which is why I like playing with titles and who are you? I see myself as a ‘Boosterologist’, but why not be a ‘Possibilitist’. The ‘Alchemist’. Someone who transforms things for the better.
Jo’s article quite rightly discusses buyers reviewing what additional or profit opportunities will be opened by the investment. Reframing and looking at the Latin noun and verb origins of the word ‘profit’ from ‘profectus’, (which means progress and ‘proficere’, meaning to advance and benefit), also opens up wider but focused dialogue, and you become a ‘ProgressMaker’.
Your technologies and solutions are setting the foundations for the future. You have important things to communicate and can unlock opportunities. Well, that’s you occupying the hero status position. But meaning and purpose are very strong motivators, and If you know ‘Why’ you are doing something and align it with a purpose, your subjective wellbeing will be greater. I studied an MSc in Applied Positive Psychology and find these things incredibly interesting and relevant to life and the context of a working environment.
You might, like many, have been preparing like a prepper and been making active preparations to survive the show. Seasoned drupa preppers will have seasoned techniques and practices to help self preservation. I thought of a few from Positive Psychology interventions that might just help and be practical to undertake.
Exercise is the best Psychosomatic intervention of all, but with the expected chomping and guzzling the discipline might be difficult.
Throughout attritional experiences, we as humans are hardwired to attend to, learn from, and use negative information far more than positive information. Positive Psychology is all about how we can move our focus away from the negative towards a more balanced perspective. Difficult to do when you feel very tired!
So a few practical interventions that might help? We all know about mindfulness and there are many ways to move into states of mindfulness. Being centred and enabling you to gain your balance.
Square breathing, is a powerful breath exercise that can help you to quickly change your body’s energy, reduce stress, and calm your mind. It is a really great way to step back and reset your energy. Step 1: Exhale your breath (to a count of 4) Step 2: Hold your breath (to a count of 4) Step 3: Inhale your breath (to a count of 4) Step 4: Hold your breath (to a count of 4) Step 5: Repeat.
Be aware of your body’s movement with each breath, of how your chest rises and falls, how your belly pushes in and out, and how your lungs expand and contract. Find the pattern of your breath and anchor yourself to the present with this awareness.
You can do this on the stand between discussions or indeed later for say 10 minutes when you have time, can also close your eyes, without being disturbed. Continue this practice for 10 minutes, allowing any anxious thoughts to come and go without judgment. Notice the sensations in your body. Observe your surroundings. What do you see, hear, and feel? Let emotions flow and just observe things from afar.
If you can grab some time for a coffee or a quiet sandwich this is a good intervention just to switch out for a few minutes and refresh your mind and energy. Mindful eating is a savouring and gentle, enjoyable exercise. Pay attention to what you are holding. Notice the feeling of it in your hands. Once you have noticed the texture, the weight, the colour, etc., bring your awareness to the smell.
Finally, move on to eating, but do so slowly and with concentrated attention. Notice the taste and its texture against your tongue. This exercise may help you discover new experiences with familiar foods. When we slow down and enjoy our food, we notice many things. Eating breakfast, lunch, or even a snack involves many sensations! Mindful eating means paying attention to what you:
SMELL, TASTE, FEEL, HEAR and SEE. Savouring overall, taking time to linger in an experience, being attentive and immersing yourself is a powerful Positive Psychology intervention. Jon Kabat -Zinn, the father of Western mindfulness, has a great exercise savouring a raisin in one’s mouth. It’s worth googling as it captures the essence of it. One thing you can do is savour the morning shower for longer and allow yourself this meditative moment and all the sensations that go with a Shower.
When you feel tired and depleted, practice gratitude. Count your blessings by thinking of something you’re thankful for. Think about the good things that happened to you in the day.
I came across this one, which helps with acceptance and negative emotions, instills mindfulness, and opens up emotional intelligence that might help reframe. It has a resonance with Drupa.
The Guest House Poem emphasises that emotions are fleeting, and even unpleasant emotions can have value! Emotions are not permanent residents in their guest house; instead, they are transient visitors who can be welcomed, stay for a while, and then leave.
The Guest House by Jelaluddin Rumi
‘This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.
A joy, a depression, a meanness, some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they are a crowd of sorrows, who violently sweep your house empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honourably.
He may be clearing you out for some new delight.
The dark thought, the shame, the malice.
Meet them at the door laughing and invite them in.
Be grateful for whatever comes.
Because each has been sent as a guide from beyond.
Reflection Questions?
How do you interpret the poem?
What emotions visit you most often? Why do you think that is?
How might it affect you if you welcomed all your emotions rather than denying them?
What benefits could there be in welcoming unpleasant emotions?
Can you relate to the feeling described in the line “violently sweeps your house empty of its furniture”? Have you ever felt this way?
Well, we’re nearly halfway through the Drupa experience, but if you have read this, it might help in a small way. Reframe who you are if you have not already done so. You are involved in heroic deeds, saving the print sector in the 21st century and you’re someone worth talking to as you make positive change happen!
Call Marcus Clifford, The PrintBoosterologist, on 0774 381 8806 or email euedaimonic5@yahoo.com
