What is the midpoint between under and overreacting?

We have already reached the very last day of January, which is complete madness.

How are your resolutions going? Are some of your new habits sticking? If you have made them stick thus far, very well done! If not, start again tomorrow. 1 February is as good a day as any to make a positive change.

On the topic of habits: I tend to be a classic underreactor. It is my nature. See a kid fall off their bike, my initial reaction will likely be “They’ll be fine!” More often than not, they are fine. But this is not always the best reaction. It can make me come across as being uncaring, passive or like I’m not paying attention. The people closest to me get nervous when I don’t seem to get sufficiently nervous, according to them.

Then you get those on the other end of the spectrum. Overreactors. You know them – they turn the dial up to 11 and superglue it in place. Everything is a THING! These wonderful people spend countless amounts of time and energy thinking, talking, ruminating, worrying and arguing about things they have zero control over: what Donald Trump and Elon Musk will do next, what the neighbours are up to, what the person they saw in traffic was doing or not doing, what if this happens, what if that happens etc. Like a smartphone with all of its apps running at once – exhausting!

As with most things in life, the sweet spot sits somewhere in the middle. This year, I am aiming to be an accurate reactor. Like the porridge in the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears, not too cold, not too hot, just right. I’m going to do my best not to ignore or dismiss things that might actually be important, while also not wasting time and energy on things I cannot control or influence. I am aiming to be more deliberate in paying attention to what I pay attention to, my effort levels and attitudes, and what I think, say, feel and do. Those things I always have a large measure of control over.

Hopefully, this will strike the right balance between allowing things to play out as they would and getting distracted by irrelevant sideshows along the way. I invite you to come on this journey with me. Let’s see what happens!

If you are feeling distracted, get in touch. You can reach us at info@purposeworks.co.za.

At PurposeWorks we are all about Making You and Your Work Rock. Our focus is on Organisational Health and Design, Employee Centered Culture, Leadership Development and Performance Coaching. For more information on how we can help you create a work environment that rocks, develop a great team, become an inspiring leader or unlock your personal excellence talk to us at info@purposeworks.co.za.