Emotional Freedom Part 17 of 17: Steps to Emotional Freedom, Overcoming Frustration
August 11, 2009 by dr. lam · 2 Comments
We all get frustrated, in traffic, in a long line, in a problem that we cannot solve, etc. The answer to frustration is practicing patience. We all need to learn how to focus on getting ourselves out of the mud with frustration and disappointment. A study by Princeton University showed that those individuals with a well-developed neocortex were more prone to experience patience. We in turn can do this by expressing patience in our day-to-day challenges. We can evolve ourselves by working through patience by perhaps even choosing the slow moving line or the more difficult assignment. We can also look for things that normally we need immediate gratification for and instead we delay that gratification without anxiety or pressure.
Other exercises that might help involve trying to offer another individual who “lets you down” tolerance, patience, compassion, and forgiveness. We all let each other down, including you and including me. Most oftentimes we simply did not mean it. With that in mind, put yourself in the other person’s perspective and exercise patience.
I hope all of you have enjoyed this wonderful series that celebrate Dr. Judith Orloff’s brilliant ideas. I myself have learned a tremendous amount in how to cope with the stresses of daily life and how to overcome our own emotional limitations to achieve a greater degree of freedom and liberation.
Mindfulness Mondays 3: Patience
June 15, 2009 by dr. lam · 5 Comments
This past Saturday, I had to replace a battery for my headlight that led to a long and unplanned, meandering excursion that ultimately led to nothing gained…except patience. This quality is a spiritual extension of last week’s mindfulness intention, peace. I first travelled to Batteries Plus, a rather long travel time to begin with, to replace a battery in one of my headlights since I did not feel it was fair to ask my staff member to make the long hike. I encountered a traffic jam that made my excursion even that much longer with a few sojourns off the highway, I was left without much reprieve. Upon arrival to the store, the gentleman opened the battery pack and said that I was missing a key connector to make it work. To be more specific, I was putting new batteries into a new unit that would serve as a backup for my first one. He told me that I could travel about 15 minutes to this model shop that carried connectors and they should have one. I begrudgingly obliged and traveled through some back streets to the model store. Upon arrival, the gentleman told me that he did not carry this specialized piece of equipment and that I should go to the nearest Radio Shack a few miles away. Accordingly, I traveled to the Radio Shack and, of course, no connector so I returned home after a 2.5 hour travel for no purpose.
However, throughout the entire experience, I remained calm and worked on my patience, which sometimes I am in short supply of. I told myself even if I did not get the battery pack done that I would learn patience and would develop that important attribute to the best of my ability. I traveled in my car listening to an audiobook and worked to not raise my voice or behave in a frazzled manner. I turned what would have been a very negative experience into a positive one…of sorts.
This week’s intention is patience: patience with your schedule, patience with things not working out the way you planned, patience with things not happening quickly enough, and patience with those around you who let you down. Set your intention to be at peace and to have patience this week through meditation and through mindfulness.