THPL practitioners are really good at throwing themselves fully into a topic, a game, a conversation….really into life. And when you do this the probability of execution is high. The issue is that there are some times when you get so close to what you are doing that you cannot see the proverbial “big picture”. While seemingly a trite statement, like “thinking out of the box”, it is important to find ways to make sure you are indeed doing the right thing. Do you have others who can tell you to look another way? Do you know how to take a pause, to step back? Can you confirm that you are doing the right things with your life? How are your priorities and your version of THPL playing out? You don’t need to think about all of these things every day, but you do need to have an awareness of when you need to step back and how to do it.
And after you come to the conclusion that you need to be better at the process of stepping back, you need to put in place the triggers that get you doing it. You need to think about it before the moment occurs as it is difficult to decide “in the moment”. It is akin to the story of summiting Mt. Everest – you always decide before you try to summit the time that you will turn around, regardless of how you feel. You need to have it locked in your head that you turn around or the consequences could be grave. Similarly, you need to have your own triggers that tell you when to step back, to take stock and to respond accordingly. These basic skills are a key element of a high functioning THPL practitioner and they are there for the taking.
Loving Life, and stepping back
Ciao
Joe