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When Calmworks® ran our Leadership course at M&C Saatchi one of our participants said stress brought on from reading news had become a real challenge. It mattered not if the news was faraway or had no direct social, racial, national or familial resonance. The stress was real and concerning. For the majority of us reading the news is a process rich in disconnection. We're not dead to empathic feelings, but our mindset generally is, “Phew!” An increasing number of (mainly young) people engage with news in an emotionally empathic way. Those of you who have completed our Communications Module will be familiar with the three kinds of empathy: cognitive (like that of a torturer), empathic (when you literally ‘feel’ the pain of another) and compassionate (when you offer your unequivocal services). So for those who struggle with the news. Firstly, sit, breathe, and reframe what you are going through as a positive thing. Roll out the red carpet. Name it. One at a time. What are your bodily sensations? What are your thoughts? What emotions are rising in you? Examine your process like a surgeon. Perhaps allow yourself to be grateful for this connection when all around seem unengaged. Secondly, when you’ve finished, get a pen and paper, and note down anything practical involving you spending your own human capital (not money or wasting your time) that could have a direct impact on those or that affected. If you cannot think of anything don’t fret as this is likely to be the case, simply proceed to step three. Thirdly, take another moment to sit and this time create an intention. Whether you believe in creating ripples of energy that expand across the globe is irrelevant because the main thing you're doing is creating an internal marker. And if you are sending positive energy so be it, call it a fringe benefit. As you sit, think of the people, animals, plants or lands directly affected. Create or nurture within yourself a sense of hope or general positivity. Allow yourself to picture what that looks like. It will surprise you how easy this is. In fact, it is already there. So, foster it a little. In this final step you are establishing a practical consciousness about the issue. You do this because the next time you find yourself in a situation where you are meeting someone, or intervening, or making connections that others haven’t seen, you will remember, you will engage, and you will act. The take away here is waving goodbye to your apathy. This is not only good for you, but for the whole wide world.
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