calm and alert. There is a difference
between sensory experiences that are
pleasant and sensory experiences that
are intense and enjoyable enough to
quickly make you feel both calm and
alert.
In the time it takes you to stroke a
small smooth stone that you keep
in your pocket, recall a few bars of
music that move you, or the taste
sensation of biting into a piece of
dark chocolate, for example, you
should feel your stress begin to ease,
your head start to clear, and your
sense of control returning. If it takes
you six cups of tea and several hours
to regain your balance, then try
something else. If the effect is too
subtle, keep investigating.
Emotional Overload
We have to recognize emotional
overload in order to control stress.
Probably nothing contributes more
to chronic stress and anxiety than
the overload created by emotional
disconnection to ourselves and others.
Moment-to-moment awareness of
the influence your emotions have
on your thoughts and actions is
key to both managing stress and
understanding yourself and others.
‘‘ Delivering relevant, branded touchpoint
experiences becomes a lot more
manageable when marketers clearly
understand the needs of the people they
are delivering those experiences for – and
which touchpoints matter most to those
people. The problem they currently face is
that the technology used to reach audiences
across digital touchpoints has tended to
obscure any meaningful sense of who they
are targeting and why.’’
Many people are disconnected from
their emotions - especially strong
core emotions such as anger, sadness,
fear, and joy. This may be the result
of negative childhood experiences
that taught you to try to shut off your
feelings. But although we can distort,
deny, or numb our feelings, we can’t
eliminate them. They’re still there,
whether we’re aware of them or not.
Unfortunately, without emotional
awareness or connection, we are
unable to manage our stress, fully
understand our own motivations
and needs, or to communicate
effectively with others. Our
emotions, not our thoughts,
motivate us. Without an
awareness of what you’re
feeling, it’s impossible to fully
understand your own behavior,
appropriately manage your
emotions and actions, and
accurately “read” the wants and
needs of others.
Our emotions are closely
aligned to physical sensations
in our bodies. When
you experience a strong
emotion, you probably
also feel it somewhere in your
body. By concentrating on these
physical sensations, you can start to
understand your emotions better. For
example, if your stomach tightens
up every time you spend time with a
particular person, you can conclude
that you feel uncomfortable in their
presence.
Our feelings often seem like a wild
horse, full of fear and uncontrolled
energy. The only way to accept
and tame these feelings is to take
up the reins and learn how to ride
them. The Ride the Wild Horse
teaches you how to harness all your
emotions - even the uncomfortable
or overwhelming ones you may have
tried to avoid. You’ll learn how to
ride out intense emotions, remaining
in control of the experience and in
control of your behavior.
Dr. Kellen Kiambati holds an MBA
in Strategic Management from the
Kenya Methodist University and a
PhD in Business Administration with
a focus in Strategic Management from
JKUAT. She is a member of the Institute
of Human Resource Management
of Kenya. She can be reached via:
[email protected].