Springtime often encourages us to clear out the old and let in the new!
Spring comes late in Colorado. Especially in the mountains. In April, while our friends in the South and the Midwest are wallowing in bougainvillea and planting tomatoes, we are slogging through what we affectionately call “mud season.” Waiting, patiently, for Mother’s Day, which is the day we can finally put things in the ground without fear of a massive spring snowstorm.
By virtue of this, spring cleaning happens late here too. May is our true launch into fresh air, fresh thoughts, rejuvenation, and clearing out the junk. We often spend winter feeling stuck. Stuck inside. Stuck with old patterns and habits. Stuck in grooves that aren’t serving us any more, but are hard to move out of.
Like winter weight, which served our ancestors by helping them survive cold winter months, we adopt patterns and habits that help us get through challenges. We don’t need our winter weight when spring arrives. In fact, it can become a hindrance, when days are long and warm and we want to be outdoors, moving.
Our habits are the same. We develop them because they served us in the past and they feel safe, or more bluntly as Hilary, our CEO of ARTiculate says: we don’t create habits in order to suck, we create them to survive.
While coaching presenters, we encounter habits that once served a purpose and now can stand in the way. Some presenters laugh as they speak and self deprecate. Others disconnect and just let the words happen without being present. At some point, these were helpful, because they helped the presenter feel non-threatened and accessible. We must recognize that at a certain point, these habits don’t serve us any more. We want to allow ourselves to grow, to own our power.
This May, ask yourself what your habits are. Are they vocal? Are they non-verbal? Ask others what they observe in your presentations. Are you falling into predictable ruts that are no longer serving you? Could your authenticity and connection with your audience increase if you shed some habits? It’s finally Spring. It’s a great time to put new seeds in the ground and explore new ways of expressing your message and looking at your presentation habits. Be brave. Be open. Let go of the safe and let yourself be surprised.
written by Diana Dresser
Artwork by Stevie Caldarola
