Finding Joy in Chaos
There have been a few times in my life when I’ve jumped head first into a decision without really over-analyzing the situation *like I normally do*. Instead, I went with my “gut instinct”. In those times I often wondered, “How the h*ll did I do that?” or better yet, “Why did I do that?”
Where did the guts to jump into a decision come from? I had not one iota of an idea how to make it happen. This my friends, is somewhat a “friendly” change. One that YOU decide to make. But there are many times when change comes into your life, and you really didn’t see it coming. What do you do when it gob-smacks you right between the eyes — and sometimes your heart?
It’s no secret, change causes a certain amount of stress and anxiety and chaos. Even if it is a positive change in your life. But what if the chaos/change that you are going through is downright terrible or uncomfortable; how does one find joy in that? Short answer…it’s not easy, nor is it painless. There are some ways to view this uncomfortable change that may put a new perspective on your chaos.
Don’t let chaos stagnate your life. Let it be the catalyst to grow like the Universe.” Inci Jones Artist
Chaos, change and personal development don’t always arrive like it does in the movies or TV. You know, like TV shows that are about 30-minutes long, and all problems are solved in that 30-minute period. But in IRL (in real life) we really don’t have the luxury of… script writers to solve our problems.
But changing your perception of chaos may help to reconfigure how you view chaos. Just like the analogy of how a diamond is formed with very high temperatures and pressure. You too are forming as a human, and the pressures and situations shape and form you.
The next time you are hit with a dilemma or tough circumstance, try and distance yourself, a healthy detachment from what is actually going on in your current situation mentally. This may take a few tries because you may be very upset and unable to distance yourself. Then realize that you can’t “fix” this new found chaos overnight. Your chaos may actually be an awakening that you need to change things up a bit in your life. “Lean into the discomfort of the work” is advice that Brené Brown discusses in her TED Talk on vulnerability.
Perhaps the old way of handling or doing things is not a good fit for you anymore. Take the time to evaluate the chaos. Is this a result of your action? Was it caused by someone else? Or was it completely out of your control? What can you do to steer it back into a manageable situation? And if you can’t seem to make sense of any of the chaos. What did you learn from the situation? What was the takeaway? In some instances, this will be all that you will learn from the chaos in your life. The takeaway, and how can you apply it to your current situation to grow and learn from the circumstances.
Chaos is inevitable in everyone’s life. It may be very small everyday chaos’s, like burning the toast or being late for work, to medium chaos’s like having an argument to a huge chaos like discovering you have an illness or getting fired. But in the end, how you handle your chaos and what you learned is more valuable than any newly discovered diamond in the world.
“Chaos lives in the mind like physics lives
in the universe.” Inci Jones Artist
If you like this post, you may want to tune into our Thought Row podcast. It’s a wonderful way to nurture and develop your creativity & motivation in a somewhat noisy world. Stay well my friends ~ Inci
Originally published at https://incijonesartist.com on January 20, 2021.
