Kill Your Monsters While They are Small

See I have this problem…

It’s a problem that I have been working on to correct, but a problem none to less.

Perhaps you might have this problem too…

My problem, I tend to let my problems manifest into bigger issues, but why?

This happens to me for one simple reason, I let my problems get to the point where it controls me instead of controlling it.

Anxiety and frustration are immediate signs that your actions or situation needs to change. When these signals are ignored, more anxiety and more frustration build up until the point where it can no longer be held down, and causes an explosion. This emotional explosion, is not ideal and ends up hurting you more than serving you. I am sure you can relate.

On the flip side, the more and more you hold it down, the deeper and deeper the emotional wounds get. You start to feel more off balance, less present, and end up losing yourself in the emotional wormhole. Not only that, the more frustration you build up, the more time it will take to reset yourself emotionally.

A mentor of mine, Jason Capital, thought me that emotions are only useful when being expressed presently. This means anytime you feel an emotion in the moment, let it out. This applies to all forms of emotional whether it be happiness, frustration, or sadness.

When the emotion comes out in a small dose, it may be uncomfortable for a second, but it’s not something that will break you. It is a sign that course correction is needed, which is completely normal considering that humans are always course correcting themselves. Nothing is ever going to be perfect, but we can always fine tune relationships or feelings to create an even greater version of ourselves or relationships.

Let me try and vividly paint a picture for you to help you internalize the message I am sending.

I want you think of a ship that has just been hit by an iceberg and is slowly going down. When the ship collided with the iceberg, image the hull of the boat being torn apart easily because of the small damage it has taken over the years. Maybe the ship had not been repaired for quite some time, perhaps it had taken a few small bumps along the way that seemed to be insignificant at the time. Because of these small bumps and bruises, the hull of the ship gets completely torn apart and a massive hole is the result in the ship.

With this image in mind, how do you think the sailors are going to react? Are they going to be much more panicked? Does the ship have much of a chance of staying afloat with the large amount of water rushing in? Are there going to be many survivors, or will many perish because the ship is going down so quickly?

Now I want you to take a ship that has had those same damages, but action was taken to fix the ships hull so that it is sturdy. The same iceberg collides with the ship, but what do you think will happen this time around. Since the small damages were patched up, the hole that needs fixing is less of an issue. This time the hole can even be fixed because proper actions were taken beforehand, combined with the fact the situation is not as overpowering. As a result, the hole gets patched up, and the ship continues on to its destination instead of causing maximum trauma.

Your emotions are like a ship. Constantly patch yourself up when you are feeling of course. Make sure that the small holes don’t turn into big ones for convenience sake. Always say and act how you feel within a moment, because emotions always have a way of coming out, no matter how long you may push them down for.

I’ve made mistakes holding emotions down, and I am sure that you have as well. However, I am so blessed to have learned the hard way, so that you do not have to. Either way, a course corrected gets me closer to my destination, and I hope your ship sails smoothly towards yours.

Peace.

P.S.

Come support Kennebunk basketball tonight if you are in the Portland area. We are going to take down the number 1 seed tonight on our road to winning a state championship.