As many of you know, I love the game of football and have since I was a teenager. All the hoopla, hype, and excitement of the Super Bowl is over, and the season just concluded.

Sometimes, in spite of our very best efforts, things don’t go as planned. At that point, we can either panic, losing our focus and direction, or we can keep our heads in the game. Being in a state of panic often leaves us thinking unclearly, leading to poor decisions. Interestingly, the new circumstances will offer numerous cues that, if followed, might guide us to the success we were initially seeking.

Yesterday, we saw this scenario played out among the professional athletes on the Ravens and 49ers. How many times did the quarterback drop back to pass, only to find that even before he was able to get set, there was a linebacker in his face? If he panicked, unable to read the information given, the decision he made resulted in loss of yardage, a sack, or at least a wasted down. However, given time to use his experience and insight, the quarterback was better able to read the defensive scheme, identify the location of his outlet receiver, and deliver a pass on target or improvise a running play.

Like a quarterback who is being pressed by a rush of linemen, too often, when faced with the adversity of changing circumstances, we become reactive to the change, instead of responsive to the cues that are offered within the change.

Today, consider how you handle adversity in your life. Do you react by placing yourself in panic mode, unable to adjust to the changing circumstances?

Sometimes, we need to take a moment to breathe and process the information flooding our senses. Like the seasoned quarterback, we may just find that we are able to be responsive to the cues that are presented before us.

The lessons of life are most bountiful during the greatest challenges we face. The good news is we can choose to react and make no forward progress or respond and make the best of what might otherwise have been a blown play.

I Care,

Barb