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Respond from the eye of the hurricane
George Mumford, the sports psychologist and mental toughness coach for Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, and Phil Jackson, has a cool metaphor about mindset during anxious moments. Those days when nothing is going right, when you feel disconnected from yourself, and you receive more boos than applause.
He teaches: “Respond from the eye of the hurricane, rather from the chaos of the storm.”
The surface winds of hurricanes are chaotic, almost hellish, but the winds are strong enough to deflect away from the center, leaving a calm eye in the storm. If you were to stand on that spot, it would be as if the storm didn’t exist at all.
It’s nearly impossible to make competent decisions, spark creativity, or see opportunities when swept up in the chaos of a storm. The eye of the hurricane is your place of peace, strength, and clarity. A place where you can see the big picture and take care of yourself and others.
I don’t know how to get there on demand, but I’m working on it. Best guess, it’s the little actions yielding joy and gratitude that push clarity to the surface.
Like taking a deep breath and putting aside the ego for a few moments when you’re attacked or vilified.
Like taking a walk to reflect and realize you have a choice — you always have a choice.
Others dictate your life in the chaos of the storm where decisions are reactionary.
In the eye of the hurricane where decisions are proactive, you become the master of your fate.
