Grief is defined as a response to loss, often related to death, that feels like intense sadness. But it also takes a second definition that may mean “to trouble” and “annoy”, as if to say that someone or something was causing you grief. It’s an interesting word really, that while I may have encountered versions of it before, it appears that I may not know grief very well. In a way, it has become an underlying theme that has accompanied me over the last six (6) months, that sometimes can feel annoying.
I hardly write about my own life in this blog, but I figured it would be cathartic, because there are 5 things I did not know about grief that I wish I had known before, and they are:
Unlike the generations before that took a more top down approach or a POWER RELIANT model that drove companies and teams to perform and follow, Gen Z may have a lot more on their hands as they face the future and become the next leaders of our industry. You would think that with a vast ocean of information, and technology on the rise, leadership might be easier. But the future in this digital age forces leaders to DIGITIZE and HUMANIZE.
Introducing My Soul Brief-Case - a self-help therapy card deck meant to help you unravel life’s many challenges. The full deck is made up of 50 cards. But for the purpose of this exercise, I have selected just a few to help you get started.
There are physical boundaries and there are psychological boundaries. We learn how to establish boundaries from our family systems - the first community that we are exposed to. In family psychology, boundaries that are too tight and unclear are ENMESHED. Boundaries that are far too removed and almost completely detached are DISENGAGED. Whether we grew up in extremely enmeshed or disengaged families, we as adults can find ways to strike a balance between the two - so as to appreciate the relationships that we have with our friends, family, and coworkers. So here are 15 ways you can practice establishing your boundaries every day!
With everything going on these days, it is easy to get sucked into an energy drain that leaves us feeling angry, annoyed, depressed, anxious, and frustrated. This is why I’ve put together a list of books that can help you understand your own mind, take control, and expand your perspectives in this pandemic.
Gisa: I love this question because triggers apply to EVERYBODY. And while we may be aware of certain circumstances that trigger us, there are still some things that tend to come up when we least think they could possibly affect us. So how do we avoid getting triggered?
Tired of scrolling through newsfeeds, watching netflix, and hearing the news? Well, it might be time to feed your mind with stimulating content. In the last 3 months, I have taken to truly enjoying podcasts and learning from each of them. I guess it was the limited conversations and social interactions that made me feel like I was deteriorating somehow. And podcasts were the perfect stimulants to my hungry mind that sought ideas, knowledge, and wisdom.
To get in touch with ourselves in this pandemic, we need to be able to meet ourselves where we are and think like scientists - gather our hypotheses, test our actions, iterate our plans. We will only ever known when something is truly right when we try and execute. Living in our heads will not launch us into action. It takes a certain kind of willingness to be truthful, compassionate, and open with ourselves to re-imagine and re-align.
Self-awareness is core to creating a psychologically safe environment because people bring their whole selves to work. Whatever goes on in their lives outside of work may affect the way they act and perceive information in the workplace. And these days, the work from home set ups challenge all of us to find our way around creating a semblance of sanity in our day-to-day. So, how can we take better care of our teams while encouraging self-awareness and improved mental health?
My Soul Brief-Case: A Card Deck to Help Unravel the Inner Journey was developed by Healing Minds PH in collaboration with Collabox.cowith one clear intention - to make healing accessible to as many people as possible.
Question: “What is the best way to get rid of a negative incident? Do you meditate on it?”
Gisa: This is an interesting question. Let me start by saying that we cannot “get rid” of things and hope that they will magically disappear. While we may not know what negative experience you are facing, then our answer would depend on what this experience is.
In my years of work, life has proven to me time and again, that we go through cycles of death and rebirth. We cycle through burnout and recovery. And if we are lucky, we are able to sustain the recovery a little bit longer each time. But there’s nothing quite like turning to wisdom and thought to help us re-align, re-calibrate, and remember who we truly are and what we were made to do here. It’s about accepting where we are, knowing where we would like to be, and taking steps in that direction. So here are my top 4 faves that I believe will help anyone get in touch with the power that dwells within.
