I run with men. Have done for 17 years. I have heard every conversation, every expletive known to man. These guys are hard core OCD runners. They obsess as much about their weight and fitness as the women I run with, not as openly but still obsessively.
But like most runners they have not distinguished that you don’t think about an injury. It’s not a head based conversation. It’s a conversation you have with your body.
Hmm..you may think I am splitting hairs. But no. We have a brain in our head, and in our heart, and in our gut. And neurons in many other parts of the body. So if we are using our head brain to experience an injury you will automatically be over thinking. Actually what will be happening with an OCD runner is their ego will jump the conversation and override it.
Tuning into our body requires dropping out of the head. Just like tuning into our feelings requires dropping out of our head. And tuning into our gut intuition requires dropping out of our head. You don’t think an intuition. Or think a feeling. You feel a feeling and intuit and intuition.
What’s the point of this? Our business and work, like our body, requires at least thinking, feeling and intuiting. If you are stuck in the thinking almost always your ego will entangle with the needs of the business and you will not be honouring the best for the business. Besides, you will only be using one third of your available intelligence. (Yes your heart, body and gut has intelligence…)
Businesses that we love have hearts and souls. They are not sterile, beige, thinking machines. Apple is an experience. You want to touch the products, marvel in their beauty, feel the passion of being an Apple fan.
What is the heart and soul of your business, and why do people love it? Feel your business, intuit your business. And yes think about it…but not too much.
(Check out “Lovemarks“, a wonderful book about brands we love and why by Kevin Roberts, CEO Saatchi and Saatchi.)