I can think of instances from this past week when I’ve reframed thoughts for myself.
Like here, it wasn’t that the fabric was just a messy pile. It was cut, a project in progress, not a mess. A small reframing.
Today was bigger, though. I’ve been prepping a lecture & discussion on a topic in one of my courses that I’ve always felt strongly about, but this was the first semester that I knew of a student in class who it affected. I really wanted to nail the presentation of it, to have it be respectful and accurate and fair. It’s been weeks now that I’ve been thinking about this. Today I finally got to the topic. As I was introducing the matter I froze, and couldn’t make words come out. This is very unlike me in the classroom. I got over it and kept going but I felt like a new colt, all stumbly and unsure. And then class was over before we finished the topic, so that will be where we begin next time.
After class I ruminated on how nervous I was, and wondered if I had been able to get my point across or not. I finally gave myself a mental shake. I realized that I could just focus on the nervousness and the lack of my usual polish or I could think on the reason I felt that nervousness in the first place. It was because I cared so much, about the topic, about the students. In that reframing I found comfort. It was ok that I was nervous and imperfect because the intention behind the nerves was honorable.
Am I done ruminating because of this reframing? Honestly, probably not. But going back to that reframing again and again will help me continue to be able to view situations from different stances, to maintain flexibility of mind. That is more important to me than one class in which I bungled my delivery.
Do you have any reframing stories to share?
Perhaps not a particular story, but this post fits very nicely with my word(s) for the year…redefining success. It’s a bit of the same isn’t it? Reframing…redefining. It’s sometimes hard for our minds to look at things a different way but how you did it with your nervousness is such an inspiring example.