Hiding in the Cave

I was recently at a seminar workshop and met some great people. Wonderful, smart, honest, caring and good people. One word kept being mentioned as we discussed our lives and issues:

Avoidance
So many of us avoid dealing with tough situations. We hide in the cave and wait for things to change, for the monster to go away. We rationalize this by coming up with great excuses, but when it is said and done, we're living in avoidance.

Some pretty smart people avoid things, some very nice people do, too. But as we're hunkering down in the cave, the monster may be getting bigger and more powerful.

I personally think that facing tough situations isn't the romantic, death-defying act it is sometimes pumped up to be. It may be as easy as openly discussing a concern and asking for feedback--with no pressure to solve it or make it perfect at the moment.

Much of the time, that's all it takes for things to start to get better. But that means we have to stay out of the cave.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com