We Always Seek What We Know

By Steve Gwisdalla

Apologies for the delay in posting. My family was out of town. You will read more about that in this week’s article!

My friends, in the Tribe of Up, we seek to create, discover, and promote all things up. Sometimes we try and offer encouragement or antidotes to help in times of high stress and worry. This is one of those times.

When times are tough and when things are at their darkest, it is human nature to always seek out what we know and are most comfortable with. Its familiarity is its power. We like to wallow in our own mud. It is warm and inviting. When things are chaotic and we tend to seek chaos, guess what we will ultimately find when things are spinning out of control? Chaos. If we run the risk of a deception or lie getting away from us and that is our normal mode of operating, when we seek solace from the lie, we will turn to more deception to cover up the last. See where I am going with this?

We seek what we know best to comfort us, even if it does not really bring long-term comfort. Get me through this tribulation and I will change. We have all done it. I know I have. How do we break the cycle you may ask? For starters, I refer you back to my article last week titled “Understanding the Game” which can be found on both the Sun Times News website (www.thesuntimesnews.com) and my Tribe of Up Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/groups/2235035440010424. There, you can find my most recent articles spanning the past several months.

Understanding the Game talks about knowing with whom and when to choose sides and when to simply choose not to play. Acknowledging the issue is indeed the first step to overcoming it. Admitting to ourselves our past ways of dealing with things is not always the best way is the first step to finding other options. My father always told me, “When in doubt, try the truth.” That has always served me well. It is difficult to break old habits. Another popular phrase I have memorized over the years is this one: “If you want to be where few people are, you have to be willing to do what most people will not do.” Looking in the mirror and saying to that person to do better is one of the hardest yet most rewarding things we can do to help our current self. If we do not like who we have become, maybe we need different habits. It is this singular ideal that led me to turn off the news, stop watching political debating shows, click off polarizing and conspiracy theory web pages and start seeking other things to ‘feed’ my brain. I found my old Bible. I started to listen to podcasts that offered self-help and self-healing topics. Over the past several years, much effort has been given in trying to redefine what I seek when trouble forms over the horizon.

My friends, more than you know I wish you every good thing. Being in a Tribe of Up is much more than funny stories and positive spins on ideas and topics. Sometimes, people in our happy little tribe find themselves stuck in the mud or going through tough times. Helping them up and cleaning them off is only half of the solution. Offering support and ideas to help avoid future mud holes is just as important. I would love to hear about other ways you all have ‘rewired’ your programming as to what you seek out when times get hard. My email is [email protected]. I list this in every article and talk about being the Owner and the Vice President of This or That within my little company. Today is a little different. Please know I am having good thoughts, praying, and offering support to all of you. It is true we always seek what we know best. Together, let’s get to know more things up and less things mud. Our washing machines will thank us!