Are you Proactive or Reactive?

Are you Proactive or Reactive?

Sunday's are my favorite part of the week as I love to get up early, make my Teeccino, and indulge in the complexities of the aromas and flavors while indulging in my weekly reads. My husband’s travelling regime brings me local and national papers and magazines, a treasure really, for me to sift through. OK, so maybe I am not up on day-to-day current events. However, I don’t really need to be as the same events seem to be reported repeatedly throughout a given week. I find it intriguing to read local papers and get a feel for one’s city and cultural likes and differences. Reading also gives me a feel for how we as a nation react to national news and events around the world.

Swine Flu is in every publication from newspapers, to magazines, to tiny 3-page newsletters. The theme is always the same; panic, but don’t really panic, count the number of fatalities and predict just how far this will go. Offer a couple of suggestions such as hand washing and oh, eat well, and wear a mask and hoard prescriptions of certain drugs, just in case.

The same applies for the economy. It’s only down… down… down. You hear everywhere “you know nothing is good in ‘this econmy,’ ‘I can’t in this economy’ and ‘the State of the economy, you just never know.’” Know what? What…What? Tell me!

I see a different approach to both issues and everything else that becomes pandemically oozing as headline news. I think of myself as a proactive band aid to all that ails. I choose not to be a part of the hype.

Whether it is Swine Flu, the economy or failing portfolios I just don’t buy into the hype of the situation. Do you realize that news coverage is 24-hours per day? In Arizona, one channel begins broadcasting the news at 4:30 am and ends at 10:00 pm. Let me break that down for you; 4:30-9:00 am, 11:00 am – 1:00 pm, 4:00 – 7:00 pm and 10:00 pm – 11:00 pm. That is 10.5 hours of news, plus highlights during commercials, roughly adding another hour. So, that is now 11.5 hours of the same infectious headlines integrating our psyche. The same held true in Alabama and Texas. And, that is only one local station! How much of that is actual new news? A very small percent. You are literally hearing the same news over and over and over again. What does this do to our psyche? It makes you cranky. Crankiness leads to fear, fear leads to anxiety and anxiety breeds a reactive state.

When I arrived in Arizona last year, the so called economy was a wasteland of fear, shut downs, unemployment and yet I passed by several active construction sites in my brand new car. I felt an instant bond when I passed by other new car owners, evident buy their temporary paper license permits, as they too were taking advantage of the new economy. It seemed to me that the gripping fearful newspaper headlines were boasting a reality that I was not seeing. I engaged in networking groups and found that there was a pocket of sole business owners that were also experiencing a different reality, and I liked it. There was no fear, anxiety or stress. Why? Because we are proactive. We found a way to be creative in this new economy and turn our dreams and passions into our own reality.

“Proactive” as defined by Dictionary.com is

“serving to prepare for, intervene in, or control an expected occurrence or situation, esp. a negative or difficult one; anticipatory: proactive measures against crime”.

To be proactive, in my mind, is to take preventative steps, such as protecting yourself from Swine Flu and other illness, before a pandemic, and to surround ourselves with proactive, positive, like-minded people who will support one another.

Swine Flu is not that much different than any other flu. Some people die from the flu. According to wrongdiagnosis.com

Deaths from Flu: An estimated 100,000 hospitalizations and about 20,000 deaths occur each year from the flu or its complications. (Source: excerpt from Focus On The Flu: NIAID) ... average of 20,000 to 40,000 deaths per year. (Source: excerpt from Microbes in Sickness and in Health - Publications, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases: NIAID) ... in the United States more than 100,000 people are hospitalized and more than 20,000 people die from the flu and its complications every year. (Source: excerpt from The Flu, NIAID Fact Sheet: NIAID) ... In an average year, flu leads to about 20,000 deaths nationwide and many more hospitalizations. (Source: excerpt from What to Do About the Flu - Age Page - Health Information: NIA)

To date, According to The Center For Disease Control, U.S. Human Cases of H1N1 Flu Infection (As of May 10, 2009, 11:00 AM ET) States* Laboratory confirmed cases Deaths TOTAL 44, 2532 cases 3 deaths including the District of Columbia. International Human Cases of Swine Flu Infection, see World Health Organization

Hopefully, this provides some perspective on not only the flu, but the fear-driven laden news headlines.

So, on that note, naturally, when we are not in hysterics over Swine Flu, we turn to the pandemonium of the economy. After all, we must have something to worry about. Historically, there are economic valleys, peaks, turn-around and rebounds. Likely, this will not change. Recessions and depressions have been occurring and affecting the USA, and the World, since 1764 with the recession over England’s currency act, to the great Depression of 1929, due to the stock market crash, to the Dot com crash of 2001. The point; we are still here!

I just don’t buy into the hype and choose to stay positive. We are in a new, creative economy, or at least that is how I see it, and others do as well. I’m not an activist or part of an underground coalition out to rebel against the norm. I merely choose to be proactive and create a new approach and take advantage of the situation to grow personally and professionally.

What I do like about this new economy is the recycling of old things. We are embracing family and human contact once again. We are realizing that gathering in our back yards over a barbecue is not such a bad thing. We don’t need to keep up with the Jones’ and going to Goodwill or having a clothing swap party is a fun evening adventure. I am enjoying the positive effects to giving to others through freecycle.org and meeting new people. I love this new economy because we are engaging in friendships and finding outdoor activities that engage in real social networking. Planting a garden to raise your own food, what a novel concept! Sharing the benefits of a harvest with friends and family, I think the Pilgrims did something like this too. Sitting down face-to-face and listening to one another is not only engaging but actually has positive health benefits. This is what I call proactive!

Proactivity holds true for Swine Flu as well. I recently gave a webinar lecture on preventive measures by boosting the immune system. I had a few interested, which was great, but I was surprised by the number of people who were not interested. It further engaged my thoughts and hypothesis of reactive as opposed to proactive. Most would rather sit around in actual hysteria, wear masks, bathe in Purell and sit back in fear waiting for the first symptom to strike us down rather than take a proactive approach of prevention. The actual proactive approach would not cost anything and would actually put you in a preventive state so that you would not have to buy into the mass hysteria.

So how do we become proactive? Take a media fast for a week. A what? Yes, a media fast. Avoid all news media in print, audio and visual and see how you feel? Pay attention to your gut, your heart beat and your general mood. You may find that it is easier to relax. Near the end of the week, pay attention to your colleagues, friends and family. Listen to how they talk about headline news and how they are reacting. You may find that you can actually pick up on their emotions. Before beginning your media fast, journal how you feel. Document your emotions, how your body feels and your emotional take on any situation in the news. Near the end of the week, again journal, as mentioned above, and add in the reactions of others. Study your conclusions and hopefully you will have a different approach to what your reality truly is and make some new creative proactive decisions. Become a proactive thinker.

If you are in a reactive state as you read this, I’m sure there are some anger issues toward what I am suggesting. That’s good, get it out. It shows you are in a reactive state. How do you turn that around? You say you lost your job? Well, my friend, my reaction is congratulations; you are now one step closer to the path you are supposed to be on. Meditate on that for a while and your answer will come.

As a nation, we either react or act proactively. Which do you prefer? Make it so! There is no one stopping you but YOU. There are numerous opportunities out there to learn and grow. Whether it is Swine Flu or the new creative economy, there are opportunities to learn. Take preventive measures, like attending a lecture on preventive tips to keep you healthy from the flu, learn a new skill, make a business out of your passion, and look for the positive influences instead of the negative.

It is up to you. President Obama has not said “I” once when he refers to putting this great Nation back on its feet. Rather, he insists, this is an “Us” thing. And, we need to start taking proactive steps to make this work!
Sources

http://www.mediabistro.com/mediajobsdaily/original/newspapers.jpg

I am extremely disappointed with Blogspot as there seems to be a technical issue with uploading pictures. So please excuse the picture-less article. Thanks.

________________________
Karen Langston, Chief Body Reorganizer
Shape shifting your body and mind environment

Karen@iamworthit2.com
http://www.IamWorthit2.com
http://21stcenturyhealthcare.blogspot.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/karenlangstoniamworthit2‏
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