The choice of title may seem to some to be a little dark, controversial even. And yet so many of us suffer from boredom, sadness or feel completely lost in our own lives. This can quite often happen at adolescence, but also as we approach middle age, often labelled a ‘mid-life crisis’ by some. These two quite crucial junctures in our development offer us a choice: remain the same or embrace a new and more authentic way of being. The former is an easier choice, the latter: a sometimes painful and difficult journey away from the familiar and into the unknown.
Quite often at this time in our lives, we display symptoms similar to depression and anxiety, and the medical profession’s answer often lies in the quick, neat and tidy solution of pharmaceuticals to mellow symptoms and allow their patients to suffer on in their existing status quos. Please do not misunderstand me: there is of course such a thing as mental illness, and this should be treated by the appropriate professionals in the field. But all too often, people are being labelled ‘mentally ill’ when in fact all they are is bored, lost or sad.
Boredom, sadness and feeling lost can be difficult, painful and the obvious solution is to shy away from them, to fill up one’s life with ‘things’: addictions to shopping, alcohol, love, sex, food, social media, and much more. These things may make us feel good for a while, but are relatively short lived in their ability to bring us release from our suffering. So what is the answer? In my opinion, there is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in its hands. If you feel bored, lost or sad it is an invitation to change, and become more. Become better and more authentic.
This, for me, is where coaching and positive psychology can hold the key and help. A life coach or career coach act as a thinking partner: asking the right questions allowing you to expand your thinking and open doors that you may have inadvertently closed at some past moment in your life. Only you have the answers. And only a coach can truly respect that, never directing you, but encouraging you. Never pushing you, but enabling you. Coaches and positive psychology focus on the present and the future: what is your current situation and where do you wish to be?
Quite often, it can be a journey that can leave you feeling vulnerable and exposed, but a coach has been trained to hold you a safe container of trust and non-judgement in which you can explore options and move forward in safety. So if you are feeling bored, lost or sad, give me a call. I offer a free face to face consultation anywhere in the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, London and Northamptonshire regions or else via Skype and I am fully qualified to help you grow and become a more authentic human being.