What We Truly Value

I

t may seem like we have figured out life when everything goes super smooth and easy. But the devotion to our values get tested in the face of a true crisis and only then everything is put to the real test. These are the times that gives us a break to rethink, reconnect, recommit to what's important to us and what we should truly value. Your values are the intrinsic things that you believe are crucial in the way you live and work.

The recent outburst of coronavirus has globally affected every big or small scale industries, startups and also humans - not just in terms of physical health, but also financially, emotionally and even socially. People from all around the world are struggling to adapt the new circumstances evoked by the virus and trying to protect their loved ones. It can be very tempting for us to bury our heads and wait for the storm to pass on like the way an ostrich do in deserts. Or you can see this as an incredible opportunity to introspect ourselves and figure out who we are.

What some people are learning that the things we valued a few months back don't actually matter right now. When the crisis hit and things change, its a complete different level. It is one thing to say that you are stoic when forgot your wallet somewhere or when coffee spills and its another thing watching your community collapse in front of you. When life changes and situation puts you down on your knees, you realize that you've never had to put into execution what you thought you know about surviving the disaster.

It becomes necessary to convert our struggles into our values, because what we actually value only has meaning when life gets too hard for us. To know if your core values have worth, your values must help you to keep walking when you can barely crawl when hurdle(s) seems unconquerable. In the span of crisis, what is more important becomes evident to us if we give ourselves a moment to reflect on what is going to get us on the other side - so that we can rediscover our core priniciples and values. In the face of crisis, what seems more important before falls apart to reveal what really matters; family, love, care, community, relationship and health.

Baking relieves stress

It may appear a little surprising to you but it's true that the searches for bread recipies hit significantly high on Google a few weeks ago. A graph (below) from google trends clearly shows that people are now have time and are more introspective about baking.

Baking is a very useful physical activity you can experience. If you've never tried baking then should bake something because it alleviates stress and anxiety and promotes creativity and builds connections. It's a diligent activity that requires patience because kneading dough, tasting batter, sprinkling right amount of spices and smelling the result of ingredients coming together. Batter has to fermentate. Bread has to rise. Cakes have to cool before they are covered with ice. It may seem a little time consuming and lengthy process to many; but it actually facilitates creativity because it turns out that we have to improvise with our ingredients based on what we have in our cupboard. A sustainable usage of resources is what makes a person more creative. We discover a brand new flavor and share result with others; our friends, family members and neighbour and the people we care about.

But how baking can be very helpful in times of stress? The author of 'Overcoming Anxiety', Dennis Tirch, explains "research has showed that whenever people engage more fully in behaviors that give them a sense of mastery and pleasure, they begin to overcome negative thoughts and emotions."

Creating with people rather than consuming enables us to focus on what we value the most while the world around keeps transforming. When we give ourselves a little more time, then the seemingly unproductive pursuits have new appeals because they helps us to restructure and reorient the qualities in life that matters.

The point is not to start baking cookies or muffins whenever you feel stressed but to find an activity that lets you move past your fear and anxiety, to reconnect with what makes your life meaningful. It maybe writing, cooking, exercise, reading, coding, desiging, walking - anything that keeps you content. When we involve with an activity that alleviates our doldrums and negative thoughts, we actually allows ourselves to rediscover what's important to us.

There's no doubt that change can be very stressful. But what in the world tends to be in the state of rest forever. Everyone on this planet constantly undergo through the moments of change because nothing in our life is forever static. That said, nothing else but the change is only constant in the cosmos.

Every change, big or small, brings an opportunity to rethink, re-revaluate and reconnect with what has proven to be important. The basic need of human is to form, grow and sustain relationships or belongingness to a team, group or family is an universal truth. And now more than ever, we all need to stick to our values.

Tagged : Self Improvement