Caricatures and stories are always scarier than reality. What’s your story of Trump?
I don’t like Trump. I didn’t vote for him. And I was surprised that he took the US presidency. But I’m not stressed about it.
Why?
Because I don’t believe that it’s the end of the world. Maybe I’m wrong. But until the end of the world comes, I’m not going to tie myself in knots.
World events happen. They affect all of us. There’s not much we can do about them. But stress only happens inside of me when I believe that what happened is terrible. Or when I think, “This shouldn’t be happening.”
Then I become hypnotized and paralyzed by the terribleness of my story. And I forget completely that it is a story. I believe that my vision is real. And I suffer as if it is real. I give over my power to a vision.
If I can question my story, and step out of my own personal nightmare, then I can be peaceful no matter what is happening. I can make peace with terminal cancer. I can make peace with bankruptcy. I can make peace with Trump in power.
Peace is always up to me.
Understanding this intellectually isn’t enough. Knowing that I need to wake up from a nightmare is no substitute for actually waking up. So how do I do it?
That’s where The Work of Byron Katie comes in. I know of no better tool than The Work for waking up from nightmares.
First write down all of the stressful thoughts running through your mind. Bring them out into the light so that they can be truly heard and seen and understood. Then question everything you wrote from as unbiased a position as you can using the four questions and turnarounds of The Work.
Here are a few ideas to get you started doing The Work on Trump, if he stresses you.
Write a Judge-Your-Neighbor Worksheet on Trump himself and question each statement you write. This could be a worksheet on him winning the election, on what that means, or on him as a person, or on any of the things he has said during the election.
Write a list of fears of what could happen in the future with Trump as president of the United States and question each fear.
Question even the most obvious one-liners like, “Trump is in power,” or “Things are going to change.”
Write a Judge-Your-Neighbor Worksheet on anyone in your life that is pulling you down with their thinking about Trump (friends, co-workers, family members, Facebook friends). These could be people with pro-Trump or anti-Trump stories that trigger you. Question each statement on your worksheet.
Trump’s job from this point of view is to help you find all of your hidden buttons.
Whatever you are attached to that Trump threatens will show itself. He is a mirror you can use to not only see your attachments and fearful thinking but, through inquiry, to find ways to move beyond them.
If you’re new to The Work, I encourage you to take The Work 101 course with me starting in February.
Have a great weekend,
Todd
“Nothing terrible has ever happened except in our thinking. Reality is always good, even in situations that seem like nightmares. The story we tell is the only nightmare that we have lived. When I say that the worst that can happen is a belief, I am being literal. The worst that can happen to you is your uninvestigated belief system.” Byron Katie, Loving What Is
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We are not meant to live stressed lives. Learn how to address the root cause of your stress and find your freedom again. Otherwise, stress will keep accumulating. Learn how to break the cycle of stress here.
