Over the past 4 weeks we have been discussing The Tools from Phil Stutz and Barry Michels. The first 4 Tools were a bit of a mixed bag in my opinion.
As a review the first 4 Tools were:
The Reversal of Desire
This tool focuses on finding ways to seek out discomfort to find the amazing things that lie outside of our comfort zone. This tool brings to mind The Comfort Crisis by Michael Easter, one of my favorite books over the past couple of years.
Active Love
This tool focuses on avoiding getting caught in the maze of frustration when something angers you. Rather than focus on the anger, we focus on sending love to the person or thing angering us.
Inner Authority
This tool is focused on navigating those moments when we feel intimidated. We use our own insecurities as a source of power to overcome obstacles. (This Tool is still the most confusing to me...)
The Grateful Flow
This tool allows us to use the power of gratitude to fight the clouds of negativity in our lives. (This one is still my favorite)
The final Tool that Stutz and Michels discuss is referred to as "Jeopardy." This is the tool that reminds us to use all of the other Tools. The authors suggest that when the tools are working we often become complacent with the progress that we have made, and forget that using the Tools is what brought us to that point. (Sounds a little like our rehab movements...) As we slowly become less consistent in using the Tools, we will inevitably take steps backward.
That regression is the thing that we must always work to prevent. This Tool intertwined with the concept of willpower will allow us to continue practicing those Tools when life is good. It requires no effort to rest on our laurels and fall back into the poor habits that were part of our lives before. Jeopardy reminds us that when we have lost our way, and we all do from time to time, we need to resume, and continue, using the Tools that helped us move forward in the first place.
The authors suggest that we use a "deathbed perspective." They ask that we consider what a future version of you would think about what is happening in your life today. Would they look back on your actions today and be proud of the direction that those decisions are taking you? Or would they be scratching their head wondering what you were thinking? This "deathbed perspective" sounded eerily similar to "Memento Mori", the statement frequently associated with Stoic philosophy. You all know how much I love many of the concepts associated with these ancient philosophers, and I love that this final Tool from Stutz and Michels ties everything together using this anchor.
The Jeopardy tool is about doing the right things today, so that our futures can be the best they can be.
Has this conversation about these Tools, and how you can implement them,been helpful for you?
