Flying on Instruments through the Clouds of Uncertainty

Posted on October 09, 2012 by David Newsome, One of Thousands of Life Coaches on Noomii.

Pilots are trained to utilize their instrument panel in addition to visual cues while flying. The flight instruments are of particular use in conditions of poor visibility, such as in clouds, when such information is not available from visual reference outside the aircraft. No matter what the conditions, the flight instruments provide an unadulterated “view” of the direction the aircraft is headed, the speed at which the plane is traveling and the altitude. Pilots rely on their thousands of hours of training when their vision or path becomes blurred by conditions and circumstances beyond their control. When the tempest comes, will you know the tools on which to rely?

Life sometimes puts us in the midst of terrible storms. I moved to Atlanta from Pittsburgh 2 years ago. I was offered a job with a discount supermarket chain and the chance at a new and improved life, or so I thought. Within 9 weeks after relocation, the job that had offered so much promise was summarily revoked—I had been fired! Ironically, earlier that day, I had felt like a million bucks! I felt good; I even received a compliment from a customer about the health of my skin, hair and teeth! The day was proceeding well until I was called into the office—the gauntlet fell!

While driving the 75 miles to my newly rented home, I wondered what would I do, yet, I never panicked. Somehow, someway I knew everything would be okay. The loss of income I thought would be replaced by something better and soon. A week later, I interviewed and got another job for around the same salary. That job lasted one week. I was called into the office and given my walking papers due to a discrepancy in my credit file. Again, I did not panic. I knew another opportunity would come and be better than the last. That job never came. I would literally be down to my last can of soup and loaf of bread before the next opportunity would come along.

A few years earlier, I was playing basketball with a man and his son. The man was seemingly at peace and I inquired how he became so. He directed me to another gentleman whom I would meet every Tuesday for the next year. My sessions were pretty straightforward. We discussed my goals and plans to achieve them. More importantly, we also discussed how to stay on task despite experiencing difficulties on the periphery. The coaching and training I received helped me to look at whatever issue(s) I faced with the following set of operating procedures:

•The Metacognitive edge – implement strategies in which you use your knowledge about the way you think to shape your behavior. Using this to your advantage will help you act and make decisions in a rational way and prevent you from making mistakes born out of a distressed mind.
•Realize that your difficult situation is all in how you perceive it. What may seem difficult now will not seem difficult later. What may seem difficult to you may not be difficult to others.
•Realize you have a choice in how you handle your difficult situations. You can choose to be positive or you can choose to be negative. Try to find the positive in every situation that life may bring.
•Be resourceful. Never give up or give in when faced with a challenge. Find out as much information as you can about your situation whether that means talking to someone who has been through it or looking it up in the yellow pages or on the internet to find resources to help you get through the situation.
•Deal with your emotions. In any and every situation that you encounter you will have emotional responses. Sometimes you may feel hurt, sad, disappointment, anger, frustration, shame or loneliness. You need to let yourself feel the emotions. Cry when you need to cry. Punch a pillow, yell, scream, roll around on the floor and have a temper tantrum. Let the emotions pass through you like a current and move on.
•Don’t let the situation change you as person unless the change is positive. We all will find that difficult situations help us to grow as individuals. Don’t let the situation make you blame other people and harbor resentment or damage your self esteem.

During my time of uncertainty, I could have decided not to push through the storm clouds before me. The easy decision would have been to pack up my belongings and run to Pennsylvania seeking the comfort of familiarity. Gladly, I decided to stay the course. Although each situation is different, if you rely on your instruments, e.g. previous traumatic situations, coaching, training or research the problem and seeking outside assistance, when life’s tumult comes, you will be prepared to navigate through the difficult times. Like the pilots in the aforementioned paragraphs, recognizing cues, in this case mental cues vis-à-vis visual cues, will greatly reduce the chances of going off course and exponentially increase your chances of reaching your intended destination.