Reframing Situations, & How I Started Ballroom Dancing!
Alright so I know there is a TON of content regarding “reframing” or “reprogramming” situations, especially in the realms of self-help. However, what I want to specifically talk about today is the idea of looking at a situation from a different angle.
Now, it’s true that I am one of those people who tends to believe that everything happens for a reason. Sometimes I find myself in situations I don’t like, but perhaps have no choice about. So instead of focusing on the negative “I don’t want this” viewpoint, I try to think “what is something I can learn from this situation?” Or “what is a way in which this situation could actually end up being really helpful?” It doesn’t always work, but quite often I’m able to see things from a different angle, and that helps me deal with whatever the situation happens to be.
This whole idea of reframing is actually part of how I started ballroom dancing. In 2020 the world more or less shut down of course. But, at least where I live, by the time the fall of 2020 came around, some of the most stringent restrictions were being lifted. While dealing with the awfulness of the worst of the COVID outbreak, I felt that, if I reframed my viewpoint a bit, I could perhaps find something good to come out of it all. I decided to focus on self-improvement. I did this in a couple of ways (including participating in an online finishing school!), but one of the more significant was my decision to join a medical weight loss program. I had always struggled with my weight, and I hoped that perhaps this program would help me lose it. One of the requirements for participating was to take part in some sort of physical activity. Now, at that time (fall 2020), most of the gym facilities were still closed, and I had never particularly liked going to the gym anyway. But something I did love doing was ballroom dancing.
Fortunately, there was a dance school near where I worked, and they were offering a combination of in-person and virtual lessons. I was able to sign up, and I have been dancing with my wonderful teacher, Ryan Cranson (feel free to check out his instagram - @dancedoctor_5678), ever since! Funny enough, I didn’t end up continuing with the medical weightloss program, but I did keep up with the dancing!
Anyway, we can talk more about all of this later (I have plenty more examples of re-framing), but I do hope that if you have found yourself in a situation you really don’t like (unless it is actually threatening your safety, in which you should contact the appropriate authorities), perhaps a good way to re-frame the situation you’re in would be to ask yourself “is there anything good that I can have come out of this?” or “Is there another way I could see this situation?” You never know what you may discover by doing so!
-Bridget-
