How do you respond under pressure?

I have heard it said that people’s true thoughts, feelings and personalities are “exposed” (for want of a better word) when they are put under pressure.

I can certainly tell stories about how this is true and how I have seen it for myself in my own actions. I think though, that if you imagine a high pressure situation you have been involved in, then you might see this is true for yourself.

My response to a high pressure situation has often been to stress, worry, and have anxiety and sometimes to sink into a bit of a depression. Over the last couple of years though, I have learnt a new tool for handling high pressure situations. It is so simple, I am almost embarrassed that it has taken me until I am in my thirties to recognise and learn this technique.

I pray!

Once again, I am not talking about any particular religious cannon or doctrine. I am not talking about going to a church building of any kind.

What I am talking about is the ability to sit quietly and ask for help from the universe, from the divine, from heaven, from (quite frankly) anyone who is listening…smile. The benefit to doing this is that I immediately feel the burden and pressure lifted from my shoulders. I am able to calmly and in a detached manner, look at the situation with a new clarity. For things I have no power over like red tape at work, or the reactions and responses of others, I gain a bit of peace and acceptance. For situations under my control like meeting deadlines and my own responses, I feel as though I can hand the difficult things over to the divine for a solution and I can more easily control my own responses because I am calm and feel safe and trusting in the knowledge that there is someone or something on my side who knows and understands the details.

No matter what you believe, the benefits from sitting quietly for a moment and asking for help or relief are immeasurable.

I can imagine (and am manifesting) a world in which people pray when they are worried, stressed or frightened rather than reacting with violence, negativity or hurt to others.