There are times in life when it is important to go back to our roots and return to center.
Jill Bolte Taylor is a brain scientist who had a stroke that shut down the left side of her brain for several months. She was paralyzed and unable to function in the ways normal people do, but in her anguish, she discovered an interesting phenomenon.
With the left side of her brain out of commission, she found a wonderful world of peace and tranquility that is normally blocked by the dominance of the left side of our brain. She discovered that humans have the ability to step to the right of our dominant left brain and find peace whenever we wish. Jill called this revelation “My Stroke of Insight,” which became the title of her book.
She called the place of peace “La La Land.” When she was there, she felt enormous and expansive like a genie that was just liberated from her bottle. She felt at peace with the expansiveness of the universe.
With the help of her devoted mother, Jill fully recovered all function in her injured brain and went on to write and speak about her experience. Here is a link to Jill Bolte Taylor’s Ted Talk.
My Stroke of Insight
When I read her book several years ago, I became fascinated with the idea that we really can take control of our brain and manage it in different ways. It took some practice to do it, but I eventually gained the skill, and it has helped me immensely in some difficult times in my life.
The skill does not prevent me from having periods of angst in my life. Each of us has several periods of peak anxiety or grief, but I have been able to rise above the debilitating feelings several times, for which I am grateful.
Technique to Reduce Stress
In the free video below, I outline a technique that Jill taught which involves becoming conscious of various parts of your body from your feet all the way up to your head. It is a kind of meditation that facilitates better control of your brain.
Free Video
Here is a 3-minute video that contains more information on the ability to control your brain.
https://studio.youtube.com/video/pg2nRhnvIMg/edit
Bob Whipple, MBA, CPTD, is a consultant, trainer, speaker, and author in the areas of leadership and trust. He is the author of four books: 1.The Trust Factor: Advanced Leadership for Professionals (2003), 2. Understanding E-Body Language: Building Trust Online (2006), 3. Leading with Trust is Like Sailing Downwind (2009), and 4. Trust in Transition: Navigating Organizational Change (2014). In addition, he has authored over 1000 articles and videos on various topics in leadership and trust. Bob has many years as a senior executive with a Fortune 500 Company and with non-profit organizations.