Blog

“We are all a product of our environment” is one of the core tenets I learned in my Life Coach
training. I didn’t really get it at the time, but in the ensuing 14 years I’ve lived countless
examples of this simple truth. I got another reminder last week while driving to the office of Dr.
Lizzie Snow, chiropractor extraordinaire.
In the span of 30 minutes, I was plagued by four putzes (all young men driving souped-up cars,
not that I’m stereotyping) who were evidently qualifying for the Indy 500 on Beal Pkwy. I was in
such a state of bliss leaving my house, knowing I was putting my self-care first on my TODO list,
that the first one flying up behind me and tailgating for a 1⁄2 mile before I could switch to the right
lane didn’t even phase me. I just “Bless Your Heart”ed him and went back to my music.
But after the last one cut me off, darting from the far right lane to the far left land with inches to
spare from my front bumper, I lost it. I flung f-bombs like Mardi Gras beads and laid on my horn.
As I pulled away from the near accident, I could feel my heart pounding in my head and my
hands shaking. I felt GOOD about scaring the crap out of him with my horn, right up until my
inner guide (you know the little voice of truth we all carry) said (in my head, I’m not that crazy),
“Terri, why are YOU acting like a putz; that’s not you. What do you need right now?” I needed to
STOP and breathe. I was at a stop light, so I did just that. Three deep breaths, saying “All is
well. All will be well. All manner of things will be well.” And then I could proceed calmly.
I believe that every experience, no matter how challenging and painful, can be a lesson if we
listen. However, if we spend our time railing about the unfairness of it all or jumping feet-first into
frustration and f bombs, we’ll never get the lesson. We must get quiet and let all that detritus
wash away in the silence, then we can hear that little voice of truth pointing us back in the
direction of our sanest self.
Now, if this little environmental pollution can shake an experienced life coach, how is your
environment affecting you? Sometimes we put up with friends, acquaintances, or bosses in our
space that leave us feeling drained or like we want to punch something. It’s perfectly normal to
experience these feelings, but just know that it is possible to change them.
Are you surrounding yourself with people who support your highest and best self, or do you
need to engage in a little environmental cleanup? For now, just notice how you feel around
different people and in different situations, specifically emotional vampires who suck the joy out
of any room. Just notice, and next time we’ll see where you can restore order easily or where
you might need to pull out some heavy equipment to get the job done!
XO
Terri
P.S. Wanna dish about the most toxic waste in your life? Email me with all the details. If you
want immediate help with the clean-up, go here for life-coaching 🥰