*This post is the first in a seven part series on Energy Leadership.
“To the victor go the spoils,” or so says the old saying. But what happens to the victim? Well, that depends on what they want to do about it. Do they want to remain in that position or re-take control of their life energies and change their world?
There are seven levels of energy (or consciousness) and the first level is marked by victim thinking. As this level begins with feeling like a victim, every action, every response is going to originate from that mode of thinking. I’m sure you know understand and begin to picture this person.
Example 1: Joan is nervous about the project she is working on. She is on a tight deadline and the purpose keeps changing. Her stress level has been going higher and higher as the week has gone on. It’s late on Thursday and her boss calls. She sees the caller I.D. Her first thought is what? ‘Oh man, what do they want to change now? Why is this always happening to me?’
Example 2: You are the facilitator of a meeting, and only two of the 10 people expected show up. You feel like why bother organizing these meetings, it is a big waste of time, and no one cares about your hard work. Your energy is zapped. You feel frustrated and sad. How likely is it that the two people who do show to the meeting are going to get your best when you are operating from this mindset and energy? How might someone resonating at a higher frequency of energy interpret the situation? What opportunities could arise from a more positive perspective?
In both situations, it is the victim talking. She has no idea what her boss is calling about. It could just be a ‘Hey, you’ve been doing a great job lately, want to grab a coffee and get out of the office for a bit?’ But it doesn’t matter. No matter what the boss has to say, Joan is the victim and she does not have the power to change her world.
So what now? With her victim attitude, which is her default setting, her days are going to be consumed with feelings of apathy and lethargic-ness. Joan has one advantage though: she’s so disengaged with her task that she probably doesn’t take it home with her and has tons of energy to do other things in her life (that is if she is at a different level in her personal life).
Keep in mind, it doesn’t have to be you who is in this level though. If a co-worker or friend is operating at this level, you also have to be aware of the fact, and decide how you want to interact – can you just “let them be” rather than try to change the other person? How can you protect your own energy and not attach? And, also, remember “energy attracts like energy,” so if you find yourself drawn to the individual, check one more time to make sure that maybe you are, at some level, resonating at that same frequency of “victim.”
Level one is a perfect place to mention Murphy’s Law: “Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.” That’s a victim, or at least that is a victim’s paradigm.
Do you have moments in your life where you feel this way? How do you combat it?
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