ActionPodcast » discuss

Suffering In The Silence Of Apathy

Paul — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 20:14:27 +0000

Recently I was discussing several topics with a client and something came up. It was a realisation that they didn’t really care about the topics we were skimming over. Nothing seemed to spark with the client, everything we talked about seem to just drift and feel unimportant.

That’s when my client revealed something to me (and provided permission to reveal it on here too). Their partner had told them that they were stuck in apathy.

This was initially just accepted by the client and with true apathy, it almost drifted off into the recesses of her mind as yet another thing she didn’t care about. But something stuck just long enough for her to talk about it to me. Following our session I forwarded on the Wikipedia entry for apathy to see if that helped at all. Although the descriptions seemed to tie in with what she was (or rather wasn’t) feeling. It was the image that finally hit home and made her feel something, even though it was sadness, it was a feeling and something she knew was a sign that things were going to change.

The client realise that not only was she stuck in a state of apathy, but that she was cornered by both boredom and worry. Neither of those two emotions were particularly attractive either. It was then that she decided, that to move from one zone to another didn’t mean she had to spend much time, if any, in those other areas.

She began to write down ideas that would put her in the positive areas. Things she could do. Places she could go. People she could see.

Once she had three or four things in each positive section she sat back and looked at her work. She smiled, a great big warm and relaxed smile. The client had just realised she was already somewhere between Relaxation and Arousal. She selected two of the things that seemed most comfortable to her, and scheduled time in her diary to do them.

Over the next week she completed both the things she set out to do. But what interested her the most is that she found it easier to recognise the ebb and flow of her emotions. Instead of suppressing them, she enjoyed them. By recognising that being stuck in one emotionless state was a place she no longer wanted to be. Even if that meant occasionally feeling worried, bored or anxious. At least she felt alive!

Getting Feedback Without Fear

Paul — Sun, 10 Jul 2011 21:48:33 +0000

There’s nothing better than getting great feedback.

There’s nothing worse than getting bad feedback.

There’s nothing more helpful than getting constructive feedback.

So how on earth do you make sure you get the right feedback? Paul and Sam love getting feedback just as much as anyone and during this podcast they discuss some great suggestions on how to ask for feedback so that you get the right information at the right time to help you improve instead of sending you off in the wrong and often depressing spiral caused by poorly given feedback.

Deadlines

Paul — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 05:45:52 +0000

We all have deadlines to meet. Even the most organised of us can find we are cutting it fine and doing things just in time!

Sam and Gina discuss their own challenges with getting things done and explore breaking things down into chucks and having “medium milestones” to help keep things on track

Get refreshed with a break of routine

Paul — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 16:45:41 +0000

It’s rather easy to fall into a trap of repeating the mundane, day after day. Whether that’s in your time at the gym, your commute to work or any other standard routine in your daily life, it can be easy to lose your spark and decrease motivation. However, as Chris and Paul discuss in this podcast, a little change can break the routine and quickly give you a fresh perspective, a new boost of motivation.

If you have downloaded the podcast from iTunes remember to post a review and visit our website at ActionPodcast.com to leave a comment or contact one of the presenters directly. Sign up for our newsletter to receive the podcast directly to your inbox, plus an additional weekly blog post!

Do you negate or accept compliments?

Paul — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 21:11:28 +0000

We all know someone who seems to struggle to accept compliments. Brushing them off or negating them with an offhanded comment back, as if they are not worthy of the praise. In this podcast Paul and Chris discuss how you can become better at accepting compliments and gifts from others in ways that not only make you feel better, but also encourage people (including yourself) to give and accept these gifts even more.

Dealing with negative people

Paul — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 12:25:32 +0000

Once again from recent experiences with Twitter Paul finds himself discussing them on the Podcast. This time Paul and Gina cover dealing with negative people without having your head in the clouds, or sand for that matter!