Saturday morning I was talking on the phone with my sister in St. Louis about what we were going to wear to our respective holiday parties that night.
The conversation was abruptly interrupted when I saw a grey little creature scurry across my kitchen floor. I squealed, shrieked and reacted by jumping up and down. From my new found perch on the kitchen counter I could see it move around to the dining room.
After my sister and I stopped laughing, she calmly talked me through the next steps. “Hang up and call critter control,” she directed.
Armed with my broom in one hand and the phone in the other, I called my neighbor instead. As it turns out, she had had a mouse last week and was on her way to Walmart to buy supplies. This purchase was now doubled. We had our plan of attack.
After my initial hysteria, I went upstairs (safer ground I thought) and called my dad in New Orleans. (Why couldn’t this have happened when he was here last week?) Again, after more advice and a reminder that the mouse was scared and wouldn’t hurt me, I stepped back to look at the options.
I was giving up my power to this 4” rodent. I was letting him take control of my house as I tiptoed from room to room. When we react, we frequently give up our power.
I am a powerful woman. I speak publicly (the #1 fear people have), I run my own business, I am a risk taker. Yet I lost sight of all of this.
When I stepped back, took a few deep breaths and reviewed the game plan, I became proactive. I regained my power.
Look at the situations where you give up power. How can you get it back? What happens when you shift from reacting to being proactive?
For now there’s a mouse in my house. We’ll both sleep warmly tonight.