At the end of each day, I have a ritual. I empty my pockets.
Keys, mobile phone, that receipt I need to put through my expenses from three weeks ago.
It used to be some loose change when we carried money. Now it’s more likely to be an unusual piece of fluff I just can’t identify.
Ooh, and if I’m lucky, a toffee.
Do you have things you empty from your pockets?
What about your emotional pockets?
A compliment someone gave you this morning.
A worry about something that hasn’t happened.
A lovely conversation.
The tone of an email you’ve read six times, even though it probably wasn’t meant the way you took it.
We pocket things all day without noticing what we’re carrying.
I can forget a compliment by lunchtime but still be thinking about one awkward conversation when I’m brushing my teeth that night.
You might have made someone laugh, solved a problem and had a lovely chat with a friend. Yet the thing you carry in your pocket is the thought that one person seemed a bit off with you.
How about a ritual for our emotional pockets?
At the end of the day, take everything out and have a look.
That kind comment? Keep it.
The mistake? Can you learn from it or put it right? If so, good. Do that.
That worry you can’t do anything about tonight? You don’t need to carry it into tomorrow.
And while you’re at it, could you put something good in someone else’s pocket?
A thank you. A bit of encouragement. A message to say you’re thinking of them. Then when they empty their pockets tonight, a little something from you comes out.
Nice.
Be Brilliant!
Michael
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