The main idea behind these Noticing exercises is that it’s a good thing to know how you feel about things. But so many of us are seriously out of practice in noticing how we feel. One of the basic intentions of Action Inquiry is for us to become better at noticing how we feel, naming how we feel, and then doing something to change how we feel (when we don’t like it).
Noticing and naming how we feel leads to more clarity about what’s really happening in our life, in the moment that it’s happening. It’s a skill anyone can acquire — it just takes practice.
This exercise is from Bill Torbert’s 2004 book, Action Inquiry.
Check in with yourself daily at each mealtime and bed time to identify the moment that was the most satisfying to you since the last check-in, and pause to articulate to yourself what made it the most satisfying. In the same way, identify the moment that was the least satisfying to you since the last check-in, and what made it so. Recall if you were aware of these reactions as the moments actually occurred.
All of these exercises point to the same thing: being more aware of how we feel. This awareness is the first step toward personal development.
Why don’t you try one of these exercises for a few days, and post a comment here about how you feel about it? 🙂
Related Reading:
- What is Action Inquiry? A brief overview of the intentions and terminology of Action Inquiry
- Notice how you feel – periodic check-ins. Periodically, notice how you feel physically, mentally and emotionally
- Notice how you feel – transitions. Notice how you feel when you stop one activity, and start the next one
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