The HeartMath Solution by Doc Childre

Author:Doc Childre [Childre, Doc, Martin, Howard and Beech, Donna]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 1999-06-16T04:00:00+00:00

A New Level of Mastery

At HeartMath, we foresee that the next major step in the evolution of the human species will necessitate the development of a higher degree of emotional management than we’ve ever experienced. This level of emotional management, this application of heart intelligence, will be the root of our power for profound personal and societal change.

We’ve all experienced managing our emotions to some degree. But what we usually practice is a kind of “fair-weather management.” When the sun is shining and the sky is clear, we can smile and feel emotionally balanced. But when a storm appears—especially one that wasn’t forecast—our emotions are thrown into turmoil. We’re basically at the mercy of our inner environment.

When life conforms to the standards set by our minds, it’s easy to keep a light rein on our emotions and still feel pretty good. But if one little thing happens that we think shouldn’t have happened, it’s over. We haven’t yet learned the skills to move to the next level emotionally. We’re still like adolescents.

If you gave a bunch of eager ten-year olds the keys to your car, they’d be happy to drive it, but they wouldn’t know how. When they got behind the wheel and drove off, there’s a good chance they’d have a wreck. That’s where many of us are when it comes to managing emotions. We don’t know how to manage how we feel, so year after year we suffer the consequences.

Most of us are doing the best we can. But emotional management has to be carefully cultivated, and unfortunately there aren’t many instruction manuals. For the most part, people learn through a trial-and-error process—the school of hard knocks. They master enough emotional management skills to survive and to conform to social norms, but they can’t consciously orchestrate emotions well enough to “drive” effectively.

Let’s look at a simple example of how unmanaged emotions can drive us into the ditch. You wake up on a Saturday and decide to take a peaceful drive in the country. It’s an impulsive decision, and since you usually plan things carefully, you feel pleased with yourself—so pleased that you forget to gas up the car. Five miles down an absolutely gorgeous mountain road in the middle of nowhere, you run out of gas.

“How could this happen?” you groan. “Things were going so well!”

You look for someone to blame—and you’re the only one around: “I can’t believe I was so stupid!” On your five-mile walk back to civilization, blame gives way to self-pity: “Every time I try to do something fun and spontaneous there’s a problem.” Then fear and anxiety take over: “I remember passing some buildings five miles back, but was there a gas station?” Finally panic and despair set in: “What if this turns out to be a twenty-mile walk? What if someone vandalizes my car while I’m gone?”

Here’s a better what-if: What if, at any point along the road, you’d been able to engage your heart intelligence, giving you more emotional control and

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