Creating Space Between Emotion and Action
Feelings or our mood are not the problem, but letting them dictate our choices can lead us down a path we don’t want for ourselves.
Most of us have experienced moments where emotions rise quickly and our instinct is to react. Stress, frustration, overwhelm, exhaustion. In those moments, it can feel easier to lean into the emotion than to pause and think. But over time, that pattern pulls us away from the actions, habits, and standards we say matter most.
One of the most important skills we can build is learning to pause in elevated emotional moments.
Before reacting, slow down long enough to ask a few simple questions:
What am I actually feeling right now?
What might have triggered this?
Does this feeling align with my values and the priorities I’ve said are non-negotiable in my life?
As humans, we are hardwired to seek comfort, ease, and familiarity. That is normal, and we can expect it. But we are also given free will, the ability to choose how we act and how we respond, even when emotions are loud.
Sometimes the feeling is not about the moment at all. It is the compounding stress of the day, like traffic, spilled coffee, or one more thing added to the to-do list. Other times, it is an automatic response shaped by how we were raised, the environments we have lived in, or the people we have spent the most time around.
The question becomes: is that how we want to continue responding, or do we want to change the narrative?
You are allowed to choose differently, and you are capable of choosing a new response.
That starts by slowing down. By noticing instead of reacting. By creating space between the feeling and the action, and then choosing the response that aligns with who you are becoming, not just what feels easiest in the moment.
This is a skill, and like any skill, it strengthens with practice.
Slow the rush. Notice the feeling. Choose intentionally.
That is how we build lives rooted in values instead of emotions, and habits that hold steady no matter the day.
