08 | Create Margin For Inspiration
I don't know about you but sometimes I push myself to the limit and something that would normally inspire me feels like an overwhelming noise. We often stretch ourselves to life's edges. And we squeeze the margin for inspiration to breathe and grow. Margin is a characteristic of gentleness. It softens the blow of unwanted change and allows inspiration to flow without overwhelming us. But the world often demands productivity, efficiency and the elimination of waste. And in such a place there is little margin for deep and healthy inspiration to truly land. In this episode of the Gentle Rebel Podcast, we explore what happens to our creative spirit when we live without nurturing margin for inspiration. We will look at the signs to look out for that tell us we're too close to the edge. And we consider the role of rest in life; asking whether it's more than simply the opposite of activity. Episode ContentsTriggers and Inspiration | 8:29Trigger Warnings | 10:12Why Am I Emotionally Reactive? | 14:49How To Cope When Feeling Triggered | 16:38The Power of Margins | 19:58Margins Bring Focus and ClarityMargins Keep Grubby Fingers Away From The WordsMargins Absorb Excessive InspirationMargins Cushion Slips and BleedMargins Make Things More ComfortableMargins Protect The CoreMargins Allow Holes To Be PunchedThe Power of Rest | 26:03Rest is Not One Side of a Binary Divide | 27:38The 7 Soul-Freeing Sources of RestPhysical (Passive and Active) | 30:11Mental | 32:03Emotional | 33:21 Spiritual | 35:11Sensory | 36:27Social | 38:40Creative | 41:15Conclusion | 45:26A Short Meditation on Rest | 47:18 Triggers and Inspiration | 8:29 An inspired surge of emotion can be overwhelming. It might be hard to tell whether fear or excitement is running the show. It might be a little of both. But unless we leave margin for inspiration, we don't have the capacity to inquire. While we often associate emotional triggers with negative stimulation, they can come from desirable sources, too. A trigger is a prompt that causes something to happen. It might be a deliberate part of a physical device like a switch on a kettle. Or it might be harder to spot like sensory stimulation such as a taste, smell, visual, sound, or texture that prompts a conscious or subconscious memory. If we're feeling exhausted, inspiration can seem overwhelming. But there's a difference between being and feeling inspired. When inspiration overwhelms us, margins provide a cushion to hold and absorb whatever is emerging. Even when we don't feel ready to do anything with it just yet. Trigger Warnings | 10:12 On her Instagram, Dr Susanne Wolf talked about what to look out for when recognising emotional reactivity to external stimulation. Sudden Physical Changes (increased heart rate, fast breathing, muscle tension, stomach clenches, feelings of tightness in the chest, nausea).Sudden Cognitive Changes (confusion, overwhelm, irritation, indecisiveness, distractedness, unresponsiveness)Sudden Emotional Changes (fear, frustration, anxiety, despair, sadness, grief, yearning)Sudden Behavioural Changes (becoming argumentative, alarmed, alert, lashing out, giving up, withdrawal, procrastination, agitated, shutting down, blaming others, restlessness)Sudden Irritation By Seemingly Unrelated Things (touch, noise, sound, people, textures, scenery, places) These sound like signs of an overwhelmingly negative situation. But the responses don’t necessarily distinguish between positive and negative stimulation. We might even experience many of them when we're inspired. Why Am I Emotionally Reactive? | 14:49 What is causing this heightened state of emotional reactivity? In the post, Dr Wolf shares observations we might make, like feeling dismissed, ignored, attacked, afraid, insulted, manipulated, humiliated, excluded, offended, betrayed, alone, ashamed etc. I would also add some other triggers for emotional reactivity.