Jon Symons recently moved into a new condo to find him and his wife living underneath noisy neighbors. Noisy at 1am neighbors.
The story he writes is about his realization that this would be a regular conflict between his quiet, sleeping abode and the [relatively] party-centric unit above.
What Jon finds out, however, is that once he shifted his focus from trying to resolve this conflict, by confronting the neighbors or calling the police, to what he really wanted - a good nights sleep - he was able to relax and reach his goal.
Just shifting my focus from the upstairs neighbors to me as the real problem caused me to relax dramatically. I actually began to enjoy the situation as there are few things I like more than learning something about myself and how life works.I also live next to noisy neighbors. Actually, I live with them. The nature of my place is that there is usually something going on until the wee hours of the morning [not without my participation]. But the same thing happens to me: I understand that I just want to sleep, so I sleep.
I've never had a bad night's sleep here.
This practice can be applied to almost every aspect of your life where you see conflict. The grumpy boss, or your lack of money: if you shift your focus on what you actually want, you'll find it becomes a reality much easier.
Take the example of a grumpy boss. He or she is creating a negative environment and probably taking things out on you; making your life harder.
If you take the same principle of focusing on what you really want - your boss to lighten up - things might actually change.
Find out what your boss is upset about, let them vent. Get their mind off whatever their problem is and small talk, or mention some good news. The mood will lighten and you all can get back to work.
Finding Harmony In Conflict - [ArtOfMoney]
