What Happens When ....

"What Happens When ..." sounds magical, mysterious, creates curiosity and suspense. It can invoke both excitement and nervousness given the next step is unrevealed or little known. The feelings of excitement, nervousness and many others of courage, affiliation, sociability, reciprocation etc are all emerging from different levels of energies of an individual at a point in time, in a given situation and context. Actually, that's what makes watching sports, movies and working on large transformation projects so much fun, isn't it? All human beings interact with surroundings and people based on multiple energies and aura they radiate and absorb from others. The degree of our relationships, networks, connections are an outcome of these energies and aura of ourselves and others.

One of the study highlights - 'Everything that we do or think affects the energy and aura so it is usually in a state of flux, ever changing, based on our mental meanderings and physical health. It is also affected by the energies of the environment, the force fields of the planet and the radio frequencies that interpenetrate all forms of matter. The aura is an electronic signature of who we are.' Have you noticed, that on a spectrum of events occurring in our lives there is either a "magical moment" or a "repulsive moment" when a positive energy turns into a not so positive energy. Interestingly, output of a task, activity, engagement, relationship is based on these moments and subsequently what energies we radiate in them.

This article is about exploring "What Happens When Emotion leads to Extreme Passion ... (Positive or Negative)". The fascinating aspect of this exploration is the multiplicity of responses and outcomes it can generate. I choose 'Passion' specifically in this article, since we all have deep values, motivation, drivers which makes us passionate for variety of subjects and objects in our life. Passion has the might to create magic all the time. Organizations place a high level of emphasis on Passion and its role in success of individuals at personal and organization level. However, there are moments either 'magical' or 'repulsive' when emotions lead to extreme passion (positive or negative) and subsequently, it becomes either a strength or a derailer. This happens due to the energies and aura we transmit to others and our surroundings in these moments.

Strength behaviors are linked to robustness, mindfulness, stability, resilience and transformation. Derailer behaviors are linked to creating distraction, distress, flurry, concern, discomfort, discompose, dismay. Through our knowledge and experiences we are aware that overused skills or behaviors can become derailers in times of stress. These are the times when our conscious and sub conscious energies are at their trough. Every individual should aim to raise his / her self awareness on the impact it creates on self and others. Below are sample responses which few of my colleagues shared on this powerful question - 'What Happens When Emotion leads to Extreme Passion ... ' and they were quite compelling:

Response 1: I think from my heart rather than mind. But sometimes I could also become vulnerable.

Response 2: It becomes a royal profession - something that I live for a practice with heart. But it could also spread negativity and take over the quality of job I am doing.

Response 3: I become an artist / a creator with energy to produce the best form of whatever I am trying to achieve. But I could also loose track of what is around me and realize what I am loosing to gain and what am I striving for.

Response 4: I can become a magnet who has the indefinite power to create powerful vision and bring thousands of people committed to it. But I could also loose objectivity, become a victim of circumstances and loose the great potential to create value.

These responses clearly helps us visualize the two ends of spectrum where the passion can create a magic moment or a repulsive moment. I invite all of us to raise our self awareness so that we keep reinforcing our strengths to unleash our full potential and at the same time be cautious of it becoming our derailer .... The inner energy and aura defines who we are and we should not let it be overtaken by forces outside our control. The salient point is that, the question 'What Happens When ...' can be applied to any of our personal or organizational core strength and reflect what happens when it takes an extreme form and its impact on our surroundings, ourselves and others. This will surely help us take one step ahead in our journey of self awareness, for us to become better leaders and human beings.