Recovering from the Election

Emotions are running high after the results of the current presidential election. There seems to be more protests and violence stemming from the results than has occurred in recent history.

How did we get here?

Acknowledging the Pain
There is pain on both sides. Those who voted for the person who won the election have pain that hasn't been acknowledged by recent elections. Those who didn’t vote for that person have pain connected to fear for the future. Pain is an alert that something is wrong and needs to be fixed.

Opportunity is here. This is a chance to push forward the things that are important to you. What is your loving image for the world? How can you help make that happen? Be the change you want to see. 

Benefits:

1. It stops you from judging others and pushes for understanding. You step outside of your echo chamber to learn more about the pain others are experiencing.
2. It replaces your complaints about others with focus on yourself. You can take action and control what you do in the world.

Similar, Yet Different
You can draw your circle a little larger and look more deeply into the lives and values of people who don’t look and live like you. You’ll find a lot of similarities between humans. We all want a loving, positive future.

What values do we have in common as humans?

• Desiring basic needs to be provided
• Honesty
• Integrity
• Respect
• Kindness
• Demonstrating love for other humans
• Wanting love
• Feeling a sense of belonging

These values are the basis for belief. Making sure these needs are met will help people fear less for their survival. There are people who are struggling for that desire for basic needs.

It is key to confront this social pain in order to neutralize it and move forward. 

Politicians are great at telling people what they want to hear. They know the issues of different markets, can speak to those fears and make promises to that demographic. People tend to vote for the key issues that speak to their greatest fears. It can be difficult to find objective facts. Turn to public record in order to check facts that sound questionable.

Step outside of your comfort zone and learn more about the group who didn’t vote for your person. Listen to their concerns. Learn more about the other team’s supporters. Speak up about your values if you see something that doesn’t fit the bill for a loving, positive future. Remember, the government officials are your employees. The President works for you, so say something if you see something you don’t like.

Listen in as cultural strategist Jamie Gordon and Melanie Cole, MS, discuss how to recover from the election, as well as suggestions for eliminating negativity.