ACT HAPPY WEEK, DAY 4: AGILITY

AGILITY: The ability to move quickly and easily

Consider the rainbow fruit tray above. Do you like all these fruits equally? If the tray contained some vegetables, would your choices shift? What about proteins or carbs?

Most of us have foods we like more than others (*cough chocolate cough*) and some we avoid. Sometimes we eat for joy and other times to support good health. One of the simplest approaches to healthy, well-balanced nutrition is to eat a rainbow every day. 

That same concept of agility offers many benefits for our physical and emotional selves.

Humans are capable of a thousand nuanced emotions, yet most people only “exercise” a handful. Sometimes we need a broader range.

Athletes who hyper-train only one set of muscles soon learn that does not convert to overall athleticism. A competitive footballer (“soccer” to my US readers) must be able to run fast, jump high, and change direction quickly and often, and all those require a solid core and an agile body. The footballer trains by running, cycling, lifting weights, and through flexibility and bodyweight routines – mixes it up, in other words, to support agility in the game.

In my own fitness journey, muscle confusion** is a helpful philosophy. I have regular routines (yoga, cycling, walking, bodyweight drills) that I mix up by occasionally swimming laps, working with resistance straps, or attending a class like Orange Theory for HIIT (high-intensity interval training). Moving between these forms nurtures my body‘s capacity for switching up as needed – climbing stairs, mucking the pond, running to my car in the rain, or rolling on the floor with Emma, the 4-your-old whose fruit tray is pictured above. 

What’s This Got To Do With Happiness? 

Humans are capable of a thousand nuanced emotions, yet most people only “exercise” a handful. Sometimes we need a broader range. On any given day you might have to navigate the sorrow from hearing a friend’s loved one died, the irritation from sitting in traffic, the stress of new workload, the joy of celebrating your cousin’s engagement, the panic from learning your taxes will be audited – and that’s before breakfast!

Emotional Agility comes from nurturing your capacity to experience different emotional states and move fluidly between them to support you and those around you, whatever life sends your way. If your baseline mood is more glum or serious, you might find bright moments difficult; likewise, if you only practice gratitude in a bubble, you can feel paralyzed when you need to access courage for a tough conversation or confidence for a presentation. 

Just as experts in nutrition will say, “eat a rainbow,” and in fitness say, “mix up your routines,” I say, “live a rainbow of emotions” by stepping into new, strange, or uncomfortable situations to expand your emotional range and agility. 

Remember: Leadership is not about a title. Anyone can be a Leader who nurtures their capacity to move fluidly between strong emotional states and choose the one most appropriate for the moment. 

**Muscle Confusion: the concept is to vary your training regimens to keep them fresh and avoid plateaus.

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If you ever feel like you could use some support for getting where you’re going, give me a shout. Same applies if someone walks into your office and says, “hey, do you know a good coach?” 

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Jim Smith, PCC, is The Executive Happiness Coach®, a global player in the space of Executive Presence, Vitality, Team Coaching, Keynote speaking, and mentor coaching.

For more tips on Leadership, Coaching, and Happiness, visit JimSmith.Coach and download my report on "The Ten Terrible Habits That Undermine Leadership...and what to do about them before time runs out."

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