It comes as no surprise that when you hear the word politics today it brings about some poignant emotions. Unfortunately, none of them are good emotions! It’s a world where attempts are made to create black and white definitive lines amidst a gray landscape.

Is it any wonder that a legal document 1 page in length comes with 13 pages of instructions to decipher the steps? Any legislative action requires an encyclopedias length description!

A significant local vote in our community only involved a fraction of the population participating.

Is it apathy? Is it confusion? Is it a lack of trust?

It’s probably all the above!

So, what do we do? We identify with a personality we feel like we can trust most of the time. Whether they are on TV/ the radio/ an internet blogger…we allow our information to be filtered through them with either full fledged or cautious trust. We become a disciple of them pouring their time and energy into the political arena and attempting to give us the black and white cliff’s notes version.

Let me ask you a question, “How do you feel when you listen to them, read their material, watch the news, etc.?” If you can honestly respond with a sense of “I feel great, I feel informed and empowered, I feel uplifted,” then continue on, my friend!

If on the other hand you feel angry, fearful, upset, righteous, condemning, more judgmental, then it’s time for a perceptual shift. Those emotions are flat out and simply accelerating your aging!

Understand this, media is fueled by fear. It’s fueled by divisiveness. It’s fueled by our innocent childlike curiosity of observation of a world seemingly outside of our present experience.

It catches our attention and sucks us in. Then we are left trying to make sense of it all.

So how do we navigate this energetic field of politics?

First, Unplug for a while. Unplug for at least one month. No news, no talk radio, no information from the political world. Find out if you are really missing anything. Get a feel for your emotional state as you unplug for at least one month. Do you find yourself judging less, feeling better, smiling more?

Sometimes to see the bigger picture and grasp a greater understanding you must get away from the day-to-day minutia and expand to the “blimp view.” Separate yourself “to see the forest for the trees.”

Personal experience made me realize that by being unplugged I have become much wiser when it comes to an understanding and interpretation of the political world and the issues we face. Whenever I see an emotional, polarizing rant I steer clear rather than get sucked in.

After you’ve unplugged for a while, upon conscious reentry, you’ll have more understanding and appreciation for the world of gray and notice over time that you can look at an issue and make an emotionally detached educated decision with an understanding from BOTH SIDES. You may also realize that neither side is right or wrong, however there’s usually one way better for the community (or the world) at that point in time that you may gravitate to. Then among a small segment of the population, you can smile with the understanding that diversity is ironically what brings us all together.