In yesterday’s blog I was talking about an apparent conspiracy on the part of seemingly inanimate objects to undermine and sabotage¹ us. Although I have a friend who feels strongly that we are entirely capable of ‘fritzing’ computers to cause ourselves problems, and that this is yet another flight/fight² strategy that we can employ. During the course of my discussions about yesterday’s blog, I came up with the phrase Random Acts of Self Sabotage (R.A.S.S.). We seem to have any number of strategies which force us back into old patterns that no longer serve us. If you think about those people around you who you know well, you can probably see them stuck in these pattern loops, and maybe even catch yourself thinking “Here we go again…!”

Of course observing others ‘tricks’ is one thing, spotting our own is so much harder, and yet logic dictates that is they do it, we probably do too. If you go and ask your partner, they probably can tell you exactly what you do when under stress. When Change comes knocking on our doors, we naturally would love to come out and play only …. (and at this point the sabotage often cuts in.)

Yesterday, I had been planning to take the day off, I know I needed it. I was going off for another hike: the sun was shining, it was a beautiful day, I’d resisted the urge to fix my computer (which is now fine by the way!) So what did I do? I managed to drop a heavy glass on my toe, so the full weight of its edge landed on my toe. Blood… pain!! I went into to shock and was still in real pain 12 hours later. My wife wanted me to go into A&E.

The story itself is daft, as all these tales are; the interesting thing is why did I have to put myself through that? What is so dreadful that I’d choose to suffer like that rather than face it? I don’t have a clever answer yet, though I am working through it. I wonder if you recognise anything in this tale of woe? Are you aware of ever doing this to yourself? If today you find yourself faced with vexations, frustrations and interference, do take a second to ask yourself “What on earth might all of this do for me?” (and assume that there is a positive, albeit warped gain from it³)

“Procrastination is, hands down, our favorite form of self-sabotage.” Alyce P Cornyn-Selby

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Resources:

1. sabotage – malicious damage done to stop something working
   This word became known in Britain shortly before World War I. At that time there was a railway strike in France; in order to cause disruption the railway workers were reported as loosening or removing the shoes (sabots) that held the railway lines to the sleepers. This, according to many commentators, accounts for the origin of the word sabotage and for its appearance in English.
   They may be right on the second count but not on the first. Sabotage existed as a French word long before this. A sabot was a large, heavy wooden clog made of a single piece of wood and worn by workers. The verb saboter (literally, to wear sabots) meant to clatter about in clogs and, figuratively, to do something ham-fistedly. Sabotage was therefore clumsy workmanship, tools that were no good, low levels of skill, broken down vehicles, etc. – all related to the clog’s clumsiness and lack of refinement. From this general sense of botched workmanship it was a short step to deliberate tile sense eventually taken over into English.
   
2. Fight or Flight
3. NLP precept “Every
   behaviour serves a positive intention and has a context in which it has value.”