Skip to main content Link Menu Expand (external link) Document Search Copy Copied
Treefrog Handbook

Deep Breathing

Have patience.

“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.” - The Serenity Prayer

We often get so caught up in small things that we completely lose patience with how quickly things are taking to fix, and emotionally react to the fact that it hasn’t been fixed yet. At Treefrog we call this “spinning”.

When you see yourself or a co-worker doing one of the following things:

  1. Asking you the same question to fix the same thing in the same 24 hour period.
  2. Bringing up the same issue in every meeting you have with the person.
  3. Becoming emotionally overwhelmed by small things, and/or Clipping.
  4. Wanting a raise, or wanting to know their career trajectory for the next decade “immediately”.
  5. Constantly coming around to the same issue, even if it has been Parked for later attention.
  6. Bringing the issue up with multiple people to get as many people on their side as possible.
  7. Not liking the answer they got from one person, so either escalating the issue or collecting people’s agreements to prove their idea’s importance.

…then they are probably “shallow breathing”, and not “deep breathing”.

Deep breathing means recognizing that something needs to change, but unless there’s someone actively bleeding or a crisis emergency, not trying to fix it until all of the data has been considered and evaluated, and timing corrective action for a successful change. The amount of time to discuss the issue could potentially be taking as much time as the issue itself - often by leaving it alone (under a watchful eye), deap breathers know it often fixes itself or can be slowly massaged into the right direction merely by individuals being cognizant of its existence.

Usually people who need constant attention, constant input, constant change, are “shallow breathing”. People who recognize change is needed, but bring the issues up at the right time, to the right people, and on a consistent but clear and calendarized timeline, are “deep breathing”.

This comes from Scuba Diving, where shallow breathing (usually as a result of panicking over small or innocuous issues) leads to very quick exaustion of air suppply, and in some cases, death. Those who learn to control their panic and excitement get much farther with the same supply of air.

How to Deep Breathe

Watch for exceptions. Know when something is broken; and when something is fine, but there is a bigger issue at play.

See everything, overlook a great deal, correct a little.
												- Pope John XXIII

You may believe that X needs to change right now, but consider: what are the implications if nothing changes right away? What possible benefits could come if we took more time to assess the situation?

What if you stayed in your job exactly the way it is a little longer? Would the problems start to rectify themselves?

Does bringing up the same issue repeatedly add value to what you are doing, or are you merely reacting to a specific problem and forcing a change? Is this truly a trend, or is this an exception?