The Reframing Game

This past Saturday our local Little League where my three sons play hosted the annual Opening Day ceremony. This is a great community event where the teams come on the field in a parade, showcase their new uniforms, and are recognized for the awesome work they are going to put in this season. 

There was just one problem. Those new uniforms? They didn’t make it in on time. Due to an unfortunate international customs situation, our League’s awesome uniforms were sitting in shipping purgatory. It was no one’s fault – everyone had controlled the controllable, and this was just how things shook out.  

Our reaction (our meaning the adults)? "This is a disaster. These poor kids are going to be so upset and feel so silly not getting to be in their jerseys for opening day. What an awful situation."

Shifting immediately into problem-solving mode, the company we work with scrambled to create some simple practice jerseys with the sponsors’ logos in the team colors. We (the adults) were so sad and disappointed – mainly because we just knew the kids would feel the same way.

To ease the blow of not having the cool, new jersey, as I handed my 10-year-old his shirt, I said, “Buddy, your real uniform didn’t make it here on time. They were able to get you guys some great practice jerseys though.” I braced myself for impact on his disappointment.

His response?

He paused, briefly processed while examining his shirt, and exclaimed, “Daaaaang! What are we? A professional baseball team!? We’ve never had practice jerseys before. This is sweet!”

He instantly reframed what I thought was going to be catastrophe into something positive, joyful, and wholesomely optimistic. Kids are amazing (and surprising).

So how can we as adults – and as professionals – do the same when we encounter the unforeseen?

1.      Trust the pause. We need to be okay sitting in “it” – whatever the “it” may be. Maybe it’s bad news. Maybe it’s a shift in the schedule or timeline. Maybe it’s a “no” we weren’t expecting. Let’s be okay with pausing in those moments and giving the newness some space.

2.      Process the information. Once the pause moment has happened, what does this new information really mean for us? It’s okay to sit in the silence of frustration, disappointment, sadness, and/or change to score what this moment actually looks like.

3.      Play the reframing game. And now, how can we add a positive layer to the situation? Maybe this news was meant to open another opportunity. Maybe the schedule shift resulted in innovation and a new moment of efficiency. Maybe the “no” made more time for other “yes” moments.

I always thoroughly enjoy when I can take life lessons from the tiny humans my husband and I are working to raise, and this idea of Pause, Process, Reframe came so organically for my son. With intention, I hope to be able to see my world through the same lens and find far more opportunities to exclaim “This is sweet!”

Pause On.

Process On.

Reframe On.

Game On.