How Are Your Anchors Doing?

Feeling untethered?

Today I decided to share with you a concept that I have developed as part of my coaching curriculum. In order to accurately assess your current condition, it is helpful to look at yourself in all areas of your life. I call this the P.I.E.R. Construct. Breaking down your life into four areas of focus and development: physical, intellectual, emotional/spiritual, and relationships. Each of these areas are considered anchors in our lives.

I love how the analogy of a P.I.E.R. fits so perfectly with my understanding of human development. A pier is considered both a landing place as well as a launching place. A pier is a solid structure that is designed to withstand pressures and allow boats to tether. What I would like to suggest is that as we focus on developing ourselves in each of these areas, we will find ourselves grounded and able to withstand outside or external pressures that will inevitably come.

I would also like to offer that if we get off balance in one of these areas then we might very well start to feel depleted or untethered. For example, if you are solely focused on working on your physical fitness and out of the blue you receive a diagnosis that shakes the tenets of your fitness routine preventing such a diagnosis then your whole world will feel disorienting and you may end up feeling as if you have lost your anchor. If, however, you have spent equal focus on the other anchors of your life, then you will be able to find support for yourself in your emotional and spiritual strongholds and in relationships you have nurtured.

The idea is that frequently you check back to your P.I.E.R to ensure that all of your anchors are set. With my clients {and myself} we work on looking at the four areas of our lives and set goals or areas for focus. Sometimes life gets busy and challenging and we wonder why we are feeling x, y, z and most often we can see that one of the anchors in our P.I.E.R. construct has been neglected or disrupted. Maybe it is like an anchor that has come untethered.

In my growing up family we used to go to Lake Powell frequently. Lake Powell is an artificial reservoir on the Colorado River in Utah and Arizona. It is huge! Providing over 2,000 miles of shoreline. Picture majestic red rock surrounded by smooth, warm just waiting for you to waterski water…ahhh! Anyway, we would take a houseboat and one or two ski boats when we went to Lake Powell. We would sleep on the houseboat that was secured to the shore by two large anchors dug deep into the sand. One night, I remember being awakened by the sounds of shouting. When I opened my eyes, I could see that our houseboat was no longer on the shore, but we had drifted out into the middle of the bay. With some amount of maneuvering which involved detangling the ropes from the engine, we {my Dad and others, not me} were able to get the boat engine started and re-establish our secure position on the shoreline.

Winds come, sometimes our anchor is not as secure as we had hoped; this is the adventure we call life as a human. When life is feeling disorienting and untethered, I find it most helpful to look at my 4 anchors: physical, intellectual, emotional+spiritual, and relationships which helps me get back to a more secure and grounded position.

Sometimes we feel so disoriented that it is necessary to seek help to detangle and recognize the obstacles before us. Sometimes we might even need someone to open our eyes allowing us to see where we have drifted. No worries. Most often, with some redirection we can get the engines going again and get your P.I.E.R Construct securely in place and ready for launching and landing.

I’d be happy to discuss your P.I.E.R. Construct with you.

xoKathleen