We’ve all got hang-ups. Certain topics or situations that are triggering. Often, the temptation is to ignore these, to sweep them under the carpet. The reality is that this is a very fertile area for growth and self-understanding. Don’t ignore your hang-ups.

Indicators

Hang-ups are fundamentally about your relationship to the ‘thing’, whatever that may be. And, your habitual emotional reaction very likely says much more about yourself than it does about the thing.

Notice what is going on for you. Really investigate your mind. What deeper beliefs about yourself or the world are being challenged? What ideas that you hold dear are being threatened and hence leading to a fear-based response? And, yes, it is fear that is inevitably at play. Fear related to sensing a threat of some kind, real or perceived.

‘Threat’ is not just about physical safety. The mind can feel threatened by all manner of things. For example, it may believe that the very basis of its identity— your identity — is being challenged. And, this can create fear because the very idea of who you believe you are, feels like it is being challenged.

A window

Often, our reactions are quick and you may not pay very much attention to them. So, the deeper beliefs behind them remain unexamined outside of your conscious awareness. Because you’ve never paused to ask what it is about how you relate to a thing that produces a certain behaviour in you.

So, you see, our hang-ups are really a window into ourselves if only we dare to look. They are a fertile realm for personal growth if we spare a moment to learn from them.

Don’t ignore your hang-ups. See them. Embrace them. Grow from them.

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Harsha is a 1:1 coach and independent thinker based in London. He empowers people to find more clarity, confidence and focus in their lives — to cut through the noise, in a world so full of it. Harsha’s new book, Machine Ego: Tragedy of the Modern Mind, is now available in paperback and Kindle through Amazon.