{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"COVID and Beyond","description":"Have you ever noticed a tendency to view yourself as invincible? It\u2019s not a true belief of invincibility, but rather a perception that other people\u2019s experiences couldn\u2019t or wouldn\u2019t ever happen to us. Virginia and I both admit to this when it comes to being sick. It\u2019s not typically something most people admit out loud or are even conscious of, but it\u2019s the optimistic or perhaps naive assumption similarly phrased as \u201cthat won\u2019t happen to me.\u201d For us, it\u2019s often like a badge of honor that we never get sick. The perception digs in deeper as we often assume we\u2019d react differently, navigate better, or problem-solve more quickly than someone else.  This week I, Al Gugliotta, share about my Covid experience. Can you believe it? I wound up with Covid after two years of evading it! I still can\u2019t believe it although I\u2019ll have to come around soon since I\u2019m still dealing with the chest congestion and all the after-effects. Maybe this is one of those instinctual patterns like fight-or-flight that helps us keep moving forward during tough times or maybe it\u2019s setting us up for disappointment.   In this episode, listen for: Having a greater sense of empathy and gratitude for the vaccine because of my exposure to COVID  [26:07]  We\u2019re terrified of stillness and quiet. We\u2019re conditioned to stay busy and if we stop, it\u2019s uncomfortable [39:47]  Are you too close to your life and lifestyle which prevents you from taking action on your goals? [51:44]  One thing I see clearly is the tendency for people (us included) to focus on a single issue that elicits an emotional response from them. We\u2019re so focused on local issues that are blown out of proportion by the media when there are much more impactful issues going on in the world. I\u2019ve tried for so long to listen to all the news\/podcasts to get both sides of the story and I\u2019m starting to see that it\u2019s not serving me, leading me toward a media fast altogether. www.unlearningproject.org ","author_name":"Unlearning Project","author_url":"http:\/\/www.unlearningproject.org","html":"