National Salt Awareness Week will take place the second full week of March and, although organized to help raise awareness of the damaging effect of too much salt to our health, we like to celebrate it as a reminder that Salty behavior is bad for our health as well.

Be the Sun, Not the Salt talks about the damage that Salt can cause, impacting our lives and the lives of others. The negative is really very powerful. The Salt that we engage with, whether being poured on our roots or pouring on other’s roots, is extremely toxic. This negativity is so strong that it impacts us, stings and lasts longer than the positive energy we encounter. As Ralph Waldo Emerson has said, “For every minute you remain angry, you give up 60 seconds of peace of mind.”

Part of that is just how we are wired; it is not our fault, it is our default reaction. We are designed to see the world in terms of danger and that which might hurt us. When you are walking in the woods and a branch snaps, your body tenses because you think it is something dangerous. This phenomenon occurs in our daily lives as well. When your child brings home five A’s and one D, our default reaction is, “What is with the D?” It is a great report card but that negative reaction, that default reaction, immediately criticizes the other person. It’s not your fault, and it’s not our fault, but there are ways to overcome it.

Be The Sun…

WHAT – You made a mistake. A real blunder. You said the wrong thing, you made the wrong move. What do you do? The answer is simple. You do the next right thing!

HOW – Decide what kind of person you want to be and ask yourself what that person would do in your situation. If you wish to be heliotropic, for example, practice thinking of yourself as a heliotropic person. Ask yourself, “What would a heliotropic person do here now?”

WHY – People will be drawn to you and want to be around you.

You will be more effective in every role you play.

You will feel good immediately.

…Not The Salt

WHAT – Are you like Salt on a plant’s roots, causing others to wither and become less than they can be?

HOW – Practice, Practice, Practice. What you practice at makes you better at what you practice. Choose to Be the Sun just a little bit every day. Eventually, these heliotropic behaviors will become a daily habit.

WHY – You will be better for it.

Your life will be better for it.

The lives of the people around you will be better for it.