Being prepared isn’t just an act of readying for the future. It is a present state that means we are ready to do or deal with whatever comes our way. What a marvelous aspiration! In this way, preparedness feels connected to resilience, which allows us to bounce back from whatever circumstances we may face. But it’s tricky. Preparation is something that holds both light and shadow.

Preparation offers an antidote to anxiety. When we have put in the work and are ready, we can focus on our quality of presence. Think speaking from the heart on a topic you’ve researched and rehearsed versus reading off half-scribbled notecards shaking in your hands. And preparation can also trigger anxiety. We may feel like we can never know, do or be enough. There is more research to do. More visuals to create. More practice needed. Think toiling away on that creative endeavor that remains forever unfinished because there is no sense of what “done” looks like.

In this week’s episode we explore 3 aspects of being prepared – 1) Deepening our awareness about our own preparation tendencies; 2) Understanding the connection between preparation and our presence; 3) Learning how to honor your integrity by doing what needs doing.