Instructions!

From the time Josh was a little guy he had a hard time controlling his need to have everyone follow instructions. I’m all for following instructions, if winging it and doing it on the fly doesn’t work.  Since I recently quit having fits when things don’t go my way, I often bend toward whatever is needed to help Josh stay on track. That means, I try to follow instructions…to a T.

But something awesome happened as he grew up and matured. He began to recognize the things that have the potential to upset him, or lead to him being agitated, and he actively avoids those scenarios.  He avoids them because his need for people to follow instructions hasn’t changed…he just handles it better.

When Josh was a kid, everything had to be regimented. Just to be clear – that is the total opposite of the comfortable fly by the seat of my pants approach that I lived by, up to that point.  The idea that every directive was something he viewed as set in stone, was a new way of seeing the world.  I’ve seen him shut down when other people were not “cooperating”, and not listening, and not doing it right.  In other words, we didn’t do it his way.

It’s not out of stubbornness though. It’s an innate part of his being that says things should conform. Yuk! Just the thought of that word makes me feel like having a fit!

He takes words and actions at face value.  He doesn’t add in unnecessary emotion or take into consideration the varying nuances of interaction. It just is what it is. Plain and simple. So, for Josh, if everyone followed the instructions, everyone would be content, correct, and better off.

It all sounds good, from up here by the seat of my pants!

Listen to the Podcast: JHA028: Control | http://www.sonyaking.com/jha028-control