Maria Gonzalez Blog
Mindful Leadership

Another Look at Equanimity

Equanimity has so many layers and nuances that one can not say enough about it. I mentioned in the blog last week that when we are equanimous, non-attachment occurs naturally. That may require some further elaboration.

To be non-attached means that we do our very best, but we are aware that the outcome is not under our control. It does not mean we don’t care about the outcome; it just means we don’t try to control it…because in essence we can’t. The best we can do is to control our behaviour. What we often don’t realize is how little we actually control.

Now, equanimity means radical permission to “feel”. At no point do we put a happy face on a tragedy, or even a “happy” face when we are not happy. It means we allow to arise whatever arises in our sensory experience, unimpeded. And here is the key: once we have “allowed”, we need to “accept” what is arising within us.

It is that acceptance that essentially makes the non-attachment possible and a natural outcome of equanimity.