Which C Was That?

When we recognize that we are falling into one of the C behaviors, don't we often find that we are falling into one or more of the other C's as well, almost at the same time?  When this happens, doesn't the line of one C versus another sometimes become blurred?  What C was that? Heck, sometimes it seems like I'm falling into all seven at once.  Just ask Kim.  HA!  Seriously though, we often find for instance Complaining close behind Criticizing or the other way around.  Same way with Competing and Comparing.  I like to think of Controlling as the mother of all C's, as every other C behavior tends to follow closely with this one, though Kim and I disagree on this to some degree.  There we go again, Competing with one another.  Truth is that our ego will find all kinds of ways of manifesting its presence through multiple C's, sometimes simultaneously, in our lives any chance it gets.

A good friend of mine, Eric Baker, shared a really cool observation with me along these lines that I like very much.  Much akin to how blurry the lines between one or more C's might be at any given moment, aren't the seas themselves, or rather the geographical delineation between the five distinct oceans somewhat blurry as well?  Honestly, where exactly does one ocean begin and end versus another?  Sometimes its difficult to tell where one C begins and another one starts.  While we make distinctions in describing each of the Seven C's for purposes of understanding and being able to observe if, when, and how these attitudes, thinking, and behaviors tend to show up daily in our life, in some ways these clear distinctions might limit us somewhat in practical terms if we are too busy trying to identify which specific C we are falling into.  Put simply, isn't it better to just notice when any of the C's, one or more, shows up and then practice "Stop, Drop, and Be" as the objective observer?  In doing so, we can create space for our self to retake the helm of our ship and consciously navigate in a better direction of our choosing.