Cat up a Tree

It costs our Fire Services thousands of pounds each year to rescue domestic cats that have found themselves stuck up a tree. There are literally millions of such incidents around the world, but it is not only the cats that are to blame. In a recent article in the Metro (ref: Metro.co.uk) it was revealed that:

“Fed-up firefighters are threatening to charge to rescue cats from trees, free dogs from holes and help overweight people out of their homes. In six months, the Lancashire Fire Service had calls from 40 people stuck in their baths, 6 trapped in phone boxes and 8 who could not get out of their chairlifts. 13 youngsters got their heads stuck in railings and 15 were stranded in trees.”

To those of us who are not involved personally, we might find these incidents quite comic, but for the unfortunate people/animals directly involved, it is no joke. As for the fire services, such rescue operations are often hugely expensive and time consuming.

What is the reason for this strange phenomenon? Why would a cat attempt to climb a tree and then be too afraid to come back down? Why do some people have such poor spatial awareness that they can’t tell if the bath is too small or recognize that they are too fat to fit in the lift? Surely there is something built into the feline or human DNA to prevent us from exposing ourselves to such foolhardy situations or choices?

Admittedly there is little excuse for such human stupidity, though we all suffer from lack of common sense at some time or other in our lives. However, if we give ourselves time/space to think before we act, theoretically our finely tuned mental faculties should help us to make wiser choices. Unfortunately, we rarely have that time or space. The point is that when we are under severe pressure i.e. being chased, (aka colleagues after our job at work, too much work, competition etc.) or when distracted by a tasty reward i.e. the bird, (aka material gain or status) are we ever able to make intelligent choices? Choices that truly serve us, help us to be fulfilled and give us courage to climb the tree of life/career, or to come down to earth and move in another direction?

As human beings we at least have the privilege of being able to learn from our mistakes. We can do this by looking at the past, analyzing its success or failure and making a choice as to whether it is wise to follow the same path. Alternatively we can watch what others have done and choose to do it differently or even improve on their performance.

It is not difficult to see what drives a cat up a tree. It is either trying to catch a bird or being chased up there by a dog or other predator. Once up the tree, its innate sense of self-preservation kicks in and any movement from below, whether it be friendly or threatening, causes it to climb even higher. The higher it climbs, the greater the fear, until the cat becomes frozen to the spot and is unable to go anywhere.

When you look at your career, are you behaving like that cat up the tree? Blindly chasing after things, money or status, without really considering the consequences of your actions. Are you so far up that you are afraid to change direction in your life for fear of losing what you have, (aka things, money, status) even if it is not what you really want? Are you using (losing?) all your energy to fight the competition, with sleepless nights, fearing the worst, yet refusing to change your tactics or position? Is your life or career on hold, because you are afraid to move? Ask yourself, is it wise or even sane to continue doing the same thing, even though it gives you poor results? Why would you want to remain in a state of immobility, when any movement or change in behaviour could give you something better?

Through the powerful tools of NLP we help you to start moving, to recognize your strengths and discover what behaviour no longer serves you. We show you how to make positive choices for a more successful life style and/or career. We help you to remove your head from the railings and take a good look around you, so that you can see and do what is best for you and your life. You learn how to become free and fearless like the wild cat!

Janet Deeb
From an idea by Carol at Matrix