Nov 19, 2021
My HSP Response to Unexpected Change
Here’s my #1 piece of advice for HSPs when it comes to surprise requests, upended plans, and any other unwelcome surprises…
When unexpected shit comes up, DO NOTHING.
Have whatever reaction your little HSP self needs to have—for me, this can range from minor irritation to a full on flip-the-table tantrum, to a crying-on-the-floor meltdown.
It’s unpleasant, but after all these years I’ve learned that it’s also unavoidable, and it’s not the other person’s fault, and if you take any sort of action from this place (see: angry emails), you’ll definitely regret it.
So the trick is… NOT to become a different kind of person who takes unexpected changes and requests in stride without batting an eye, but rather:
To do your best to construct your routine and your boundaries to prevent these situations from happening in the first place,
but also (and more importantly)…
To give yourself grace and time, stop fighting with yourself, and take a day or however long you need to come back with an answer.
It is MUCH easier (and better for business) to create the expectation that you need time to process than it is to do damage control because you got reactionary.
About Sam
Samantha Pollack is a Copywriter & Creative Director who works with ethically minded, mission driven businesses who are actively trying to reshape our culture (and possibly tear down the patriarchy). She’s also the founder of The Highly Sensitive Business Owner, a 12-week online program that helps HSPs & neurodivergent business owners create healthier, more sustainable systems in their work.
Sam also writes about feminism, privilege, pop culture, entrepreneurship, the creative process, and whatever else is on her mind. She currently lives in Asheville, NC.
Emails for cult thought leaders.
(Personality included.)
Want to learn how to craft emails that inspire action and engagement WITHOUT the “tried and true” (cough: patriarchal) norms we’ve all been taught?
I’m doing it, and I can show you how to do it, too.
(But sometimes, I also like to write about the books I’m reading, or the creative process, or the entrepreneurial experience, or why I hate Steve Jobs, or how I met my BFF. I’ll send you emails like that, too.)
*Just kidding. It’s only an email list.
Books. Cats. Rants. Drawrings.
(and every couple months or so, an unexplained absence 🤷🏻)
