For one week, make a commitment to express your disappointment whenever you notice it (without getting fired, of course). Even if you feel wimpy, even if you feel too vulnerable, even if it feels as if all you are saying every five minutes is, "I feel disappointed; I'm feeling disappointed; when you said that, I felt some disappointment" — keep saying it anyway. Claim total responsibility for your disappointment by expressing it in a curious, nonjudgmental way, such as, "I felt disappointed when you said that, and I experience it as a tightness in my diaphragm." Accept the feeling as it is. After all, from the perspective of our Being Self, disappointment is just a friendly visitor passing through, reminding us that we are human beings in bodies, inviting us to respond with compassion.

Whenever you feel disappointed, say yes to it. Allow it to be there. Watch it with curiosity. Imagine holding your disappointed Inner Self in compassionate love and joy, the way you might hold a young child who is frightened and needs reassurance. This is your mature Being Self witnessing the disappointment and responding differently, with kindness and loving passion.

Carolyn Hobbs in Joy, No Matter What