Grounding is essential to growth, to spiritual progress and to real-world success. It’s so important that it’s frequently an emphasis in my work with individuals and in groups. Without a solid foundation beneath us, without deep and sturdy roots, growth is simply not sustainable.

Our ability to ground forms the ground ie. the foundation on which everything in our lives rests – everything we are, everything we do, everything we have rests on our groundwork. To construct a sturdy building, we need a solid foundation. For a tree to grow healthy, strong, and sizeable, it must have secure roots.

So what does it mean to be “grounded” or “rooted” in terms of practical, day-to-day life?

There’s several different ways I look at it and like to approach the topic of grounding.

First and foremost, it’s about presence – presence in the body, presence in the immediate physical environment, and presence in the current moment. Grounding allows us to become present in the here and now, which is the only place where we can truly experience our lives and make real or lasting changes.

Grounding is about connection to the body and the earth. When we bring our consciousness into the body we become aware of the needs, the information, and the wisdom contained in the human body (which is our literal, earthly foundation). Without proper care of the body, we will not survive. Grounding also connects us to the great body of Earth, on which our survival also depends. As we connect to the human body and the body of earth, we become more conscious stewards of both. The implications of this are obvious: better health and more sustainable conditions for our bodies and our environment.

Without grounding, we are unstable, we lose our center – we feel floaty, spun, and confused. When we’re not grounded, we come off as “spacey”, “flighty”, “scattered”, or “not all there”. We can get lost in thoughts, which bounce us outside of space and time, out of here and now, and into day dreams or fantasy.

I can imagine being on a tropical beach, toes in the sand, pina colada in hand, not a care in the world. Meanwhile, perhaps I’m actually in a cramped and messy cubicle with piles of unanswered mail and stacks of unpaid bills. When I’m not grounded, my focus wanders, my effectiveness dissipates and I’m not taking care of what’s right in front of me. At the extreme my actual survival (as in ability to pay rent, buy food, look after my physical well-being etc.) can become threatened.

When we’re not grounded, we lack presence and substance. In this state, a person can pretty easily feel powerless, confused and overwhelmed. Eventually, if it goes unchecked, and daily life becomes more and more unstable, it can lead a person to not want to be “here” at all. I hope that you can see that this is serious stuff, not just some metaphysical mumbo-jumbo.

When we’re grounded we’re centered, we feel secure and stable, like a great tree with deep roots. With a solid internal foundation, we can reach for the heights without threat of blowing over at the first strong winds or collapsing when the earth shakes. Which, it inevitably will, from time to time.

The good news is that with practice and patience anyone can become grounded and return to presence and center again and again – regardless of the curve balls thrown in their direction.

One easy and immediate way to ground is to stand barefoot on the ground – on the earth, soil, mud, grass, rocks (not on a man-made substance like concrete). Measurements have shown that when the human body is standing on the earth, our internal electrical circuitry becomes grounded and resonates with the electrical frequency of the earth – matches and harmonizes with the earth’s energy frequency. Just like any electrical outlet, the human energy system needs a grounding circuit, a “cord” into the earth.

There are many other benefits to grounding, such as releasing stress and overwhelm and increasing clarity. There are also more super easy, accessible tools for grounding. Stay tuned and I’ll share more information on grounding as well as tips for doing it in my next post. (Read more in Get Grounded Part 2)