As we start to become more aware of who we are. Let me rephrase that. As we start to discover more about ourselves, we start to realize that we’ve had the ability to create what we want all along. The only person holding us back, is ourselves. I’m not completely convinced that we realize this.
Sure, we get excited and pumped up every time we hear a motivational talk. Someone who inspires us. And yet, left to our own devices we tend to fall back into our own patterns, our own limiting beliefs.
Why is that?
I believe that we learn how to be disciplined when we have found what it is that excites us or brings us joy. When we have found that ‘thing’ that has us wanting to move into action. It is then that we have found what will gain our attention.
We can’t take this lightly. It’s a BIG deal when we finally, and/or know what it is that puts a smile on our face.
Too often we do settle. We may not know that we should be following our heart and happiness. More often than not we feel as though our ’work’ should be tied to our other ‘obligations’ in our lives. This could be coming from our parents, or perceived responsibilities. I say perceived as each and every one of us have a choice in life. We may not feel as if we do, and yet, we do.
I’ve heard people say; “I have no choice. I have to take care of ….”Whatever it may be, we all have a choice. You may be choosing the wrong thing for ourselves.
How do you know when it’s the wrong choice? I think it’s when you feel trapped. You feel there’s no way out. You’re stuck. You’re depressed and in despair. All of these are lousy feelings.
When you ask yourself? “Where do I go from here?” Start to explore where you’re currently at in your life. Take a look at where you are and what you’re doing. Are you satisfied? Are you energized? Are you staying curious? Do you feel joy?
I love the excerpt in Chelsea Handler’s book: Life Will Be The Death Of Me, where she say’s; “Go after happiness like it is the only thing you can take with you when you die.”
Imagine if you took that idea and put it into reality. I bet you’d make very different decisions in your life. My feeling is that you’d quickly steer away from wanting ‘stuff,’ or accumulating ‘stuff.’ The drama in your life would diminish and/or hopefully disappear; and you’d quickly start to recognize what brings you joy, and what doesn’t.
Wow imagine if you lived your life like this. My sense is you’d also start to experience more. A lot more.
The thing that really gets me, is that we already know this to be true. Or at the very least we have a feeling that this kind of life would be far more satisfying, and yet why is it so difficult to embody it? To embrace it. To grab a hold of it and just GO ….
One word: EGO (all caps). Hard stop. No need to even explain … and yet, I will.
I’ve always admired the teachings of Eckart Tolle. A spiritual leader. A guy who at a very early age, struggled. He was lost. He suffered from a deep depression. It wasn’t until he lived on the streets for a year that he came to a profound understanding of what life was all about.
The good news is, that we don’t need to go through what Eckart did to better understand ourselves. As Glenda, the good witch in “The Wizard of Oz” tells Dorothy; “You’ve had the power all along.” Andwe do.
Why don’t we use it? What stops us?
Simple answer: We do.
In my earlier years, I had a much gentler approach when it came to motivating others to take action. I took a ‘benefit of the doubt’ point of view where I gave people a break when I heard lots of excuses as to why they weren’t doing something – especially when I knew they really wanted it.
Today, however, I’m less ‘forgiving’ as I better understand that we are not helping ourselves. We are doing ourselves a disservice and I refuse to play into it anymore.
Think about it. There are already external struggles, challenges, and roadblocks that we’ll be battling. My job is to take them down, and have you see a clearer path – however great I am at that, by you putting barriers back up again, you are singlehandedly, on your own, sabotaging all efforts. It makes no sense.
It’s like the addict that is just not quite ready to quit. Yes, it takes time.
So, where do you go from here? Consider this …
This is your one life. I’m going to say that again: This is your ONE life. Or at least the one that you remember. You owe it to yourself to make it the best life possible. This means being the kind of person that wholeheartedly embraces life. I can say for sure that a very small proportion lead this kind of life.
We so desperately want to be seen and yet we’re going about it the wrong way. It’s not about keeping up with the Kardashian’s, or any other family that’s in the spotlight. It’s about opening our hearts and souls to one another. It really is all about love. I hesitated to say this earlier, as I’m not sure it really means anything to anybody. It has become cliché, a word, even a brand, rather than a feeling.
Definition
Love: An intense feeling of deep affection. An unselfish loyal and benevolent concern for the good of another.
As you start to observe more closely your behavior and actions, start to rethink, and/or start to shift your mindset around how you’re leading your life. Make conscious choices rather than stay on autopilot.
One way to do this is to schedule out for the year what you want to accomplish. Search out the kinds of experiences that you want, and with who, and then book them. Enter them into your calendar. Maybe you need to train, study, or apply for something. You’ll need to take some kind of action toward whatever it is that you want to accomplish or experience.
Do it! Start taking action toward where you go from here.