Watch any movie that introduces some form of prophecy or prediction challenging the power and prominence of a person. In every situation, the person in power will attempt to resist or change that prophecy. Their resistance to change inevitably brings that reality closer to being made manifest. They create the road that leads to the prophecy. We look on and deride the person because of their arrogance and unreasonable need to hang on to what they have. We don’t understand their blindness and inability to see that their choice to grip ever more tightly diminishes their hold on what they desire.
I know it is graduation and prom season. Many of a certain age are moving, changing, and letting go. My motivation this week is for those of another age who are resisting growth, change, and the road to new realities. Twitter joins me to encourage you to live your life, in this moment, with hopefulness. Not the depression of the past, nor the anxiety of the future. Just communicate within this moment. Settle into a journey of hope, joy, and the certainty of change.
1. Self-Sabotage
This one hit me like a ton of bricks, or a slab of cured concrete. Who is it that keeps you from achieving what you set out to do? The truth is that only YOU can keep it from happening. You can make all the excuses you want, but your reality is uniquely yours to command. Your dreams and aspirations are not only conjured by you, they are systematically constructed by you. Did you check the blueprints? Did you contact your team, financiers, and stakeholders? Did you send your construction workers to the construction site today? or, did you give everyone the day off?
“Nothing can prevent your picture from coming into concrete form except the same power which gave it birth – yourself.”
— Abundance Mindset (@AbundanceMind11) May 1, 2016
2. Results Orientation
You have heard this before. But, I think many hear great advice in small, bite-size pieces that make them easy to chew, but less filling. Yes. It is action. But, it is also systematic action. But, it is also collaborative systematic action. But, it is also planned collaborative systematic action. But, it is also informed planned collaborative systematic action. But, it is also inspired informed planned collaborative systematic action. And, then there’s evaluation both during the process and afterward. You don’t know the results, but you will know after the evaluation of inspired informed planned collaborative systematic action. Don’t just get to work, get to inspired informed planned collaborative systematic action.
You may never know what results come of your actions, but if you do nothing, there will be no results. – Gandhi #quote
— Dr. Kenneth L. Bowen (@DrKBowen) May 1, 2016
3. Deadlines & Accountability
I had a great conversation in class last week. The subject was mindfulness. My position was that clients that tell me that they want me to provide them with deadlines and accountability for their goals are doomed to failure. Not because of my inability to trigger behavior, but because a request for external accountability is usually an indication of low intrinsic motivation. Any behaviorist understands that low intrinsic motivation means that triggers and capability yield poor results in behavior. I argued that those who really want results will set their own deadlines. They want IT now.
Not a very mindfulness-based evaluation, I thought. Mindfulness is indifferent about wanting. It is absent of pursuit. But, my intent was to illuminate the meditation, the growth that results from intentionality and focus. Like this quote explains in another way, the time is only functional in the reporting of sequence. Absent time, even without a deadline, you have to ask yourself what remains. What is the intentional focus? That is exclusively a decision for you without any provision from me. My posture of helping is not a “motivation” for you. It is only an expression of my intention and focus. You must intentionally express your own.
"The only reason for time is so that everything doesn't happen at once." – Albert Einstein pic.twitter.com/9PH5XjPqY2
— Murray Newlands (@MurrayNewlands) May 1, 2016
4. Rest AND Renewal
When you read this tweet below, you probably think about the REST as the focus. I challenge you to view the RENEWAL as the most important word. I know a lot of people who would respond that sleep is their favorite activity. They don’t feel that they could ever get enough of it. I am adamant in stating to them, “You aren’t doing it right!” Rest is not an escape from the duties of the day and the stresses of life. It is more like a respite along your journey. Stop. Replenish your supplies. Check the oil. Wipe off the windshield. Then, keep going.
But in addition to physical rest, seek opportunities to renew your spirit. Find joy, courage, value, love, health, communion, and the full expression of your purpose without apology. Engage in activities that energize you even beyond what is offered by a good night’s rest. Enjoy both, and become unstoppable.
Productivity is important, that's true,
but as relevant is time for rest, renewal and just you!#ThinkBIGSundayWithMarsha— Judith Petrushko (@JudithPetrushko) May 1, 2016
5. Faith is Blind, Without Seeing
Trust issues, or whatever you want to call your resistance to the next level of existence, is not just a fact of your life. It is a resistance to faith. It is a slap in the face of belief. Think about it. What if you fail? What if it all falls apart? If you are honest, you are not worried about failure. You are trying desperately to hold on to what you currently have. YOU MUST LET GO of what you currently have in order to take hold of the something new.
I do not want merely to possess a faith, I want a faith that possesses me.
~ Charles Kingsley
— HomeSchoolDean (@HomeSchoolDean) May 1, 2016
