I was at a friends place last week in Dallas.
She has a little note up on her wall I think from Serge King that says:
1.Bless the present
2.Trust yourself
3.Expect the best
How powerful are those three little statements?
Imagine if you lived life according to them!
BLESS THE PRESENT
Firstly, bless the present. That means we have to be aware of the present - which means BEING present!
No bringing the past in to taint this moment.
No worrying about things that have not happened yet.
No focusing on how bad things are, because you are too busy blessing this moment as perfect - for whatever reason , it just IS!
If you are not happy with the moment - you can of course change it at any moment - by changing your behavior!
It also means intently listening to someone else and not having an ongoing dialogue inside your head where you are planning your defense or attack - and you are really only listening for the GAP in the other persons words so you can leap in with your volley!
It means asking yourself 'what does this person REALLY want from me and then looking and listening for signs from them.
The present is really all you have! The past is in your brain and body. The future obviously is not here yet. So that's it - the present - might as well make the most of it!
Anger, resentment, fear, jealousy, disappointment, frustration and other negative emotions are all from the past. They are not really relevant to this moment.
It requires us to wake up! Wake up to where we are and how we are feeling and thinking and to then stop all the past and future garbage and actually BE present and then no matter what it is like - bless it!
TRUST YOURSELF
This is not an easy one, I know that for a fact.
I have had to work quite diligently to stop the negative old patterns kicking in - the words and feelings that I was not good enough or would not be able to cope; the fears around how things would change once it took off and all sorts of other little issues that came up.
Which brings me to the other part of trusting yourself - have you ever had a sense of KNOWING something is true or right or what you need to be doing? It's different from thinking or judging. It comes from deep in your heart and/or gut.
Trust that sense of 'knowing'. It's you!
Listen for it. Feel it. It's your truth!
EXPECT THE BEST
How many people do you know who always expect the worst?
They use phrases like "with my luck...."; "I never win anything, find carparks, succeed, have fun, make good grades, do well in crowds", I could go on forever with the terrible things people say to themselves about themselves and their situations!
If this is you - STOP IT!
These are habits. Patterns of language you have been using for a long time.
Toddlers and young children don't walk around miserably mumbling junk like this!
We pick it up along the way when at a vulnerable moment, someone has said something to us or we just succumbed to negative thinking!
If you are in a relationship and you constantly expect the other person to be in a bad mood or out to attack you or to hurt you or be rude to you or aggressive or distant or cruel - guess what? They probably will be because.....
WE SEE WHAT WE EXPECT TO SEE!
We do not see reality. Have you ever seen that Youtube clip from a university where they had about 10 people playing basketball. The professor asks the students to count the number of times the ball passes from person to person.
At the end of the short clip, the professor asks how many times and the students duly answer. Then he asks who saw the gorilla!
In the middle of the clip, a man dressed in a gorilla suit, walks smack through the middle of the players - it is SO obvious - ONCE you know the story! If you looked at the clip now, you would immediately see the gorilla - because you will be expecting to see it.
The first time I saw it, I did not see the gorilla!
Be careful, VERY careful, of your expectations. Most of us have no idea we even have them - they lurk in the background of our consciousness, impacting every aspect of our beings.
Take some time after you read this to explore your expectations around yourself, your colleagues, boss, job, partners, children, parents, siblings - everyone in your life! Make a few notes and you might be surprised,
If you write your usual expectations down, examine how many are positive and how many not so positive!
Go forth today and in every situation, in every person, in every relationship - expect the best!
These three little shifts in your focus will change your life!
Remember, we create what we focus on.
Today you mission .......should you choose to accept it... is to go forth and from now on:
Bless the present
Trust yourself
Expect the best!
Begin today.
Zooties
Amanda Gore
Watch Amanda talk about zoots on this video clip.