Inspiraelevation

I woke up one day and I wondered.

 

I wondered how I arrived where I was at that very exact moment in time.

For, what I was seeing manifested in my life was alien to me.

After all, I had been firm in my commitment over the past couple of months.

I had made the changes needed to realize the transformation I was seeking, I thought.

Yet, I was seeing nothing in the present to reflect those efforts.

Things seemed to be going very opposite to what I was targeting.

I began to doubt the possibility of change.

The questions that rang incessantly in my mind were “how, and why”.

How was I doing all the things necessary to create change but there were no results to reflect my efforts?

Why was I experiencing this?

After some contemplation, inquiry, and seeking, I was brought to a revelation.

There was no mistake or mixup.

I had created all that I was seeing.

Everything I was, and that I was experiencing in the present; I had built it.

My habits over the last few years brought me to this place.

Nothing I was doing to change it would bring about a change overnight.

Admittedly, what I was seeing was shocking, but it was undeniably a result of what I had invested in my life.

It would take me the same amount of time to reconstruct, that it took me to get to where I was currently.

I began to realize that I needed to accept what I saw as a harvest and understand my role in the cultivation. From there I needed to redefine my vision of who I wanted to be, what I wanted, and why I wanted it. Above all, I had to believe that the investment I was now making would manifest those desires, but not instantaneously.

NO matter what I was seeing right now in the present it would not define who I will be if I continued to put in the work.

It’s not an overnight fix.

I want to motivate you.

Believe that whatever the present looks like and how impossible it may seem your present does not have to define your future.

However, you must first be realistic and accept this truth.

1. what you are experiencing now is a result of what you have invested in the past.
2. If you are unhappy with where you are, you must change what you have done up to this point. (However, reconstruction will take time. reprogramming is a timely process.)
3. If you have made changes but don’t see results yet, don’t be discouraged you must keep going.

*lasting and effective change will take more than 30 or 90 days.

If you stick to it, one day you will wake up and you will be pleasantly surprised at what you see. You may even miss the exact time when you start becoming and transforming into what you have been building.

Be assured that what you will see did not occur overnight.

Today I reaped what I sowed yesterday. Tomorrow I will reap the harvest that I am sowing today, good or bad.

Recommended Read:

Meadows, Martin. This Time Will Be Different: Short Book on Making Permanent 

     Changes. 

Most are familiar with the dog eared statement, “knowledge is power. ” Although this phrase has become heavily cliched it is has a definitive accurateness.

Knowledge renders one capable of acting and enacting change.

Without knowledge, there would not be any progress.

As we learn our sphere of awareness enlarges bringing with it clarity and new insights.

And it is certain that without the growth, that increasing one’s knowledge brings, one would surely perish.

However,  it is also wise to remember the adage “all things in balance”.

While knowledge, if used correctly, can be the key to unlocking innumerable successes;  there is a point where knowledge can become a liability

One of the most crucial points wherein knowledge becomes a liability is when it is untempered.

There is a fine line where the increase in knowledge becomes counterproductive.

Primarily too much knowledge leads to incomprehensible complexities.

 

Undoubtedly, increasing one’s knowledge increases one awareness and options, which in and of itself is not negative. However, an increase in choices often makes it harder to focus or choose.

The resulting factor “Paralysis by analysis”.  And, lack of action regardless of how much one knows still results in the cessation of progress.

Secondarily, untempered knowledge can increase one’s arrogance, contribute to complexes of superiority, or even lead to depression.

When seeking knowledge, be wise in the undertaking. Remember there must always be a balance.

It is not merely about how much information one can absorb, but what type of information is being absorbed,  the purpose behind the search, and how that information is being used.

Lasting success and achievement result from balance.

 

 

 

Sometimes all one needs to hear is, yes!

There have been so many no’s, that no becomes an expectant response.

The closed doors have outnumbered the open ones.

The losses outweigh the wins.

As time passes, the no’s become weightier.

The reverberations of dejection send shockwaves throughout every portion of one’s life, and soon the fissures begin to spread and doubt seeps through.

And even when trying to be as positive as one can be about opportunities, the doubt lingers.

Fear becomes a constant companion, and every action is taken with reservation.

However, there comes a time when somewhere along the way things change, and that no becomes a yes.

What happens when one does get that yes after so many no’s?

Unfortunately, for some hearing yes after so many no’s is overwhelming.  It becomes difficult navigating how to live in the yes, walk in that yes, or accept one’s worthiness after so many no’s.

Faith dwindles, self-worth is wounded, and one’s guard is activated.

And, it is awfully hard not to pinch oneself out of fear. Because perhaps the next morning may bring disappointment.

Some find that they are not as happy as they should be, and winning somehow feels alien.

And yet, others self-sabotage themselves. They begin to feel fettered to the yes; believing that this is the only yes they will ever get, or that they are worthy of.

No matter how many no’s one has received it does not make one any less deserving or worthy of many more yeses.

Winning is something all deserve.

But, how can one change a notion that has been built over time?

One has to spend just as much time reconstructing a new conception as it was taken to form the negative perception.

This is done by;

1. Focusing on one’s worthiness.
2. Developing positive self-talk.
3. Surrounding oneself with those who build you up.
4. Reading about others who have had shared experiences and succeeded.
5. Looking at the yes, as only a beginning, not an end.

Remember, no matter how many no’s you have gotten before, it does not make you unworthy of many more yesses.

Those many no’s do not define you.

Furthermore, Just because you got one yes, doesn’t mean that you have to be tied to that yes.

Those who said no before just didn’t see your worthiness, they weren’t ready for you, and they didn’t deserve what you had to offer.

And believe that although it took you a while, there was always something so much better waiting for you.

 

Achievement is a process, sometimes linear and, sometimes not. 

Regardless of the path,  it is certain that success results from, ” a series of (deliberate) actions or operations conducing to an end” (Merriam Webster).

Success is neither instantaneous or by happenstance. It is the result of daily contributions toward specific goals and the repetition of those targeted efforts.

Eureka!!!

 One of the essential keys to achievement is repetition.

Repetition is the cornerstone of learning and developing automaticity, which is extremely important.

As Norman Vincent Peale once surmised

“Repetition of the same thought or physical action develops into a habit which, repeated frequently enough, becomes an automatic reflex.”

This level of application creates a mental and physical state, which makes achieving any goal possible.

Astoundingly, in this day and age repetition is dreaded if not avoided.

Undoubtedly learning and growing by repetition is a timely and often painstaking process, requiring patience, an element which many are in short supply.

But, nothing that is worth obtaining comes easily.

Building lasting achievement requires a shift; moving beyond what is comfortable and adopting a change in thinking and habit.

One must do what is necessary to develop habits that support a desired level of success.

To do otherwise is pure insanity.

When the individual focuses on reinforcing the right things, accomplishment is sure to result. As it has been attested.

If what is repeated is targeted and positive, then positive outcomes result.

Helmster, the author of From 360 Days of Positive Self-Talk, provides his readers with a great example of why creating success through targeted and positive repetition is important.

Focusing on the wrong things, allowing a repetitive influx of negative input, or engaging in untargeted practice can lend to negative neuroplasticity.

“If you think a negative thought repeatedly, you literally rewire your brain. Same with a positive thought” (Church)

If success is what you are looking for embrace repetition.

Make sure whatever is being repeated is positive and targeted toward your goal.

 

Works Cited

Church, Dawson. “The Dark Side of Neural Plasticity.” Energy Psychology Journal. 2017.

   Web. https://energypsychologyjournal.org/the-dark-side-of-neural-plasticity.

Accessed 6 May 2019.

Helmster, Shad. 365 Days of Positive Self-Talk. Gulf Breeze, Fl., Park Avenue Press,

2015.

 

 

We live truly miraculous lives.

Unfortunately, many forget or never realize how miraculous their lives really are.

I could spend an incalculable amount of time expounding on what I have come to learn in the last couple of months of my life.

I digress for there is not enough time to expound to such depths.

In short,  there were so many things that I thought I should have known. Now, I have come to realize that there is still so much I don’t know and some things that I may never know.

It has been a transformative and painful process, but a necessary process.

I have come to certain realizations.

#1 Lack of knowledge is a plague upon humanity and the source of what ails many.

#2 Our failure to recognize the miracles in our lives is at the root of the rot. 

I believe that sometimes things appear to happen so easily in our lives that we miss the miracles.

As a result, we as a people begin to become sure and boastful.

We develop formulas, methods, and strategies ensuring outcomes.

And boastfully proclaim, if carefully applied success will result.

After all 1 + 1 = 2, right

And, what if that outcome is different than it is extrapolated to be?

Why, then, we scrutinize and patronize. We become fastened steadfastly to the assumption that output error is due to something was done incorrectly in the application,  in the process,  or that there is probably a flaw in the applier.

This could not be further from the truth.

The truth is while 1+1 should equal 2, and it more often does. 1+1  doesn’t always equal 2.  In fact, it is a miracle that it does 98% of the time.

Truthfully, some people no matter how hard they try to get 2 from 1+1 they will not or will not without some difficulty.

Sadly these people come to feel inferior, flawed or broken.

However, as my husband recently reminded me, we are not broken, flawed, or inferior. We just live in a complex world where the formula does not always apply and a lot of what does go right is the result of external factors.

Yet, the trueist sadness is that we try to pass off miracles as certainties.

Regrettably, these people are blinded. As a result of their blindness, they are hardened, prideful, unempathetic, cruel, and pretentious.

I think this occurs because of a lack of awareness. Rarely are we truly aware of how miraculous our lives are.  So, it is easy to take so much for granted and then to become full, of assumption, surety, and pride.

As I have come to surmise, there is no definitive guarantee of a specific outcome regardless of how much effort we put in.

This fact is hard-hitting.

It’s real and raw

When you do become aware, when life hits you so hard that you can’t possibly breathe or think; it is then that you begin to realize that you are to an extent powerless.

 It is then that you begin to see the true miracle of your life and recognize your role in it. 

While the process is always in our control. The outcome is and always will be out of our control.

We can only do the best we can to move toward the desired outcome, improving our probability of reaching the desired outcome.

What about science?

Science is a methodology a process by where hypotheses are confirmed through experimentation and verification using the if, then premise, ultimately resulting in a new truth, rule, process, or product.

 

Fundamentally confirming as once hypothesized, if you apply a then b should result. If you perform in a certain manner then a specific achievement should be reached.

This is said to be verified by many tests, which have been replicated resulting in a confirmed outcome.

The thing is there is no exact science. There are many variables and conditions that exist that can at anytime nullify a confirmed scientific truth.

Why do we cling so strongly to these truths?

For the most part, since things seem to work out in our favor and on our behalf a lot of the time, we attribute the success to the science, the formula, or the method. It is easier that way.

We, in turn, apply this same standard to the whole (everyone).

But, what happens when everything is done right( according to formula), but still it doesn’t work out.

To what does one attribute the failure?

You cannot always contribute a failed outcome to an error in process or the individual.

No outcome is assured 100% of the time.

Given closer introspection, you will begin to see things more clearly and understand that those successes that you have had, though you had a hand in it,  had nothing to do with you. It is outside of your realm of power.

Let me give you a few examples:

1. Although you may apply for a job and meet all the desired qualifications to assume the position, that position is in no way guaranteed. Someone  (outside of yourself) has to offer you the job.  Ultimately, you have no control of this.
2. Suppose you audition for a role in a movie. Suppose you had acted in many roles prior to the one you are auditioning for. You have the experience, the education, and the look. You should be a guaranteed shoo-in. But, you still don’t get the role. Why?  It is because being selected is outside of your control.

Remember, if you write the book customers have to decide to buy it. Even if you run for office others have to elect you. You can make a petition but someone has to be willing to answer. Although you do everything you can to conceive, you cannot without a miracle happening within your body.

This is when you realize.

Whatever success you celebrate or have celebrated was and can never be totally attributed to you.

You cannot make anything happen.

When you awaken to this, you start to really begin to count your blessings. You really begin to appreciate what you have and what you have accomplished. You become more humbled and less prideful. You understand that the world is much more complex than we make it. You learn to be empathetic.

And when the formula does work for you, you are less likely to look down upon others who are still struggling to try to make things work.  You become more human and begin to reach out your hand in understanding because you have come to an understanding.

In the end, despite what it may seem, everything that has been achieved is because we have been favored, or blessed.

I am not here to pass on any guarantees to you but I want to give you the tools and knowledge to put you in the best position to accept your blessing if and when they come to you.

Through my growth, I want to help you also grow.