You Are the Cause of Your Problems... and the Solution
Posted on July 09, 2014 by Shawn Carpenter, One of Thousands of Life Coaches on Noomii.
Do you tend to control the circumstances in your life... or are the circumstances in your life controlling you?
I’m sure you’ve heard the quote from the Bible, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.”
Regardless of your religious beliefs, this statement remains true for every single person on the planet.
Let me ask you this: do you tend to control the circumstances in your life… or are the circumstances in your life controlling you?
An easier question is this: how much stress do you feel on a regular basis? The amount of stress you tend to feel is a good indicator of how in control you feel in your life. It’s easy to let the people, the circumstances, and the events in our lives take control of us – unless we choose to take control of us. More specifically, unless we choose to take control of our own minds, emotions and actions.
Our point of focus has a tremendous effect on the way we feel at any given moment. When you focus on things that are beyond your control such as your past, what’s currently missing from your life or what could happen tomorrow… then you’ll feel stressed! You may find yourself feeling overwhelmed, helpless or even depressed and hopeless. For those that have experienced depression, I’m sure you’ll agree that even when you were taking antidepressants, you still felt depressed when you focussed on the wrong things – the things in your life over which you have no control!
People who are successful and fulfilled have a different focus. They focus on the things they can control and are appreciative of the things that they currently have in their life while they focus on where they are going – their vision. When you decide to focus in this way, you start to move toward the future you desire. You see, we are all creative by nature. God, or the Creator, made you and I in His image. Perhaps not literally (though that’s now being debated through Quantum Physics), but in essence. The root word of creativity is Creator, which is within. When you shift your focus, you become a Creator again, instead of simply a manager of your life.
What’s this got to do with vision? Well, it’s all too easy to lose your vision as you experience failures, setbacks or disappointments along the way. We’ve all experienced deep, heart-breaking disappointment where life seemingly crushed something we had our heart set on, someone betrayed us… or even worse, when we’ve betrayed ourselves. In order to create a life where you’re truly thriving – not just surviving – you must learn to shift your focus. You must learn…
… How to Create a Compelling Future.
So where do you start? You need to start with passion. Choose something that makes you feel alive – a goal, a dream, a desire – something that you want so much, it all but forces you toward it. It compels you to move in that direction. Really, you’ve already done this time and again. You may not have noticed, but there have been plenty of things you’ve wanted in your life… and gotten (your career or job, your spouse, the house you live in, the shirt you’re wearing, the cup of coffee you’re drinking…). The truth is…
…you are responsible for everything that you have in your life today.
You are the cause of all your problems… and the solution. So, if you want to begin thriving, here’s what I want you to do:
1. Start by shifting your focus to the things that you can control in your life (e.g.: what you do in your free time, how often you exercise, the types of foods you eat, how many prospecting calls you make, the advertising you choose, how often you tell your spouse or your kids that you love them, etc).
2. Ask yourself what difference you can make – for yourself and for others (see if you can do this in a way where they really take it in).
3. Practice the fine art of gratitude. Look to all the things you have to be grateful for right now (yes, they’re there – you’re breathing, aren’t you? You’re reading this, right? See if you can’t find even a dozen things to be genuinely grateful for right now. But make sure to actually feel it). The Universe will start rewarding you with more for which you can be grateful.
Practice these three steps and watch what happens. Wishing you true success and fulfillment.
