Quotes #22 : Who are you today ?

Good morning !

It's Monday again, and, as you know, it is common to start a New Life on Monday. Stop smoking, stop drinking, start working out, do yoga, work at full potential, improve or start new relationship (mark all that applies to you). 

We decide to do something differently in life, to change something. To change our-Selves. 

We have a goal, often abstract, like "become happy" or "become rich", sometimes specific - "graduate from university", "earn a million", "become healthy", "lose 20 kilos". 

And so we go towards that goal, that dream, that picture. We plan, we focus, and start acting, start changing ourselves. 

But we often make a very simple mistake - while acting, we continue to think in past images about ourselves, leaving the resulting image always in the future. Working out in the gym, we think "I will be healthy", working our butt off at work, we amuse ourselves by thinking "I will be rich, not yet, but I am working my butt off, so I will be rich." The problem is, that the result is always in the future (even if working out, you say to yourself "I am becoming healthy" - it is still in the future). 

It is especially true about perfectionists ("hello, my name is Svetlana and I am a perfectionist!" ;)))) ) - we often need a little bit more, a little bit better, a little bit larger, higher and farther, and we push and push our goal away with everyday's "I will...".  Our subconsciousness dutifully nods and supports us in every bit of action for creating an image of a "future happy person". You said - I will be, well, then you will be... someday. You never told anything about here and now !

 "A man is but the product of his thoughts. What he thinks, he becomes." Mahathma Ghandi

 

We often forget about the fact, that life changes, we change,  and, in spite of our focused actions, our mind keeps thinking about us "the former" and spoils all the fun. We either fail at our efforts, always fighting the internal image of the Self, that we refuse to let go, or we simply refuse to see the result (again, clinging to the past self-image). We pass the finish line without even noticing it, because we keep thinking we're still at the start. 

Having decided to change, accept a new image at once, and with it - all the accompanying actions and features. Yes, everything will not work out momentarily, but thinking of Yourself in a  new light, our subconsciousness will automagically pull up all the rest, to match the internal image. 

 "If you want to grow and move forward it's not only essential to get used to the thought of life as changing and unknown but also to let go of the past. When you let go of the past and old self-images then change becomes so much easier to handle. And growing becomes easier too... ..if your goal is to get fitter, then when you let go of a self-image of being unhealthy and instead stick to the one where you are healthy you stop working against yourself. " Bob Dylan

In this process it is important to see Your progress. To the point of being blind to your  "mistakes" and failures, notice only that, which supports your new identity.

 "Our self image, strongly held, essentially determines what we become"  Maxwell Maltz

Lately I suddenly realized, that past, unneeded and absolutely inadequate image of the self is useless. It is not real any more ! Moreover, we change every day. And every day this image becomes outdated. 

And it is important and absolutely necessary to change it. Refresh and renew, otherwise our everyday decisions are simply inadequate !  

 "You can never plan the future by the past." Edmund Burke

Simple example. Imagine, that you are wearing a size 40 (doesn't matter size of what and by which standards it is 40 :) ).  You measured yourself once, a year ago, and made a mental mark - 40 ! You decided to lose weight, you started working out. But, choosing your clothing in the shop, you still take size 4o. Without even trying! Because, well, you're 40, right? You know you're 40 ! Or (what's even more interesting) someone told you, someone very authoritative, that you must be size 40. And you believed it, and didn't even measure! And reality is - you lost weight during this year. And your size is 38. And you keep buying 40. And, carefully tying the belts, convince yourself, that it is your size, and it's not too large, it's just the cut is wide....

Absurd, right ? But that's exactly what we do from time to time, when we get stuck in the past image of ourselves and refuse to believe in our successes and achievements.

BTW, right now, this very moment :), I am writing this, sitting alone in the office, thinking that I am a bit sad today, not the best mood, and a colleague walks by, marking that I look very respectable and personable, calm and even inspired. Bright example: me, not following the actual change in my mood and lagging with perception of my self-image. :)

 

Whatever we do today, now, we often cling to the past self-image with a tenacity of the hard-working burro and fit our current achievements into past failures. 

 "The past is not simply the past, but a prism through which the subject filters his own changing self-image." Doris Kearns Goodwin

Our self-image can always be changed. Take into account your past experience (experience, not the image!), make a decision, find a new image and drop the old one, simply believing, that I am different. Simply having decided, that I, probably, was __________ (insert here any unpleasant epithet about yourself, that tortures you), but it is in the past. Or even (OMG!) dare to believe, that I was never like this, I just thought I was. It just seemed to me. It's that simple, drop it from your shoulder, like an old unneeded mantle, let it slip off your shoulders and chest and go further, without turning around, being aware of yourself as a different person. 

Having chosen, created yourself another image, that warms you from the inside, frankly saying, having dug it out from the depth of your heart from under the pile of labels and other people's opinions, make decisions, make choices, matching the new You, and see the signs of  new You in yourself every day. 

Osho has a good quote about dropping the past. Every day, every moment.

 "Every moment something is becoming dead. Don't be antique collectors; that which is dead, leave it. You go with life, you flow with life, with your totality and intensity, and you will never face any dilemma, any problem." Osho

Forget who you were. Important is, who are you now. 

You are here and now. And if something does not make you happy, here and now is the only moment for change.

 "A writer writes. If you want to become a writer, write." Author unknown

Have a happy week, and I wish you many discoveries and renewals ! 

New, happy and inspired, 

        Sveta