The other day we lost power because of Hurricane Isaias. We got a lot of wind but I really wasn’t paying much attention because the last bad one, Hurricane Sandy, did little damage and we didn’t lose power. When the lights flickered, I thought nothing of it and when they went out, it never occurred to me that they would be out more than 24 hours. Nope. Not even one thought bubble about that until about 3:00 in the morning when I started worrying if I was going to have to throw away the food in my fridge.
I am a child of the lack-minded. I grew up hearing “money doesn’t grow on trees” and “we can’t afford that” and I brought it with me into adulthood. I really believed there wasn’t enough.
We are most susceptible to forming beliefs by the age of 6 and most impressionable in puberty. What we hear and experience is real and it forms our view of the world until we decide that it serves no purpose beyond making us anxious and worried all the time. Of course, then we have to decide to change it and even then, as demonstrated above, it isn’t always easy to form new habits.
But it is never too late to try. I began working on my old beliefs around the age of forty. Things like “I’ll never make enough money to be out of debt”, and “I’m not knowledgeable enough to succeed” are just two of my beliefs I had to release in order to make it to where I am now. Do I know everything? Nope. But I look at every day as progress and filled with opportunities to become an even better version of myself.
But back to the story….so I woke up in a panic and was able to make it most of the day before I decided that I needed to go get ice before I had to throw all the food out in my fridge or I had to eat everything. I’ll tell you, it was hard to hold the panic back and away from the lack mind! I was driving with a major grip on the steering wheel and the “hurry, hurry” thoughts. I couldn’t stop the fear and panic! When I finally found a store that had ice, I bought three bags and returned home to find that the power had come on 10 minutes before I unlocked my door. I found myself thinking almost immediately that if I’d gone out for those bags of ice earlier, maybe the power would have come on sooner!! And then I was able to breathe.
There is no failure unless you don’t learn from it. Or at least find a little humor
Vanderslice Coaching 