Newsletter No. 6
An important principle of personal development is ‘KEEP THE END IN SIGHT’. The only reason to revisit and resolve the pain and problems of the past, is to create a better present and a different future. For me, the wish was to have and experience the life I would have had without my crazy, mixed up childhood, and the trail of habits and attitudes I formed during that time. Later in my process, I understood the importance of having a vision of where I wanted to go, how I wanted my life to be. Keeping that aim in mind is very important, otherwise we risk lengthening our recovery or development process, by concentrating on the stories and problems. Each mistaken belief, blame or sorrow that we work through, is merely a veil to toss to the breeze as it leaves our life. We need to concentrate on what is beyond the veil, not the veils or the stories themselves.
The simplest way to understand the importance of the keeping the end in mind, is the processes Psychology of Vision (POV) uses in workshops and trainings. Resolving the problem is always at the middle of the process. The endpoint is the person we want to be, the life or gift that we want beyond this problem. You can see the same format in the Three Card Reading. First we choose the problem, then we choose the way through the problem or dilemma, and then we choose the gift or outcome that we wish.
Visualise Your Future
This means having a very clear vision of the future we wish to have. For many people this includes their ‘purpose’ or mission, what they believe they came to bring or do in the world. Ask yourself right now … “What does my future look like?” “How do I want my future to look?” I can hear some collective groaning here… and remember, the amount of resistance you just felt is at least equal to the resistance you have to creating or taking responsibility for your own future. For some of us, it can even come as a surprise that we get to choose.
This is the most exciting part of your commitment to your personal change or development. I know from personal experience, it can take time to figure out. Many of us have been too busy fighting or surviving the present, or buried under the past to think about the future. Many of us also don’t believe we deserve a great life and a great future. You may not have reached that place of believing how much you deserve. In that case, humour me, borrow my belief for you. Have a go at writing your future over the next couple of weeks. This is one of the most important things I am ever going to ask you to do, aside from asking you to take the Life Manual Course and change your life.
Passion Testing
We go into living with purpose in Chapter 15 of the Life Manual, but here I would like to recommend the ‘Passion Test‘ to you.
