Friday, Feb 12, 2016
I feel a lot better today. I was in my condo almost the entire day yesterday… learning things on WordPress, reading things on building my internet business, reading my email, reviewing my brokerage accounts, surfing news.
It was too long being inside, and too long doing one thing…being on the computer. It is not good for me mentally. Things start to close in on me and I get discouraged. I start worrying about all the things I don’t know how to do in order to get where I want to be.
What started the spiral was looking at my brokerage account. More loss. I start to focus on it. I run down this rabbit hole and the result is always the same…I end up broke. It is ridicules…and in those moments it is very real to me.
This is what I realized today as I was working out at the beach. I am living in a beautiful foreign country with my family, doing things I want to be doing…learning Spanish, living and participating in a different culture, exercising, eating well, having time to read, to have conversation, to connect with interesting people.
I know I have written about this realization of mine before. And my point is that by not focusing on this important reality of my life, I severely hamstring myself.
Here is a truth: What I focus on is what sets up my mental, emotional, and physical state regardless if it is real or imagined.
It’s just that basic. If I choose to focus on loss, like my brokerage account and the imaginations of the subsequent rabbit hole, I start losing in every area of my life! I lose my mental energy to continue to create, develop, and bring cool things into my life…and into the lives of those I love.
I lose my optimism, and fear becomes my core emotional state. Instead of becoming larger and expanding my positive influence into the world, I shrink. I hide. Physically, I lose energy to exercise, to take care of my body, to stay strong and healthy.
And all this loss happens by focusing on the wrong thought, letting it grow and become something it is not. Crazy fucking shit, right? It’s just a thought…but it’s a wrong thought and it’s getting my focus.
My mind is a powerful instrument that can create and can destroy. It can help me create myself and the world around me into something fantastic, or it can shut me down, shut me up, and close me in. The choice always becomes mine…what am I focusing on?
Can you relate?
Chao.
Yes!!! We can relate- It will turn around! Yesterday was a much better day…
Thanks for the Whatsapp peptalk!
Todd
You are SO right!!! Each and every morning I get out of bed and look for a new experience and adventure, one that is going to enrich my life and put a smile on my face. And you know what happens? I have a new and exciting experience and adventure each and every day. Just like magic; I CREATE my happiness or not!!!
We need to get together soon in Santa Marianita. Maybe we can plan an adventure after we move into our new casa.
We are on the same wavelength Annette…creating our own happiness! It’s the only way to be authentically happy.
Looking forward to meeting up with you and Greg!
Todd
I can certainly relate! I thought it was interesting when we all (Easton, you and I) started talking about how we felt yesterday, we were all having a mentally ‘bad’ day, yet none of us expressed what we were feeling with each other…makes me wonder about the energy we share with each other without knowing it!! What we choose to focus on becomes our reality – it’s hard in a strange place not to miss what is familiar (because nothing here is…except you, Easton and Keeper) and somehow I equate familiar with safe. When I start going down THAT rabbit hole I can let fear start to creep in. Fear has a nasty filter – it allows me to see only what is ‘dark’ and makes no room for anything ‘light’. I can look at our ocean and see nothing but the jagged rocks, the gloomy clouds and feel the intense heat and it can all seem like too much. And with that FEAR filter on – life seems very hard and it’s as you say – all I want to do is retreat, curl into a fetal position and try to keep my fears under control! But…what we are beginning to realize is that FEAR filter is of OUR making, so we can CHOOSE AGAIN, we can become aware of what is happening and remove the fear filter from our vision and ask to see the ‘Light’ instead – it’s always there! We only need to realize we can truly choose the way we see our world. It may not always be easy but I assure you (as we are learning) it is always possible! Thanks for sharing hon, as always I love what you have to say.
Great point about “choose again”? When are you writing your blog? 😀
Very good insight, thank you for sharing this. I know this about myself and this is a good reminder.