People sometimes describe their lives as chapters in a book. The new chapter always seems to follow some milestone event or disaster that has happened, significant and memorable events in their timelines that are joyous or are not, events that are seen as closing out the previous chapter. Great periods of time can pass between chapters. During these large spans of time persons can become locked into patterns, beliefs, and behaviors that can be quite difficult to change or adjust. I notice that for many, the older they get, the more they are set. Their ways are set in concrete or stone, hence the old cliché “you can’t teach an old dog a new trick”. The thought of making a change is just too painful. Surprisingly this belief that change is too painful is common in persons with only a few chapters in the book too. I ran into such a person in a little curio shop just yesterday. 22 years old and trapped by “avoidance of pain” The belief that is common is “this is all that there is and it will never be different”. When I encounter these mindsets I know that a loss of identity has occurred (it is not uncommon for the person to say that “I feel lost”), and one of the coaching tools to use to restore the identity is timeline analysis. Shifts towards restoring identity and balance can be made in spans of days, weeks, and months. I like to call these little shifts towards the restoration of balance and identity as sub-chapters. I am a firm believer that many small events clustered together on the timeline can result in better closes to a chapter. Why not start a new sub-chapter today.
#NoFailureZone #DrBillABQ
