A friend of mine at the gym today asked me how I was doing. I answered that I was struggling and then I paused for a moment, Hearing my own disempowering statement. I recognized the pattern immediately and then turned my focus, shifted it rather, to constructive progress that had been made.
You see the brain wants number 1 to avoid pain, and number 2 to pursue pleasure. When I made the shift to the pleasure I would receive from achieving the goal I was immediately removed from the pain of the struggle.
The “shift” is widely used to move the focus from pain. Women in childbirth have used Lamaze technique for decades. Soldiers sing songs and chants as they do their long distance runs. Concentrating on breathing and meditation are widely used to still the troubled mind. There are many, many ways to shift your physiology and biochemistry, many ways to shift your thinking. One of the simplest is just a question.
When someone around you is focused on the struggle ask them “how will you feel when you have surmounted this challenge?” and watch the shift.
Next time I will answer my friend with “making great progress”.#NoFailureZone #DrBillABQ
