“The future cannot be predicted, but futures can be invented.”
Dennis Gabor
Physicist, engineer, winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics, 1971
Results often begin with an authentic desire, something you want just because you want it. But authentic desires are often followed by feelings of insecurity (sometimes referred to as “resistance”). In this excerpt from my new book RESULTS: Think Less, Achieve More (©2016 Jamie Smart), you’re going to discover how to eliminate resistance so you can get results that matter to you.
Here are some of the more common flavours of contaminated thinking that sometimes show up after we get clarity about something we want to create:
– I’m not worthy or deserving of it
– I don’t know how to do it
– It might not work
– I’m not good enough
– I couldn’t handle it if people saw me fail
– I’m not up to the job
– I don’t know where to start
| IMPLICATION: Your conception of the future is not reality; now is reality
As you’ll appreciate, “resistance” is an expression of the outside-in misunderstanding; feelings that are letting you know about THOUGHT taking form in the moment, and nothing else. I was working with a client who was feeling very stuck when they thought about moving forward with a result they wanted to create. They explained that whenever they tried to get started, they felt uncomfortable and got distracted by other activities. I asked them what they thought the feelings were signalling to them: Did they believe the feelings were telling them about a) their future situation, b) THOUGHT in the moment or c) a mixture of their thinking and the future situation. They chose c) a mixture of their thinking and the future situation. This is what I had suspected. While most people are willing to accept that their thinking’s got something to do with their felt experience, they believe that the future situation (for instance) has got at least something to do with it too. But that’s not real. 100% of your state of mind is an experience of THOUGHT in the present moment. The future does not yet exist, so none of your felt experience can be coming from the future.
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The magical monster stick
When my eldest daughter Tilly was three, she became very frightened that monsters would come into her room at night and get her. My efforts to reassure her were to no effect; saying “there are no monsters, you’re perfectly safe” only seemed to make things worse. Finally, I got an idea from a book I was reading. I went out and bought a cool looking “wand”, wrapped it in a silk handkerchief and placed it in a snooker-cue case. I told Tilly that I had something that could solve her monster-problem, but it was usually only for bigger girls of five or six. She immediately set to work convincing me that she would be able to handle it. As her mother looked on solemnly, I proceeded to open the snooker-cue case and ceremoniously unveiled the wand from its silk handkerchief. I explained that this was a magical monster stick; that if she waved it three times before she went to sleep, saying “monsters be gone”, her room would be monster-free all night. She practiced it while we watched. From that night, her monster problem was gone. Within two weeks, she’d stopped waving the wand. And at some point in the next few months, she realized something a thousand times more valuable than the wand: There’s no such thing as monsters; they’re just a figment of your imagination.
Understanding that monsters don’t exist is infinitely more powerful than monster-repellant…
Understanding the future doesn’t exist is infinitely more powerful than resistance-repellant…
Developing your creative process
The prize-winning novelist E.L Doctorow once said, “Writing is like driving at night in the fog. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” I came across this beautiful quote when I was starting a business in January 2003. I loved what he was pointing to, and used this idea as the basis not only for how I wrote, but for how I developed the company. You see, there are three powerful things implied by this simple quote:
- Destination: You have a “good enough” sense of the destination you’re heading for. You may not know exactly how to get there, and you may not be clear on every single detail of what your destination looks, sounds and feels like, but there’s something you know for sure: You have a sense of your destination that’s “good enough” that once you get there, you’ll know you’ve arrived. This mean you’re already in a position to begin. You don’t need to know what every mile of the journey will look like in detail.
- Power: You have a power source and a means of moving forward. In the case of the car, this includes the engine, driveshaft and wheels, as well as the fuel in your tank. In the case of your life and the results you want to create, it’s your innate capacities and instincts. The fact that you can sense the destination means there’s a way for you to move forward.
- Navigation: The combination of your headlights, the instruments on your dashboard and your controls allow you to respond to the ever-changing environment and make adjustments where necessary. Similarly, when you set out to create results, your senses, memories and embodied understanding allow you to use expertise, intuition and sensory data to sense the terrain and respond accordingly.
Remember: you’re built for reality. You’re capable of so much more than you think you are, and you’re better than you realize at responding in the moment. We’re all connected to this “inner guidance system” capable of helping us navigate. When we’re caught up in contaminated thinking, we believe we need to “solve” the resistance before we can move forward, but that’s not true. You’re capable of more than you think, because you are more than you think. As you start moving forward, you will be guided.
How you turn ideas into reality
1) Take the next step. 2) Calibrate. 3) Repeat… As you step out of La-la Land and move forward in the reality you’re built for, the path will emerge before you.
Practicality check: How will developing my creative process help me get results?
You’re a born results-creator. Contaminated thinking is the most common obstacle to creating results. As you move forward in spite of resistance, you’ll discover your own “flavour” of creation.
You possess superpowers
Your innate capacity for creativity and innovation is one of a number of ‘superpowers’ you possess; the deep drivers you benefited from as you learned to walk. You can find out about all eight of your ‘hidden superpowers’ and start creating the results that matter to you and for you today by downloading the first 2 chapters of RESULTS for free at www.JamieSmart.com/InstantResults
As you read the book, you’re going to discover how to…
- Clear your mind and increase your ability to get the results you desire
- Eliminate the obstacles that have been holding you back until now
- Amplify your influence and impact on other people
- Get results in a way that’s healthy, natural and enjoyable
To your increasing clarity and results!
Big love
Jamie
PS. Your innate capacity for realization is one of a number of ‘superpowers’ you possess; the deep drivers you benefited from as you learned to walk.
You can find out about all eight of your “hidden superpowers” and start creating the results that matter to you and for you today by getting your copy of my brand new book ‘RESULTS: Think Less, Achieve More’ at www.JamieSmart.com/getresults
As you read the book, you’re going to discover how to…
- Clear your mind and increase your ability to get the results you desire
- Eliminate the obstacles that have been holding you back until now
- Amplify your influence and impact on other people
- Get results in a way that’s healthy, natural and enjoyable
Click the link below now to get your copy of the book and start getting RESULTS today!
To your increasing clarity and results!
Big love