Today I was in a School Site Council meeting, and the principal started off the meeting with a quote that really resonated with me. Here it is:
"When we engage in what we are naturally suited to do, our work takes on the quality of play and it is play that stimulates creativity"
So I challenge you to ask yourself.....are you having fun playing with life, or is life just something you get through?
I ask this because for so many years of my life I was what John Bradshaw calls a "human doing" instead of a 'human being'. All of my identity, self worth, beliefs about myself were centered around what I did. What I did for friends and family. What I did for a living. What I did to take care of everyone else but me. Everything was centered around an identity I created for myself, and I was trapped in it.
When I woke up in the morning it took every ounce of my strength to pull myself together and get myself out of bed. I hated what I was doing for a living, hated going to the office, even though at the time (and this was over 6 years ago) I was self=employed and in an industry I loved. But I didn't want to go to the office and face people, I felt like I was not being authentic to myself or them, and it was draining my life force energy to put on a happy smile and face the day.
So work was a drudgery, and it showed up in my life in obesity. I didn't feel like I had any control over other parts of my life, but I could control (I thought) my relationship with food. And that relationship was an illicit love affair I conducted in full view of everyone in my life. Was I sad? Have a snack. How about angry about how the day had gone. No worries, chocolate cures all ills. Did I have a fight with my spouse? Perhaps a drink would be in order, to help calm me down. Did someone cut me off in traffic and I took it personally? Popcorn was always a sure=fire comfort to me.
So I had to take control of what I did 80% of the time, which was my work. Do you like what you are doing for a living, or are you just a 'human doing'? Do you wake up joyful in the morning? I do now, but I had to change what I did for a living to become free and more of a 'human being'. If you don't, perhaps it's time to go back to school, or sign up for a community college training series. Learn a new language. Start a new hobby. What do you like to do that you would do for free? And now look at how you can actually make that your life's work. Make work fun and life will become fun.
Do you like your friends? If not, change them. If they aren't positive, don't hang around them. They will keep you stuck. They don't mean to, it's just human nature. We can only rise to the level of the people around us. If you want to change and improve, your 'friends' are going to resist you changing. After all, if you change, it's a direct threat and challenge to them. They like you the way you are....stuck. They don't want you to grow. Now, they don't know that consciously. But they will say things like "what makes you think you can do that?" or "my uncle tried that and he failed...." or 'why do you want to take time from your family to go back to school?" all of these things are couched in a way that you think they are asking because they care about you. wrong. they want you to stay stuck, it's easier for them.
but remember, it's your life. And if you don't like what you are doing for a living, and it's 80% of your life....why are you doing it?
Thoughts? Please comment, let's start a discussion.
No comments:
Post a Comment