Pain as fuel? Hurt as something to look forward to? Disappointments as your servant?
How would that change your outlook on life? On your relationships? On your business? Do me a favor and indulge me until you finish reading this article. I want you to question why you believe that:
Pain is something to be avoided Heartache is bad Struggle is something negative
No, I want you to really ask yourself why you believe that. It’s because along this journey of life you have picked up messages from the people and society surrounding you. Don’t worry, I have too. I call this “mass thinking.” Did you ever hear your mom say, “Money doesn’t grow on trees”? If you heard that example of “mass thinking” often, and you heard enough other people say it too, you probably accepted it as fact and never stopped to question it. Or, what if you heard your dad always say, “People can’t be trusted”? If so, you probably inadvertently picked up that concept as a child and have never bothered to question it. What makes us suffer as humans are our own thoughts and the mass thinking we’ve adopted. According to master motivator Tony Robbins, most people don’t ever master their thoughts, and that’s why they are in anguish. Best-selling author Jack Canfield, says, “Thoughts are simply programmed. We are conditioned by our parents, school, church, culture and so on.” Because of this conditioning, we rarely revisit thoughts or beliefs that no longer serve us. So, how do you, in a sense, re-program your long-held, deep-seated beliefs? According to motivational speaker Brian Tracy, you simply need to question the thoughts you currently believe in. For example, let me ask you two questions. I’m pretty sure the majority of you said yes to the first question but no to the second question. Why? Why do you believe that? If you simply change that belief to the belief that it is possible, you will unlock your subconscious and allow it to look for ways for you to become a millionaire. But, if you continue to believe that it is not possible for you, you will never unlock your potential power to find a way to make it happen. So, how can you leverage your negative, harmful, painful thoughts to serve you instead of hinder you? Here are five ways you can do so, according to leadership expert Robin Sharma. He calls it his five “ings.” Instead of viewing pain as something to avoid, try to look at it as something to embrace. Pain, disappointment, hurt and heartache are just natural parts of your process of becoming a stronger version of yourself. And remember, whatever you are going through now is only temporary. It may last a while, but eventually, this too shall pass, and you will be a stronger person because of it.
