You’ll have to beg my pardon, but I am going to stop you briefly in your tracks and ask you to think about where you are in this exact moment and how you ended up right here right now. Envision each event in your life leading up to right now and challenge your mind by asking yourself what you believe is the definitive determinant of your life. Did you allow fate to lead you to this moment in time, or do you believe you were, and are, in charge of your future all along?
With these events fresh in your mind, I want for you to revisit a time when you succeeded in accomplishing something you worked so hard for and invested so much time into. Maybe it was high school or college graduation. Or maybe it was the moment you could finally afford to purchase an item you spend months saving up for. Or maybe, just maybe, it’s the long-term relationship with a friend or spouse that you had spent a significant amount of time, happiness and energy fostering because it is or was meaningful and special to you. How do you feel as you imagine this accomplishment and better yet, if this event wouldn’t have happened, would you be the exact same person you are today and in this very instant in time?
Life has a way of assembling itself just so in order for us to fall on the right path at the right time to lead us to where we are supposed to be at the end of the day. The people and events that fall into our lives are strategically placed in a specific sequence to allow our future to pan out how we want it depending on what path we take in each fork in the road we are faced with. Every day we are faced with thousands upon thousands of decisions ranging from minor to major and each of them vastly important in how our day, week, year and life will resolve itself out. With billions of people populating the world, isn’t it unfathomable that not one person shares the same decision-making process? Each day we make decisions based upon the cognitive style exhibited in our anterior cingulate cortex, our orbitofrontal cortex, and of course, the overlapping ventromedial prefrontal cortex (otherwise known as the brain regions responsible for making decisions). I’m sure we all know someone who gets off on the right foot each day solely based upon what their daily horoscope says about their future. Or how about the person who can’t decide on anything until their coin lands on a specific side? Some people can’t make a decision unless someone they deem as authority tells them what to do, and some people come up with a verdict after carefully weighing the pros and cons and making the best decision based upon those principles. Bias is also another way people can come to choose one thing over the next and it can easily creep up on us without notice. Regardless of what a person’s decision-making process entails, the point of the matter is that there is always a final choice. A final decision. And this final outcome is how we progress into life and how we end up travelling down one path versus the other. Where are you headed?
Fate is a word that can be both lustrous and deceiving at once. On one hand, we can say that our lives are out of our control and we can stop right there and allow fate to handle the final ending of our story, come what may. Or we can challenge our perception by believing in the other hand, which tells us that, yes, we have a ‘fate’, or destiny if you will, but that we will in turn step up and take the responsibility for our future ourselves by making decisions that support what it is we would like our final outcome to be in this life. We can share responsibility with fate throughout the process and be more cognizant of where we are headed, what path we would like to traverse down, and what people we would like there for the ride. Everything DOES happen for a reason and it’s our job to make sure these reasons support our dreams and the future we would like to behold.
Revert your mind back to our beginning thoughts of accomplishment. Visualize how you felt at the moment you succeeded and let yourself be overcome with reliving this feeling again. That life-altering event in your life happened because you had the will and the drive to see it through to the end. It was your final decision to continue onward and persevere through any ‘challenges’ that could have made you decide to quit at any moment. Your final outcome was your decision and your action regardless of how you chose to come to that conclusion. Everything else in life is no different. Each event that we are faced with on a daily basis is there to provide us with a stepping stone that will lead us to the final outcome we foresee for ourselves. Even the people that walk into, out of, and stay in our lives are there to help guide us and teach us more about ourselves.
One of the things I have learned about myself is to never have any regrets. How many people do you or have you known who say things like, “If I could go back in time, I would have done (__fill in the blank__) differently.”, or “My life would be so much better if it were ( ___fill in the blank____).”. My advice to you: Don’t BE one of these people. Regrets do nothing but hold us back. If it were ‘meant’ to happen, then it would have. All that life is telling you is that you weren’t meant for that road at that point in time. Many people make the decision to live in the past and all this does for them is keep them in the past. You can tell yourself a million times what ‘coulda, woulda, shoulda’ happened, but there is absolutely nothing you can do to change the past. Nothing. It will and always will remain the past. What you do have say over, however, is the future. You can look at your life and turn your ‘ I coulda.., woulda…, shoulda…’, into I ‘WILL’s’. When something doesn’t work out at any given moment, it doesn’t by any means indicate that life has to stop and that you should give up. It is telling you that you weren’t preordained for that path and that another, greater path awaits you. The same goes for people. One of the most difficult things in the world for us is to lose someone, however it may happen. If there is anything in life that can be almost destructive to us, it is other people. I’m not saying this in a derogatory way, but instead I am expressing this as in the fact that we are creatures of emotion. Attachment and love are two of the most unconditional, overpowering and resilient emotions and feelings we can ever encounter and the power they possess can leave us in shambles and sometimes shatters that can take an irrevocable amount of time to recover from. And sometimes, we may not fully recover. There are many lessons to be learned from other people and loss and much we can take with us to benefit our future. Instead of letting the past immobilize us, we need to realize that life simply has better or different plans for us and that this event happened for a reason to lead us to where we are supposed to be with the people we are supposed to be with. It is easier said than done and I can speak on behalf of experiences that almost and ‘coulda’ left me vanquished as well. Sometimes it takes a breaking point before we can truly discover how strong we really are. We can keep looking down the same path and let life push us down repeatedly, or we can make the decision to get up after being broken down and keep our gaze forward knowing what we are meant for is just up in the distance waiting for us. The people and events that come into our lives are there to shape us, not define us. We can learn so many lessons from the challenges we face and the decisions we make to overcome and persevere through each day. Living with regrets only holds us back. It is never too late to take a path you want to be headed down. Don’t just settle or continue down a path you aren’t satisfied with when you can always just take the next fork in the road down a different path. It is your attitude towards life that will make or break you. Choose to be happy and choose to follow your dreams no matter where the path takes you. Without the two extremes of devastation and elation, we couldn’t possibly appreciate what it feels like to succeed, and without loss and heartache, maybe we wouldn’t be as grateful for the rare people we find in our lives who are and always will be there for us and who love us as unconditionally as we love them. It’s possible as well to more easily take things for granted when you don’t realize how great you have it through experiencing something less than desirable. Perception is reality and only when we look at things in a new light can we make the decision to advance into our future a stronger and more persistent individual. Regrets are for those who choose to choose to face the past, while fate is what we are destined for in the future and what we can decide today to strive for.
In coming to Las Vegas for my first time almost a year ago in July to do an externship at the Professional Fitness Insitute, I met my own destiny. Having been someone who was constantly looking behind me at all times, I chose last year to open my eyes wide to what was right in front of me all along and only then did the pieces of my life begin to fall into place. I haven’t looked back since and I never will again. The events of the past helped to get me to where I am today, but it is the steps I am taking now that will lead me to my destiny and future. Becoming involved with Connect To Fitness has been a dream come true for me as writing and fitness are long-time passions of mine. And I can speak from experience once again when I say that my move out here wouldn’t have been possible without networking with others in the health, fitness, and wellness industry. I am a slave to networking now as it actually made my dreams possible. Through the staff (and now my co-workers) at PFI, I was able to meet and connect with countless other people which opened up doors for me left and right. One of the people I was able to meet this past July through PFI was Connect To Fitness President, Dr. Darian Parker, who went above and beyond in finding me opportunities to connect with other people to make my move and life so far in Las Vegas a smooth transition including my current role with CTF. I stand by the fact that I am living proof that Connect To Fitness can, does and will change lives and that all it takes is making the initiative to step forward and explore your possibilities in meeting other people and being introduced to different opportunities that could possibly change your own life. Life happens to those who make it happen, not to those who let it happen. Here at CTF, we strongly believe in helping others and opening doors for those seeking their own future. We want to provide you, Faithful Reader, with opportunities that will benefit your life and the lives of those around you. Everything happens for reason and you never know what the future might behold for you unless you take a chance and see what each path has to offer. By having monthly events held at different venues in the Vegas Valley and surrounding areas, we are giving You, Reader, the opportunity to meet and connect with others that you may not have had the opportunity to connect with otherwise and you get to see firsthand what else is out there in Las Vegas. The hidden gems in Vegas are more prevalent than any of us know and the potential is unbelievable in this area. Meet with us and with others in CTF and just see what happens. It has changed many lives already of those who have become involved, and who knows? Maybe you could be next…
Our next event is coming up on June 28th from 7:30-9:30pm at the awesome Lulu Lemon Athletica store on Las Vegas Boulevard. It is not an event to be missed as there are many surprises in store for those who attend. CTF isn’t just another networking group out there to hold pointless parties at pointless venues. We want to showcase the people and places making a difference in the industry and in the world. With nothing to lose and everything to gain, we want to personally invite you, Faithful Reader, along for the ride down the path we have decided to take. Lulu Lemon is a hidden gem that is currently active in the industry and community and they have been a CTF sponsor from the beginning of our journey. Check out their link and come to the event as you won’t be disappointed. It is also where our Volunteer Coordinator, Heather Doane, is employed as well! Get in touch with Dr. Darian Parker at ConnectToFitness@gmail.com to RSVP and bring a friend or two to share the experience. You could potentially be helping someone else reach their own dreams and aspirations.
http://www.lululemon.com/
We all have a choice. The events and people you are seeking to fulfill your life are out there waiting for you and the world is yours. Get up, take action and get it… Just don’t look back unless your eyes are closed tightly.
Take control over your destiny and find the opportunity in every ‘obstacle’. Until next week, Faithful Reader…
"Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem a turned it into an opportunity." Joseph Sugarman
"Opportunity often comes in disguised in the form of misfortune, or temporary defeat. "
Napoleon Hill
"An empowered organization is one in which individuals have the knowledge, skill, desire, and opportunity to personally succeed in a way that leads to collective organizational success."
Stephen R. Covey
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment