How weary it is to live believing that the only way to achieve anything is through sweat and tears. “There’s no free lunch” and “no pain, no gain” represent the way of life in which you have to work hard and sacrifice to get what you want.
As a control freak (now recovering), this type of behavior drained my soul almost every single day without me even realizing it. Everything in my life had to be perfect, so I eagerly tried to fix everybody and everything; ergo, I could be comfortable and in peace.
And since achieving this was 100% on me, according to my belief system, every day was a fight that I usually lost and, whenever I won, it only reinforced that thinking pattern.
Much of my life was like that. I hated to-do lists. Having pending tasks stressed me out despite them being due several weeks ahead. I did everything to get them done as soon as I wrote them down, and since all that stuff had to come out perfect, the only way I found to achieve this was to DO, DO, and DO… effort and more effort.
But as my path began, I started being more conscious and aware of this thought pattern, realizing the way it evolved as I transitioned through several stages in my own awakening process, and I’d like to share this with you.
Stage 1. Do it ASAP.
You think everything depends on you, and the sooner you fix it, the better. A lot of wear and tear and effort. Life seems like a constant struggle, and if you relax, you may lose. Does it work? Of course, everything works, but at what cost?
Stage 2. Slice the elephant.
What’s the best way to eat an elephant without choking? Slice it up! You stop being overwhelmed with the endless list of tasks you have to do and start focusing. Prioritize. Get organized. Focus on what’s next and leave everything non-urgent for later.
Plan for the mid- and long-term, but don’t lose your focus on what needs to be done right now. The wear and tear and effort yield more results. Your efficiency is higher, but many days you end up knocked out of the ring.
Stage 3. Alignment before action.
You begin to perceive that to DO things more efficiently, you must first organize your BEING… connecting the vacuum cleaner to the power before parading with it all over the place. You understand the worthiness of taking some time to calm your mind, to get focused, and to work on your emotions and thoughts, because when you do, you’re more efficient.
I remember back in the days when I was writing my first book being frustrated because weeks were passing by and I wasn’t making much progress. I recall forcing myself to sit down and write whatever ideas came to my mind with the clear objective of “producing” X amount of words per day. The result? Literally garbage. Well, most of it.
But when I started listening to my intuition and leveraging those moments of greater alignment and connection to my higher self, my mind started spitting words. So alignment first and the action.
Stage 4. You are not alone in this adventure.
Something else out there is working for your benefit. In this stage, you begin to understand that you are not alone in this world and you are not in command of your life on your own. You realize that when you take one step, life takes 10,000 steps for you, as Mike Dooley would say.
You place one piece in the puzzle, and automatically three more fall into place. You become more aware and intuitive, you start to recognize your energy states throughout the day and you begin to enjoy everything that life brings with it, including those contrasting experiences since you now understand there is consciousness expansion in all of them.
Stage 5. You walk through life in flip-flops.
Yep, completely relaxed. You still have to DO things, since this life is one of experience and action. But you become more selective about what to do and more efficient when you just “know” the best moment to do it.
You don’t resist anymore and life feels like flowing downstream in a river. Maybe you want to cruise on faster or slow down a bit to enjoy the surroundings but always in the direction of the flow. No resistance at all. Contrast doesn’t bother you anymore to the point you see it as a growth and expansion opportunity.
Wanting to jump from stage 1 to stage 5 is like, as Abraham Hicks would say, trying to stop a train to change its direction in the opposite way. This could cause serious damage to the passengers, so take things slowly.
You have a whole life to grow and transform, and becoming aware of the level you are at today is always the first step. So be nice to you. As long as you keep moving and trying to enjoy every stage, you will be fine.
Keep exploring, try whatever crosses in front of your path, and if it works for your evolution, keep up with it. If not, leave it behind. But don’t forget: keep moving!
