Words shape our reality….
This is a sentence I live by, and one that allows me to choose self growth or limitations.
The absolute power of words is something that I marvel at.
I told someone recently that “I can’t get up early, it’s not for me.”
And I invest in that, the more I say it out loud – the more I consume it and allow it to build the fabric of my reality.
The truth is – I would love to be a 5.30/6am riser – I function better in the morning, I like to train early.
However I have built a platform of excuses using my own language to create a reality where I don’t wake early to go to the gym – and I’ve made that ok.
Of course I can rise early, should have seen my recently when I was due to fly to Greece at 6am. I leapt out of bed with a huge grin and sauntered out of the house at 4am.
I spend a lot of time speaking to parents of children with Type 1 diabetes.
And a repeat phrase I hear is:
“I hate it, I hate diabetes”
Now as a parent of a young adult with Type 1 that phrase resonates with me and I recall saying it.
I can also tell you the day I started really coping with having a child with a chronic condition was the day I stopped saying that sentence out loud and replaced it with:
“I’m learning to live a full life for my daughter and I with this diagnosis, we accept happiness”
Further to the point, the day I stopped tantruming about Type 1 diabetes and declaring I hated a part of my child – was the same day my daughter started to stop thinking I hated a part of her that she didn’t ask for.
I can also tell you the day I stopped being a penniless single parent was when I stopped telling people I was a penniless single parent.
Words formulate our actions; and take us closer to our goals or the future we want to achieve.
I don’t think I fully learnt this until my forties, and it’s a lesson I’m still embedding and one I love to share.
It’s a cliche but if you tell me you can’t do something I’ll believe you and if you say opposite I’ll believe that too. And if you fail when you said you could do something, I’ll believe you are on the way to making it happen.
I’ve raised my kids telling them words are like toothpaste, one they come out they are impossible to get back in the tube. They have power to create and destroy, the magic of language dances everywhere for us to choose and use at will.
Simple changes…
Shift from “I can’t” to “I’m learning to’.
Move from “I’m poor” to “I’m in the process of learning how to be more prosperous”
Challenge “I’m not fit enough” to “I’m getting better at x by going to the gym every day.”
Move from “my poor kid has to cope with Type 1 diabetes” to “my child is getting stronger every day through their life experiences, I am so proud.”
It made such a difference in my life, saying what I want out loud and then matching my actions….
See how it works for you?