Up until now...

"...add these three words, 'up until now'...
You're giving yourself permission to change."
Photo courtesy of:http://www.flickr.com/photos/keithroper/

Recently, I was playing a board game with some friends.  I was one of two people who had never played the game before, so I was very unfamiliar with the rules and strategies of the game, but I was eager to learn.  One of the people whom I was playing along with had played this game before, but before the game even started, he was resigned to the fact that he was going to be the first one out of the game, and would spend a majority of the time watching the rest of us finish the game.  One of the other people whom I was playing along with was also new to the game, but he had done some research into how the game was played and what some recommended strategies were.  By the end of the game, the resigned player lived up to his prediction -- he was the first man out, and spent most of the time watching the game.  I finished in third place, and the other gentleman who was new to the game won.  I never believed that failure was my destiny, and the winner of the game certainly never believed it either.

How many times do we resign ourselves to the fact that results achieved in the past will automatically repeat themselves?  How many times do we tell ourselves that “we were never really that good at (fill in the blank),” only to realize once again that we were right about it?  I have always said that math is not my strongest subject, and to be honest, I have to start reminding myself that I will never be any good at math as long as I convince myself that it is true.

So, moving forward, please keep this following quote in mind:

“Every time you hear yourself making some blanket statement like, "I'm very insecure…I need a lot of attention and reassurance," I'd suggest that you add these three words, "up until now." Every time you do that, you're making a break with the past. You're giving yourself permission to change.” ~Anita Goldstein

Remind yourself that you are the only one holding yourself back and holding on to your insecurities.  Is it time to set those aside and start convincing yourself that you are capable of achieving new goals?  Up until now, maybe it’s been a bit hard to do it.  Up until now, you haven’t given yourself permission.

Permission granted!

Best wishes,

-Victor