I loved ‘7 Habits of Highly Effective People’ by Stephen Covey. It’s not that what he was saying was groundbreaking, but more that he had a way of putting it in such simple terms that the messages really hit home.
And to this day I still use a number of his ‘stories’. My favourite has to be about ‘Climbing the Ladder of Success’. As Covey says, we are so busy climbing the ladder of success that it isn’t until we reach the top that we take time to look around us, only to realise that (in many cases) we have propped our ladder up against the wrong building!
More often than not, this happens when we choose our goals without really thinking them through; without considering what achieving that specific goal will bring us or indeed the cost to us, or to our family of achieving it. Sometimes, they are not even our own goals and, whether consciously or unconsciously, we are merely driven by our family’s expectations and ambitions.
It is really easy to get carried away setting our goals by our small everyday considerations and our happiness doesn’t even come into the equation. Perhaps we haven’t really considered what it is that makes us happy or maybe we just haven’t discovered it yet.
So how can we safeguard ourselves from climbing the wrong ladder? For me the key is inspiration.
Thomas Edison said “Genius is one percent inspiration, ninety nine percent perspiration.” And while I may not agree with the percentages, one thing I am sure of and that is, that without inspiration, you just go nowhere, fast!
When we are inspired we connect to our heart, to who we truly are. Here we can find the real secret of happiness. And it is from this space of inspiration that we can set the right goals.
But it’s not always easy to be inspired (as anyone who has suffered from writer’s block knows too well), it’s so easy to get bogged down with everyday reality and lose that sense of inspiration.
So how can we connect to our inspiration?
People use many different ways to connect to their inspiration: from surrounding themselves with positive people, reading uplifting books, listening to music, walks in nature, watching babies or children at play, being with loved ones…
A really quick and simple way to tap into inspiration is using EFT! Whenever I plan to write anything, or give a talk, the first thing I do is tap! I use Patricia Carrington’s Choices Method and it works every time.
Start on the karate chop point by stating the problem and then following it with a ‘choices’ statement, for example:
• ‘Even though I really don’t feel up to writing today, I choose to be amazed at how inspired I am. ‘
• ‘Even though I don’t know what to say, I choose to be surprised at how quickly and easily the right ideas just come to me’
• ‘Even though I can’t think of the right words, I choose to be delighted at how the right words just flow’
Then, on the remaining points, beginning with the start of the eyebrow, in the first round repeat the problem, for example, ‘I don’t feel like writing, I’m just not up to it today, I can’t think what to say’ etc. Then when you start your second round, repeat your choices phrase, for example ‘I choose to be amazed at how inspired I am’.
Click here for details of how to start tapping.
Try it, it works for me! I would love to hear how you get on, post a comment or drop me an email.
And if you would love to Be Inspired, come and join us at Costa Women this Thursday, 21 June 2012.