Pattern

I am noticing a pattern when I read a book or follow a blog or get news letters from someone.  As soon as they starting telling me how following their instructions my life will be easier, I tune out.  Or they brag that they, and they alone, have the secret to healing. Or they start throwing around junk that after years of training and counseling that I know are faulty beliefs.  I was raised in a faulty belief system.  My mother did 10 times more work trying to find the efficient easy way to do something.  Watching all the remake of movies there aren't many new ideas.  Reading doing this or that to attract wealth, find the easy life or take a short cut in healing my "nonsense" alarm goes off.  I have dozens of books half read because I get part way through the book and I just want to pitch the book.  I'm not afraid to challenge my thinking.  Counseling tore up my entire thinking and belief system.  We got back to hard basics.  Tough task totally reformatting your own hard drive on the fly....so questioning my ideas is not the issue.

One of the basics....if it sounds too good to be true, it probably isn't.  Nothing new in the universe and there are few secrets left.  I believe strongly that the dinosaurs would have saved us all a lot of hassle if they had stepped on the easy button when they roamed the Earth.  There are patterns to living but this planet was designed to be tough and messy.  Check out the videos of what is happening in Hawaii to build their island bigger.  Hot molten lava is pouring across their country side devouring all in its path, making its way to the sea and enlarging the island.  If someone claims they have the secret or the easy way, they are selling you something.  My sister says, "If it can fit in a nut shell, it should probably stay there."  

What I do look for are the stories and the ideas of people that are healing, changing their lives for the better, and making a difference in the World.  Too often I heard the singsong, "Do as I say and not as I do."  I went into counseling because I didn't like my life.  I wanted something better.  I didn't know how to get what I wanted.  My counselor helped me work out a pattern but it is not an easy one:

1. Decide there is a problem.
2. Decide who's problem is it.  (Part of the difficulties I had was assuming every problem was my problem.)
3. Decide on a plan.  
4. Decide if I have the skills and resources to solve the problem.
5. Decide to get the skills and resources I need to solve the problem.
6.  Put my plan into action.
7. Review my progress....is my plan working.
8. Make adjustments as needed, continue to solve problems.

I realize there are two basic things I need to do DECIDE and ACT.

Anything else distracts me from these two basic ideas.  I do keep reading different ideas.  I learned that there are a lot of people that have solved problems similar to mine and either wrote a book or blog about it.  I'm not alone.  I can ask for help.  I can take breaks.  If something isn't working, I can change my mind and try something else.  

Another thing I learned is if there is no problem enjoy the break because a new problem will pop-up at any time.  I wake up in the morning, I swing my feet off the bed and BAM gravity is right their pulling me down.  I need determination and continued effort to over come the downward pull in life.  Have a beautiful day.