Flourish In Your Creation
In this week's Monday Quote, I put a question out there to all of you:
"Are you a creator or a manager of your life?"
How does it make you feel to read that? I know it really got me thinking and I wanted to share it with you. And, by the way, I'd love to hear some of your thoughts about it. Always feel free to contact me at cummingsbarbara@gmail.com.
I had an uncomfortable feeling in my gut when I thought about being the manager
of my life. It struck me as funny that I felt that way because I've shown some very good managerial skills in the workplace in the past. I know how to be in charge and how to direct, supervise and oversee and I like doing it. What that usually means though is that someone else has designed or constructed the framework and I am able to simply make sure it runs smoothly. To be a manager can be a good thing if you prefer to ultimately have someone else responsible for the entire concept.
But think about what it means to manage in life ... it implies coping, just getting by, making ends meet, muddling through, barely making it and scraping by. It also still implies that there are some outside forces in play here and that we just don't have a lot of say in the final outcome. That's not how I want to feel about my life.
I want to create and design my life and there are at least two good arguments for that:
I can go beyond surviving and actually thrive and,
I know better than anyone else what my interests and strengths and talents are and therefore, I can use them in the best possible way to benefit the world and fulfill my purpose.
There's a bunch of great quotes that indicates I'm not the only one thinking about this:
"If you don't control your life, someone else will."
- John Atkinson Grimshaw
"Where focus goes, energy flows and if you don't take
the time to focus on what matters, then you're living
a life of someone else's design."
- Tony Robbins
The thing is, if someone else is trying to get you to live your life a certain way, they're probably not paying much attention to their own situation. The other thing that's important to notice is whether you're being mindful about what matters to you. Are you living with intention or just going through the motions? Have habits taken over or are you consciously deciding what you need to support your values and goals? The first place to get started on this journey is by getting quiet, meditating, tuning in to your Soul and realizing you can co-create with something much greater than ourselves. This is not always easy to do and I believe that's why we find support in each other along the way.
I hope I'm offering you some food for thought and I'm leaving you with a beautiful and simple suggestion from Coach John Wooden (1910-2010):
"Make each day your masterpiece."
This is what I wish for you.
Sparkles and Love,
