That Pebble In Your Shoe
It’s the small stuff. The little acts, thoughts, or gestures we make, the dialogue we have with ourselves and what we encourage or tolerate from others, how we step into or away from each situation time after time after time – that’s what makes us who we are.
A pebble is a really, really small thing. Until… you find it in your shoe! That pebble in your shoe is an irritant. You can focus on it and somehow the pain of it being there grows. You can ignore it and yet you’ll still be limping the same way that if you practice something long enough, whether you know it or not, you begin to embody it.
In this, the 100th Wednesdays With Wayne blog, we’re looking at what it is you do or think that makes you who you are. And ultimately, we’ll look at what you might be able to do differently to create a different you from the one you were 20 years ago, 10 years ago, two years ago, or even today. I’m a BIG fan of sowing seeds now for creating the person you want to become down the line.
Let’s say you make a simple mistake on something. You could internalize some phrase like, “I’m such an idiot.” I’ve seen wayyyyy too many people do that. Another response might be, “Whoops. That didn’t work out the way I wanted. What can I do differently?”
One response is quick and dirty. It’s a “no brainer” to call yourself a name. You might even think nothing of it. And the more you do that, the more you become that “idiot” that you’ve told yourself you were.
You’re here to step up differently.
Here you step into your life with intention. Sure, asking yourself what you can learn from any mistake might take some work. You also become a stronger YOU in the process.
While a pebble in your shoe might be an irritant that causes you to limp, a grain of sand to an oyster is an irritant that causes a polished pearl to be developed. Here, perspective is key because to the oyster, that thing is probably still an irritant. To the outside observer, what is produced is a thing of beauty.
Two things are at play:
- Continuous processes produce a very specific result.
- Perspective counts!
What are you aiming to produce in your life? Whom do you want to become?
Those are easy words to read over and skim by and you could be thinking “Sure, yeah, who do I want to be…? Blah, blah, blah….”
OR, you could get really intentional and think about your current YOU and where you are struggling and where you are comfortable. How do you create more of what you want in your life?
That is where being intentional comes in. I have a best friend who has four very, very expensive guitars that he plays. They’re different styles from different makers. What’s great is that it wasn’t that long ago that he declared that he wanted to learn to play the guitar. His ability to play didn’t accidentally happen.
He set an intention.
He took the first step.
He took the next step.
And then he practiced, and blew it, and learned, and practiced some more.
He regularly practices and he’s pretty darn good at this guitar playing thing now.
How about you?
What do you want more of for yourself in your life?
What is your intention?
What is your first action step?
What is your next action step?
What will you repeat until you get the results you want?
If you liked this blog (my 100th – something I created and repeated for you every week), then please share it. Please let your friends, family, and colleagues know where to find it: www.WaynePernell.com
And if you want to join me at a very, very special retreat, the dates are October 12th and 13th in Chicago, please go to www.StuckAtTheTop.com for details.
This has been called “Life Changing” by my past participants. And, it is.
Go out and Keep Making Your Magic™!!!
~ Dr P ~