Your Mindset Frames Your Reality

Two people react to a situation in two different ways. Both individuals are unfit and overweight. One sits there and says this is such a shame, life has been tough, I don’t have time, I guess this is the way that it will be. The other sits there and says, enough is enough, time to change my priorities, time to frame the future differently.

Write a list of the things that you struggle with in your life and see if you have a victim mentality towards them; or an active mentality towards them.
You’ll need to be real with yourself about how big of a problem it is and a timeframe to chip away at while being aware that as you educate yourself in the process, it may take more time than you expected. You may realise that you know nothing about said environment: Eg, nutrition, cardio or mental headspace. Very overwhelming topics when you look at them face on.

There are always many contributing factors to our environment, but you want to make sure that you pull out the root of the problem and not just skim the top off. This usually comes with holding conversations to gain awareness outside of your perspective.
I was gardening last week and was pulling out weeds, trying to get the roots out so they don’t grow back and one snapped off and I was like “dammit”. At that moment I knew that was going to resurface, it was going to re-grow and come back. Sometimes that’s life, but unless you prepare an environment where you can go after those roots, you’ll always be caught going back to the same thing. Some things go unnoticed for years and have been built underground which makes a small weed a big problem when you start to dig, or try and pull up the root. However, if you have the right mentality, character, discipline and goals to work towards you don’t mind the slow process. Unfortunately, pain and discomfort are one of the largest motivators in life and make us feel awkward to talk about it; however when we have the active mentality towards it, we can hold a conversation out of curiosity and not a conviction. We very rarely put ourselves in confronting situations intentionally. When it’s smooth seas, we enjoy the glassy water. However, do you have the framework in your life, that when those roots may start to surface as weeds in your life, you have the skills, ability, knowledge, understanding and willingness to walk out the process to understand what contributed to that environment.

This difference in approach from the victim mentality to the active mentality is vital for making shifts forward in your future. We should be getting stronger, healthier and more educated as we grow, not broken down, bitter and waiting for life to pass us by.

So, the ball is in your court as always. Will you choose to look, educate, make change and see what you can do to make your life stronger, healthier and a worthwhile investment for yourself and future generations? Or will you sit there and settle for what you have?

Books, podcasts, conversations, art, music, movies, nature and so much more all add to your life experience that you can share with otehrs, so go and make a change, find out the person that you want to be and if who you are matches that. If not, that’s ok, keep working away, but don’t stop. Every now and again, enjoy that smooth sea, but while the water is still, it’s the best time to work away, so that when the sea is rough, you know to navigate it.