The way we think and the thoughts that we have are of far less importance than the way we feel. Thoughts are random…feelings can be controlled and directed.
Feelings are very much about reaction and it’s the way we respond to the thoughts that we have that will dictate the direction of our lives.
There is a tendency to overlook the fact that a life is a series of unbroken days and that each and every day brings with it possibility. It’s when we replace possibility with predictability that we put limits on our own potential.
We are defined by how we act, not by what we think. Thoughts are private. Actions and attitude are public. What we do is what others see. We are not measured by what others believe we may be thinking.
It’s important to weigh up what we think against what we know. Self-doubt can be defeating if we make the mistake of allowing it to dominate.
It’s just as important to give ourselves credit for the common sense we have accumulated…to allow ourselves to extend the kindness we show to those around us to the person we know ourselves to be.
We should never discount the fact that we are all unique individuals…that no-one else has lived the life we have lived or the life we are living.
But lives can and do intersect and overlap and it’s at those points that we are best able to offer the benefit of our experience in a bid to help others make better sense of their situations and circumstances. It’s also at those points that we are most likely to seek help.
In the meantime there is a personal responsibility to hold ourselves accountable for the things we do and say…those things we can control.
And importantly, we must avoid the trap of striving to become what we think others think that we are.
Gary Bentley Counselling 