TakingTheWeightOffI am obsessing right now with this idea of living as the me I am becoming – not living based on my past!  I know there is something powerful here and yet we are so conditioned to use the past as a guide or navigation tool, that it almost feels impossible.

When I think about what it would be like to live into who I am becoming, I begin to realize how much we live based on our past.  Even sitting down to write this blog, I am aware that 99% of the time I write the article for my newsletter Sunday.  It is a routine, a habit, and a structure.  It is what I have done. It is based on my past.

When I began to think about what I wanted to write about, my first thought was “okay, what happened last week?”.  I look to the past to decide what these musings will be about.

There are so many ways that we reference the past as a way to navigate the present or to direct us to the future.  We are on auto-pilot.  And you know what I realize?  This is a good thing.  It give us structure, safety, routine, even simplicity in our lives.  We know the best way for us to do something because we have already figured it out.  Our minds help us to establish habits and routine.  They maximize our effectiveness in many ways and these habits are inherent.

So what I recognize is that “living as the me I am becoming” is less about the routines and habits formed in my past (initially), and more about letting go of the stories of the past that are not aligned with where I am going.  The stories I tell myself over and over again that affect the choices I make in the present.

Here’s what I am talking about.  I have ongoing stories I tell myself about how hard it is to be healthy at my age.  How much easier it was when I was younger.   I have another one that goes something like this;  I have never had to market a business before.  I have no experience and no idea what to do next.  Or how about this – It would be so much easier if what I did was more mainstream!  People would get it and I wouldn’t have to explain or justify it to them.., I am not even sure how to tell them what I do, they will think I’m woo-woo or batshit crazy!

These stories or limiting beliefs that I formed somewhere in my past keep me playing small.  They allow me to hide.  They are beliefs that limit what is possible for me, because I make choices about my present and future with them as the starting place.  Before I even make a move in any of these areas of my life, I already believe it will be a struggle, a lot of work or impossible.

How freeing is that?

Living into who I am becoming means setting down the old stories that limit me.  It probably means some habits and routines that I have established will likely have to be changed as well.  It means finding and connecting with the most current version of myself and operating from there.

As I think about it now, I imagine that for awhile it will take some focus and maybe even some diligence.  But eventually, by staying connected to who I am now and operating from that place, I eventually replace the old stories and memories with new ones.  Shift some behaviors and routines with the goal of being present and leaving those parts of the past behind.

If you have old stories that you are telling yourself that are no longer aligned with who you are or who you are becoming.  You might find it is worth thanking the time to identify them and then consciously set them down.  You really don’t have to carry them with you!  Whenever we carry the circumstances, events or choices from our past, we take on needless weight.., and I for one, am ready to take this load off!

With Light, Love, and Laughter
Charles