Is Resistance Preventing You From Living Your Best Life?

"Resistance is what lies between the life we live and our unlived life." ~ Stephen Pressfield

Hmm?? How can I have an unlived life waiting for me on the other side of resistance? I am the busiest person I know! How could I possibly add more to my life than I already have going on!! Just thinking that thought "I could not possibly add more to my life than I already have going on'" gave me pause. Am I filling my life with meaningless busy work to create the illusion that I am deeply engaged with fulfilling my purpose in life?

That made me dig a little deeper to identify where I might be dealing with resistance in my life. Here is what I found:

Top 3 Signs of Resistance in Life

1. Thoughts - Sometimes, we try to talk ourselves out of moving forward by creating stories we ruminate over. These stories can be about the future and how scary it can look. Sometimes the stories are about past mistakes that we hold onto as testimony to why moving forward won't work. This shows up in my life as the thought, "I will never be as good at (fill in the blank) as Betty Lou, she is so (fill in the blank).

2. Busyness - Never having enough time to do the things we say we want to do because our calendars are full. If we look closely enough at the incredibly important tasks that are filling up our schedules, we will see that many of them aren't even ours. We have chosen to put someone else's priorities higher up the list than our own. I have a Ph.D. in Busyness with an MS. in You're More Important Than Me. I catch myself quite often offering to help out with a task for someone else rather than tackling a job on my own To Do list. Hence, my calendar is FULL!

3. Feelings - Oh, my head is pounding, my stomach is uneasy, I have a giant knot in my back, I am exhausted! Feelings can stop us from moving forward. They give us something to focus on. They give us an excuse to put off what we know we need to do until we feel better. I have found that my body aches are a smokescreen for what is truly going on in my life. When the smoke clears I can usually see what is the root cause of my aches and pains.

Here are some ideas on how you can move past the resistance and tackle what really matters in your life.

1. Thoughts - When fearful thoughts show up in our life, we really need to get tough on them. Notice your thoughts, don't ignore them, but also don't let them derail your plans. Next time you catch yourself in a fearful story, ask the narrator in your mind, "Is that really true?" There is no right answer because at the moment you are choosing to believe it. Turn the story around to the opposite and give it a NEW ending!

2. Busyness - This one is tougher. You want to be the good daughter, the thoughtful neighbor, the conscientious employee, but there is a limit to how much of your time you can give away. When choosing to put someone else's priorities above your own, you have to ask yourself whether or not this task will take you closer to fulfilling your purpose or will it derail you at this time. It's not always an easy answer, but some soul searching will lead you to the solution that will support you on your journey.

3. Feelings - Well, there is no way to get around this, feelings need to be felt. They hold a message for us, and once we hear the message, the feelings can be released. I know, feeling my feels is right up there with a root canal for me, but dang, it really works!!

Long story short, we need to notice our thoughts, change our fear story, put ourselves higher up the list, and feel the fear and do it anyway!

"The more scared we are of a work or calling, the more sure we can be that we have to do it." ~ Stephen Pressfield

How does resistance show up in your life? What is your resistance about? What does your unlived life hold for you? Leave a comment below.

With Purpose,

Sue

#Resistance #FeelTheFear

#PiedPiperOfPurpose

#SoulsPurpose

If you are looking for some inspiration to move you closer to your Soul's Purpose, click this link for your own copy of Finding Purpose: 4 Steps to Move You Forward.