Spring is a time of change and creation. The weather promises warmth, joy and freedom. Even if you do not follow the changes of the seasons, something is shifting, and you know it.
With change on the horizon, there is something that you can do today to prepare yourself: Let go.
What is between where you are now and where you want to be? This is a powerful question, one that I ask my students and myself often. Before we can make big shifts in our lives, it helps to clear out the old to prepare for the new.
A few years ago, I saw my mom transform herself and her life by doing this. She had been struggling to move on from her divorce from my dad. I remember watching her, talking with her, and even coaching her a little.
She wanted to move on. She wanted her life to be different. I could see it in her eyes. But she could not let her divorce go. She had times when things improved and even moments when it looked as if she were ready to transform. But then, it would not happen.
The moment that changed her life was provoked by a simple yet profound question. A family friend and life coach gently probed: What would be the worst thing that would happen right now if you forgave your ex-husband? My mom’s answer was equally simple yet profound: Nothing. Nothing at all.
In that moment, she became free. She gave herself permission to move on and to create room for something amazing to enter her life. A year later, she met the man of her dreams. In her late 60s, she is one of the most joyful people I know.
The result of my mom’s courage to explore a new relationship with her past shows the power of letting go. No matter how bad we want change to occur, sometimes it is what we hold on to that forms our greatest obstacle.
What is in the way of what you want right now?
Maybe you think that you are not good enough. Maybe you are afraid to fail. Or maybe you are always waiting for the perfect moment.
Whatever your obstacle is, the choice is yours: Continue to hold on to your pain from the past and the fear that it plants about your future. Continue setting yourself back. Or, choose to let go. Dare to create the life that you want – now. Not tomorrow, not next week. Now!
Identifying ourselves as the culprits willfully holding us back from growth can be hard. It is not easy to face ourselves. But, as we learned in last month’s posts, we are not always interested in easy. The hard path can be the one that leads to transformation.
Ask yourself the real questions, the ones that you may have been afraid to ask yourself before: Why do I not have what I want? How am I holding myself back?
Dedicate time this month to spring cleaning. Let go of the past to prepare for the change on the horizon.
Pranayama, an aspect of yoga in which you regulate your breath, can be a powerful way to spark this change. Watch last week’s vlog to learn the technique that I practice daily to create change in my own life.
My Dad frequently says, “Every morning when you wake up, the person you see in the mirror has the ability to be your greatest ally or your worst enemy.”
Kris Jenkins, the college basketball player who made himself a national champion and a March Madness legend on Monday when he sank the first three-point buzzer-beater in NCAA finals history, showed what we are capable of when we act as our greatest ally. Potentially richer than his accomplishment was the mentality that created it: “I think every shot I take is going in,” he said, “so that one felt no different.”
He learned to shoot from his mom.
Ask yourself today which one you are – your greatest ally or your worst enemy? Then, choose: Which one do you want to be?
Want to learn how to practice pranayama or investigate ways to open your life? Come to one of my public classes as my guest or contact me today about my coaching programs!