by Nanette Littlestone
In my late twenties I read a book about how to look and act like a millionaire without actually being one. I expected one of those get rich quick schemes. But what the author had to say came from real life experience. He outlined where to find good-looking clothes, a prestigious office, a secretary to handle your affairs, and more, and all for little to no money upfront. And anyone, if he or she was willing, could follow his exact steps. All it took was believing you could do it and “acting as if” you already were a millionaire.
I devoured each chapter with rising excitement, but, sadly, I didn’t follow in his footsteps. I didn’t have negotiating experience, I hadn’t ever bartered for real estate, and hiring my own secretary when I was a secretary—highly unlikely. I was stopped by that little voice inside that said “I can’t do that.”
Throughout much of my life I’ve held back because of one excuse or another—I don’t know how, I’ve never done [something] before, I’m too shy, no one will listen to me, ad infinitum. I probably have hundreds of excuses, many of them borrowed from well-meaning friends and family. The problem with those excuses is that not only do they prevent me from doing what I want to do, they’re not real. They’re lies.
Now that’s a blatant statement, but it’s true. When I was growing up I was painfully shy. I didn’t speak to strangers. I didn’t know how to start conversations. I was the typical wallflower at social gatherings. Today my friends laugh at me when I say I’m shy. They see the real me now, not the holdover from the past that resides in my memories. And that’s just one example.
For over a month I’ve been “battling” with pain in my left leg, the feminine side of my body, a limb that helps me move forward. Years of repressed anger and resentment and frustration, letting people walk over me, not standing up for myself—we all know these feelings—have manifested in various aches and pains. And they’re calling out to be noticed, to be allowed, to be learned from. I don’t like pain. It frustrates me, I resent it, I get angry at it, and I rarely just “feel” it. But I’m learning to feel it, to heed what my body is telling me, to allow that there is healing to do around self-love and expressing my power.
Yesterday, as I “dealt” with my pain, I thought about my intention this year to be vibrantly, radiantly, healthy and energetic and it occurred to me that a vibrantly, radiantly, healthy and energetic person would not be hobbling around, moaning about her pain. She would be moving with ease and fluidity, enjoying the strength and power in her body. So I decided to “act as if” and I began to move with ease and fluidity. I changed my attitude. And that “acting as if” infused my heart and soul with power and knowing. Every day I do this I retrain my body and my thoughts.
Where have you been holding back? Are you ready to let go of your old excuses? Can you embrace “acting as if”?
Photo by click, morguefile.com
In my late twenties I read a book about how to look and act like a millionaire without actually being one. I expected one of those get rich quick schemes. But what the author had to say came from real life experience. He outlined where to find good-looking clothes, a prestigious office, a secretary to handle your affairs, and more, and all for little to no money upfront. And anyone, if he or she was willing, could follow his exact steps. All it took was believing you could do it and “acting as if” you already were a millionaire.
I devoured each chapter with rising excitement, but, sadly, I didn’t follow in his footsteps. I didn’t have negotiating experience, I hadn’t ever bartered for real estate, and hiring my own secretary when I was a secretary—highly unlikely. I was stopped by that little voice inside that said “I can’t do that.”
Throughout much of my life I’ve held back because of one excuse or another—I don’t know how, I’ve never done [something] before, I’m too shy, no one will listen to me, ad infinitum. I probably have hundreds of excuses, many of them borrowed from well-meaning friends and family. The problem with those excuses is that not only do they prevent me from doing what I want to do, they’re not real. They’re lies.
Now that’s a blatant statement, but it’s true. When I was growing up I was painfully shy. I didn’t speak to strangers. I didn’t know how to start conversations. I was the typical wallflower at social gatherings. Today my friends laugh at me when I say I’m shy. They see the real me now, not the holdover from the past that resides in my memories. And that’s just one example.
For over a month I’ve been “battling” with pain in my left leg, the feminine side of my body, a limb that helps me move forward. Years of repressed anger and resentment and frustration, letting people walk over me, not standing up for myself—we all know these feelings—have manifested in various aches and pains. And they’re calling out to be noticed, to be allowed, to be learned from. I don’t like pain. It frustrates me, I resent it, I get angry at it, and I rarely just “feel” it. But I’m learning to feel it, to heed what my body is telling me, to allow that there is healing to do around self-love and expressing my power.
Yesterday, as I “dealt” with my pain, I thought about my intention this year to be vibrantly, radiantly, healthy and energetic and it occurred to me that a vibrantly, radiantly, healthy and energetic person would not be hobbling around, moaning about her pain. She would be moving with ease and fluidity, enjoying the strength and power in her body. So I decided to “act as if” and I began to move with ease and fluidity. I changed my attitude. And that “acting as if” infused my heart and soul with power and knowing. Every day I do this I retrain my body and my thoughts.
Where have you been holding back? Are you ready to let go of your old excuses? Can you embrace “acting as if”?
Photo by click, morguefile.com
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