# 020 April 6, 2009
Your ability to think is your most precious resource. Most people do not understand this very basic concept. Thinking is hard. Thinking takes us out of our comfort zone. Thinking causes us to, well… think. Start a process of in-depth, detailed thinking and it causes you to think even more. It has been said that discovery lies in seeing what everyone sees, but thinking what no one has thought.
Thinking hurts; sometimes it hurts more than it does at other times. To cause ourselves to think requires personal introspection and personal self criticism. Our human nature very naturally rebels against criticism, even if it is self criticism. To allow criticism means to admit to ourselves that we are not all we should be.
We have to be able to admit to ourselves, “I am where I am and I am what I am because of me and because of no one or nothing else.” Can we admit this to ourselves? Some call this the concept of “interrogating” oneself.
It is easy to blame problems on circumstance or “the nature of things”. There are two axioms we must understand in life [Axiom – self-evident truth that requires no proof]
1. Nature is neutral.
2. Nature does not care.
There is no long term value or personal growth position that allows us to blame circumstance or nature for any of our shortcomings. One of the key points we must understand in life is this: if you do what other successful people do, you will enjoy the same results and rewards that they do. If you don’t, you won’t.
We must train our brains to take responsibility for our own actions without blaming others – regardless of the circumstance or fault. We may have put ourselves in the particular situation, or we may not have. Either way, it does not matter.
What matters is how we perceive ourselves and how we handle or direct that perception. As we agree to hold ourselves responsible for our own actions (and not someone or something else), then we can begin to understand that thoughts are causes and conditions are effects. This is an extremely important concept:
Thoughts are causes and conditions are effects.
How many times have we heard the expression, “everything happens for a reason”? Well of course they do! I get hungry. The reason I get hungry is because I have not eaten. Or, I am full. The reason I am full is because I have eaten (maybe I have eaten too much!). Of course everything happens for a reason. You could say, there’s a reason everything happens!
Instead of finalizing a bad (or good) experience with the conversation ending statement “everything happens for a reason”; why not ask, “what is the reason everything happened?”
You see, saying “everything happens for a reason” takes all personal responsibility out of a situation and turns it over to one of three causes:
Fate (the impersonal forces of nature)
Luck (blind chance)
Providence (the guiding hand of a higher power)
So, which one is it?
All three, two of the three of the above, two, one, or none of the above? Since we stated above that nature is neutral and nature does not care, that rules out fate. Do you really believe that life is based upon a series of blind chance events, of which we have no control?
How many people really (deep down, honestly in their heart) believe there is a God guiding their actions? Even if you believe in the providential God, do you believe that you have no free will? It’s a conundrum answerable only by either taking no responsibility for your actions or taking full responsibility for your actions.
If you choose to take no responsibility for your actions you have probably stopped reading by now so that position is not applicable here!
Each situation we find ourselves in is a direct or indirect result of our own personal actions. We can blame others, but ultimately it comes back to me. Always.
Reaching this point of understanding – this “clarity” – can be the turning point in your life. To take total personal responsibility for whatever happens to you is a transforming act. This transformation can start you on a path of progress that will allow you to succeed in a far greater measure than you have ever imagined.
"Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do." -Johann von Goethe
This transformation is not easy! No one ever said life was going to be easy, but life will always be real. In order to grow we must grasp and embrace this concept. You can’t live your life thinking that things will be easy for you.
How often do we fall into the trap (a mind trap) of thinking, “I’ve accomplished this milestone or reached a certain level,” only to be slapped in the face with a new, harsh reality or yet another problem? Life does not get easier, reaching the point where things are always easy is not possible.
If it were, you might as well be dead!
As soon as we start thinking we have arrived and no problems should cross our path we are setting ourselves up for a serious downfall! No person gets a free ride. Nor does anyone deserve a free ride… no not one.
“All the problems of the world could be settled easily if men were only willing to think." Thomas J. Watson, Former President of IBM
It may seem like others “get a free ride” at times, but we always come back to reality.
Don’t misunderstand my point. This is not a negative or pessimistic statement. The point is this…
Where you are and what you are – this is because of you and no one else.
We must take total responsibility for our own actions.
Take responsibility for where you are today and where you are going. Understand, life is hard… if you choose for life to be hard.
Teach yourself to be successful in your mind and then focus on what it takes to be successful.
Understand the challenges in your life – and take those challenges and use them to improve your ability and mental agility in order to focus on your own personal growth.
No one can help you grow to meet the challenges in your life until you decide to grow and meet the challenges in your life. Personal growth (internal growth) is the single most effective resource you can utilize to change your personal situation. Never forget this. With a true understanding of these concepts success is in your hands.
"The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them." Albert Einstein
With warmth and regards (as always),
Allen
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