It’s hard to believe we are half way through the year! As you reflect on the dreams and goals you set at the beginning of the year, how are you doing? Are you on track? Did you take a detour? Is it time for a reset? Are you exceeding your wildest expectations? Is it time to make some new choices?
One of the greatest gifts we have here in the United States is our freedom of choice. Countless have fought and sacrificed to ensure we have this freedom; yet all too often, we take it for granted. And more to the point, it’s a freedom we often deny. How often do you hear the excuse, “I don’t have a choice.” Rarely is that ever true. The reality is we always have choices, we just don’t like the options.
You Always Have Choices
At every crossroads, for every decision, in the midst of any challenge, we have a choice. We do not have to stay committed to a course that doesn’t serve us. Sometimes it’s easier to stay with what we know than the fear of the unknown. Sometimes it’s painful to step outside our comfort zone, so we stay safe, sheltered and small.
It’s easy to make justifications based on a perceived lack of choice, but deep down, we know it’s not true. That unease we feel is our deeper knowing – the tugging of our consciousness – rumbling its dissent.
We are at a point in the year, and in our lives, when it’s imperative to be honest with ourselves and make choices that lead to our desired outcomes. Don’t let excuses or denial of options rob you of living your best life.
Take the time to reassess your goals and make new choices.
What’s working and what’s failing? Where do you need to change course to create better alternatives? Is it time to end a business, a relationship, a project, or a story that you’re telling yourself? Sometimes we have to make hard choices, but there is freedom on the other side because we exercised our right to choose. With freedom comes responsibility and opportunity.
Making tough choices may not be easy, but facing them head on helps us develop strength, character and courage. There is one thing we can count on – life will always hand us challenges and choices. When we’re faced with tough choices, we often find ourselves also facing struggle. We prefer convenience and ease over struggle. In fact, when confronted with struggle, it may be enticing to avoid it, use it to justify drama, to complain, to drop into overwhelm or inertia.
Struggle is Optional
In fact, I’m here to advocate to embrace the struggle.
As you face your own struggles, take a play out of the US Army Special Forces play book: Embrace the suck. Don’t avoid the struggle. Don’t complain about it. Face it head on, dig deep and believe that you have what it takes to make it through it. With practice and a willingness to learn and grow, rather than avoiding struggle, you can embrace it, learn to have faith in yourself and your abilities, and face it with grace and confidence knowing the reward is real personal power.
As you face the next half of the year, take an honest assessment of where you are and where you want to go. What will it take to shorten the gap? What powerful choices can you make to get closer to the goal? How can you reframe your view of the choices to make an empowered decision? Where are you settling for mediocrity to avoid what you perceive as struggle? If fear has been holding you back, here’s a blog post on 5 Practices to Tame Your Fears to give you some tools to slay the fear dragon.
Honor yourself and honor those who have served to give you your freedoms by embracing the choices you have in life. Celebrate the fact that you have choices. And stand in your power when you make them.
I’d love to hear how you are making powerful choices in your life. Please leave a comment below and share a choice you are making to further your goals or embrace the suck.
My entire life has been in the pursuit of what stirs my heart, daring to follow it and having the unstoppable conviction to achieve it. Purpose, passion and values aligned to create my path while audacity nudged my courage to help me excel at taking on big change to go after it.
I am here to help you find your way and learn how to confidently use your authentic voice, unlock your potential and courageously build a purposeful life you love!
Carpe Diem!
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