Tag Archives: positive or negative

Playing It

Play- engage in an activity for enjoyment and recreation rather than a serious or practical purpose.

playLife often seems to be a somber and practical experience, making people miss the truth behind it. Life is a game, and once you accept that and learn how to play it, it will become a much more enjoyable and recreational experience.  Like any game, there are challenges to overcome and strategies to implement.  Most people never realize this is the case. They spend their life soberly moving from one square to the next,  regretting moves they made in the past or fretting over challenges that may come tomorrow.  Life is a game that is played in the now because that is all you are guaranteed.  Never forget to play with passion as you move through life, and it starts with an awareness of this game happening right under your nose, with your thoughts, words, and actions.  

Enjoy The Game

We are all born into this game, I don’t think we asked for it,  but here we are.  Like all games, you can see players using different strategies to get maximum enjoyment with minimal effort.  Some play a social game as they move around the board, and others choose to be the lone wolf.  All of us are trying Playto move through the board and find the prize of peace and contentment. It seems that the players that enjoy every experience, every move are the ones that benefit the most.

There are many truths to the game of life. Who you choose to play with will determine how well you play and how much you enjoy the experience. Some have the intention of not wanting any part of the game.  These negative souls see every changing move as a problem and a potential for pain. Avoid these players at all costs because they will make the game miserable for everyone they contact in their sport.  Spend your time with people who love the game, and it will be easy to enjoy too.

Limits to Avoid

In the game of life, there are some things to avoid as you play.  One of the most important is to avoid worrying about what other people think of your moves around the board. They may tell you that you look silly or that your playstrategy will never work, or they may say they have a better plan.  Let these reservations of others slide right off you. You are the only person who can play your game, and life provides you with many lessons that will assist you in reaching the goals of happiness and contentment.  Anyone being critical of your play is probably sliding backward themselves or can’t seek the imagination it takes to move forward. Avoid listening to what others think of you. The responsibility for your play lies with you alone.

The second thing to avoid is becoming too confident in the way you play.  Life has many penalties for overconfidence, and none of them are pleasant. Be assured, but never stop being grateful for where you are and what you have in this game. That will keep you grounded and avoid the big falls that pride can bring.  You will never figure the whole match out; nobody does.  But you can learn through playing to the end all that you need to know. Gratitude is an essential fuel for the game, play it consistently and generously, and it will take you a long way.

Finally, avoid fear as you move around the game. It is natural if you are in a “good” spot on the board to stay there. But life is a running game and never stands still; one of the specific rules is that you have to keep moving and changing. Change is life, and accepting change is accepting life.   Some call this scary. Others call this opportunity.  Call it a chance because it doesn’t matter if you like it or not; that is what will happen. Things will change, and you will have to roll the dice again or spin the wheel and take the moves in front of you.  Do not be afraid. Be confident that whatever lies ahead, you will have the ability to play through it and move on to even a better level. Each challenge of the game is an opportunity for growth. Play the game and grow!

Winning the Game

Well, here is the sad truth. There is no winning the game. There is only one playing it.  The choices that you make on the way define your play and will playdetermine the experience you have. The most crucial factor in realizing is that you have a choice. Maybe not with what the game brings you but in how you react to those experiences. These are the most important decisions you can make because they will determine if the skills you have move you forward or backward in the game.  Are you climbing a ladder or sliding down a chute back to where you started?

Try not to play the victim and complain about everything.  All challenges bring with them an opportunity. To be better or accomplish something. If you choose not to take advantage of that because of grief for what has gone or fear of what might come, then take responsibility for it.  Because in the game of life, you are responsible for how you play. You and you alone.

PLAY TO THE BEST OF YOUR ABILITY.  That is winning the game and will allow you to get the most out of it.  We have little control over when it will end but total control over the choices we make while we play. Raise your awareness of the play with your thoughts, words, and actions. Remember, none of us will get out of here alive. 

“Life is a game, and you are the player. As you master the game, so you also create it.” ― Jay Woodman.

“The game of life is a game of boomerangs. Our thoughts, deeds, and words come back to us with astounding accuracy.” ~Florence Scovel Shinn

 

 

 

Grow As A Person

Personal Growth Leads to Living Well

personal growth 22There is nothing so important in our lives as seeking out and pursuing opportunities to grow as a person. Like any other living creature, our purpose in life is to contribute and move toward becoming our best selves continually. Just as plants are born and start to grow throughout their lives.

Look at your life and each activity you participate in, asking yourself about the growth potential.  We are all consciously, physically, and mentally going one of two ways.

  1. We are getting better or becoming more or growing.  2. We are getting worse, becoming less or shrinking.

Nobody is staying the same. Our actions that stem from our decisions each day are the forces that determine our direction.

Personal Growth Through Pain

Sometimes growth stems out of pain. We often

Unique personal growth can come from painful expeirences
Unique personal growth can come from painful experiences

wonder why painful events happen in our lives. Yet, these events often move you to strike out in a new direction rather than stay where you are. The pain can provide motivation and momentum to us to find new avenues for our talents or roads to travel, which we would never have conceived of before.  Our shell is broken, and a new life of growth will result.

With those we love, we try to shield them from the painful things in life. Our children, especially, under the guise of protecting them, are potentially robbing them of some of the most potent growth experiences. Being with them at painful times allows them to feel and provide empathetic support and sharing in their suffering, realizing that there is a time in life that pain happens, and all we can do is reassure them that healing comes. Eventually, it does come if you let it.

Life-Long  Education= Personal Growth

personal.growth.barrier.3.bGrowth can also occur through production by taking action. An interest will present itself, and through the natural forces of inquiry, a person will pursue their interest to find out more.  The student learns throughout their education and training to master their craft.

The problem is there is a lot of life left after your formal education is completed. Learning needs to be a lifelong pursuit that will continually keep you on a path of growth.  Most often, this is an individually motivated choice of practice. If you don’t look for ways to improve yourself, learn something new, or develop your mind and body, the alternative is to move backward slowly. Today we have access to a world of education and can learn how to do anything at all. We only need an internet connection to learn about anything from anatomy to rocket science.

Growth is NOT Difficult

It is not difficult to grow in your mind or in the talents you possess. Like anything ever in life, it involves taking an interest, developing an intent, and taking action potentialtoward completing a goal or developing a skill.  The passion that a person has toward achieving that goal will determine how severe the task will ultimately be.

Looking for opportunities to grow daily is vitally important. You are never too old, too weak, too significant, too small, or too anything else to find avenues for personal growth.  Reading something of substance each day is an excellent way to start. Each new idea or thought you experience will allow your mind to expand and think better and more efficiently. Once a consciousness expands, it takes a lot of neglect to move it in the opposite direction. Choose to grow!

“Every moment of one’s existence, one is growing into more or retreating into less.” ―Norman Mailer.

“Income seldom exceeds personal development.” ―Jim Rohn.

“You cannot dream yourself into a character; you must hammer and forge yourself one.” ―Henry David Thoreau.

“Life is growth. If we stop growing, technically and spiritually, we are as good as dead.” ―Morihei Ueshiba 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huAkaimApyA