Friday, November 18, 2011

DEFINING YOURSELF

We are not born as a finished product.  Not to many years ago it was thought that all humans were born with equal potential.  We have now learned that is not true.  For years, people toyed with the question of whether we are the product of Nature or Nurture.  The answer is that we are both.  When people claim to be self-made, they are talking nonsense.  We do not develop in a vacuum.

Ask yourself what comes into your head.  Do you hear voices from a parent, a mentor, a priest or pastor, quotes you have heard, or a bit of all the above and more?  Most of us have forgotten the sources which have provided us with a code we have adopted as our own.  For example, long before alcoholics had developed the Serenity Prayer as though it was their invention, life had taught me not to waste time worrying about things over which I have no control.  That alone makes ordering the priorities in your head so much more efficient.

Individual chemistry as well as past experiences determine whether we feel safe, capable, or can think of choices of behavior to deal with situations.  In a plane, why make yourself ill from fear of its crashing.  If you die suddenly you have no need to worry about whom or what you have left behind.if you live each day as though it might be your last by having an intact will and no secrets from your loved ones, financial planner, lawyer or anyone who will need to deal in some way with your death.  Leaving little uncovered or unsaid is important.

The kind of person we believe ourselves to be is also important.  Do we behave as we see ourselves by others?  Tomorrow's blog speak to this in a part 2.



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