Category: Psychology

Big Dreams

Crane

Robert Collier, who was a successful New Thought author, once wrote: “Big things are only little things put together.” The simplicity of this statement might appear ludicrous, but there’s actually magic behind it.

That short passage is from his famous book entitled The Secret of the Ages. The insight came to him one day when he was watching a sixteen-storey building being constructed. He states that one morning as he stood watching the construction he heard the shrill sound of a whistle and watched as a derrick lowered a platform from great height. When it reached the ground, a workman fastened a chain around the center of a steel beam. The whistle sounded again, and Robert watched as the girder rose to great height where other workers fastened it into place with bolts, adding to the structure.

We can apply this simple point to our goals, which may seem impossibly big and challenging when viewed in their totality. But that’s not how great structures–or great goals–are achieved. They’re accomplished one step at a time; the way that one steel beam added to the tall building that Robert described. The people who accomplish such great feats do so with intense passion and unwavering focus. They also exhibit great patience, but not the type that leads to procrastination. They realize that projects come together in the right fashion in the right time. Doubt–if ever it should knock at the door to their mind–is quickly replaced by a positive focus that enables them to move forward. These great men and women realize that the mind is an excellent servant but a terrible master!

As you’re contemplating your goal, take a look for the proof of this type of thinking. There are many great accomplishments now taking place. Think nano technology; think exploration of space; think computer technology. History is also full of great examples: think Great Wall of China; think Ford; think Marconi; think Wright Brothers; think Bell. What might seem easy from our point of view took Patience, Dedication, and Will. Big things are only little things put together. What one beam will you add–today–to the goal that you’re building? If you know it, do it now.

Dare to dream (and care for one another).

With heartfelt regards,

Art

Copyright © – 2020 – R. Arthur Russell

P.S. Please share this article if you enjoyed it. If you’d like to view my latest book (This Taste of Flesh and Bones), press here. My YouTube videos can be found at Think2wice@I-Am-Aware. May the content of either or both help you along your spiritual journey. “Thank You” & “Note to Publishers” 🙏🏻🧡

What Are You Telling Yourself?

So, you’re running late for an appointment, and you’re ready to leave your home when you realize that you’ve misplaced the keys to your car. If you’re like the majority of people, you’ll begin a mad search; looking on the top of your dresser, the key holder at the entrance to your home, or your purse or pockets. As the minutes tick by, and you feel the mounting pressure to leave, there will most likely be an interior dialogue squawking in the background of your mind that might sound like the following:

  • “Oh, God, I’m never going to find these keys!”
  • “I’m going to be late; I just know it!”
  • “I don’t have time for this nonsense!”
  • “I can’t see them! Why can’t I see them?”
  • “This is just like me! I’m so stupid!
  • “Today of all days!”

If any of that dialogue sounds familiar you’re not alone. Is that dialogue harmless? Hardly, and here’s why. What we habitually tell ourselves is a reflection of our inner thoughts. Those inner thoughts are creating our future. In effect, we’re programming our reality in much the same way that a computer is programmed. There’s an well-known phrase in the computing world that states: garbage in; garbage out. It means that the success of the computer system will only be as good as what’s programmed into it. Humans are no different!

How the above dialogue actually brings an effect in our real world is simple. For every time that we tell ourselves “I can’t find my keys!” we’re programming the mind not to alert us to the keys even if they’re actually there. A little proof of the above, which many may have experienced, is when someone–perhaps a spouse or partner, proceeds to look in the very same drawer or coat pocket that we have just searched. Exasperated, we say that we’ve already looked there, only to have the person triumphantly shout that he/she found the keys…in the exact place that we had already searched!

Why could this actually happen so often? The answer, which I can’t prove, is simple to understand. The spouse/partner is using a different program, one with very different dialogue playing in the background. In fact, the person may take great delight in finding something that we couldn’t find. Chances are the helper was thinking: “I know I can find those keys; I know I can.”

The good news is that we can change our programming, by conscious effort. We can program ourselves in ways that are beneficial to us in every aspect of our life. It doesn’t take a genius to realize the difference that positive internal dialogue could make regarding a new business, a weight loss program, an exercise plan, or a new skill that we’re trying to master.

What we’re telling ourselves literally matters, as the events and circumstances of our life. This practice is worth putting to the text the next time you misplace your keys. Just tell yourself something positive.

Dare to dream (and care for one another).

With heartfelt regards,

Art

Copyright © – 2020 – R. Arthur Russell

P.S. Please share this article if you enjoyed it. If you’d like to view my latest book (This Taste of Flesh and Bones), press here. My YouTube videos can be found at Think2wice@I-Am-Aware. May the content of either or both help you along your spiritual journey. “Thank You” & “Note to Publishers” 🙏🏻🧡