Stories

I have recently come to realize that I am motivated by the ‘story’ I get to tell when cool stuff happens in my life.  I believe that I have the ability (and we all do) to be deliberate about how events unfold in our lives.  I have a lifetime of evidence and recently a boat load of practiced experiences that confirm my belief.

As a result, now-a-days, I pre-pave major and minor events in my life with visualizing how I want to feel and what I want to see.  I then think about the many ways that it will be possible.  I then drop all of those possible ways and say “this or better”.  I then watch with a sense of anticipation and curiosity as to how the story will play out and I get excited to share the story with others (once it transpires).  Here is a recent example.

A few weeks ago I realized that my AMEX card was not in my wallet.  I had a strong sense that it was in my house somewhere so I let it go.  Over time I was reminded that I was missing the card when I went to pay for things and started to gain a sense of “responsibility” in terms of finding the card.  I also entertained the uncomfortable idea that it COULD be in the hands of the wrong person.

On Saturday morning I sat down and wrote a pre-paving statement that the card shows up in the house in an unexpected place.  I then felt the feeling of elation that I would have when I found it, and the excitement I would have to tell someone.  I let the statement ‘go’ (ie released any attachment to how the card shows up) and went about getting serious about the missing card.

I first rummaged through all the usual hot spots where the card could be in my house.  Nothing showed up.  I realized then that I actually needed to take this seriously and call the missing card into AMEX.  I also realized that I had to admit my ‘loss’ to my husband (YIKES!).  I ‘braved up’ and told him.  I am grateful for his relaxed response.  I got the 1-800 number off of his AMEX card and sat down to call.  I dialed the number and as I was waiting for someone to pick up, I grabbed a notebook in case I needed to take notes.  I opened it to a random page…AND THE CARD WAS THERE!!!!

This kind of crazy stuff has been happening to me a lot lately.  I think it is because I’ve become practiced at stating what I want, believing it is possible, letting it go, getting busy doing something that feels good (sometimes my “feel good” is to be resourceful in solving the problem) and waiting to see how the story unfolds.

I love love love to tell my own stories and witness others.  The ones that are positive of course are keepers and are meant to inspire.  The stories that don’t serve me/us are meant to be questioned and turned around to encourage the possibility of a different outcome and perception.  I am in the practice of witnessing both (positive and negative-turned-positive) for my clients, my friends and myself.  Let the story-sharing begin…I’d love to hear!  It’s like a virtual Speak Easy!