Today’s Mandala Message: I am a work in progress…we all are
This week I’m working through Principle #33 from Jack Canfield’s “The Success Principles” entitled “Transcend Your Limiting Beliefs”. I set my intention today to ponder overcoming a third limiting belief. As a reminder from the 23-186 post, Canfield suggests making a list of any (and all) limiting beliefs that are limiting us. He then offers the following steps to overcoming limiting beliefs:
- Choose a limiting belief from the list
- How does it limit you?
- Declare how you want to be, act, or feel
- Create a turnaround statement that affirms or gives you permission to be, act, or feel in this new way
(1) My limiting belief for today is another culmination of several beliefs that basically sum up to:”I’m a terrible person” or “I’m an awful person”. I often hear me saying this to myself when I’ve done or said something that I know I could have handled much better. Examples: not letting a person/car get in front of me when I can see they have their blinker on, saying something hurtful to my husband (friend, neighbor, etc), catching myself negatively judging others, getting angry before I know what’s what, dropping/breaking things, making mistakes, and so on. Essentially what I’m doing is shaming myself.
The lovely Brené Brown brilliantly takes on the issue of shame in almost (if not all) of her books and talks. In a nutshell she states: “Shame is a focus on self, guilt is a focus on behavior. Shame is “I am bad.” Guilt is “I did something bad.” How many of you, if you did something that was hurtful to me, would be willing to say, “I’m sorry. I made a mistake?” … Guilt: I’m sorry. I made a mistake. Shame: I’m sorry. I am a mistake.”
(2) This is yet another of those limiting beliefs that keeps me from putting myself out there but in a slightly different way. Everything about my behavior changes. Under the surface I’m in hyper-vigilant, reactionary mode, just waiting for someone or something to re-affirm what a horrible, awful, terrible person I am. Not only that, I look for it within myself every time I drop something, break something, make a mistake, forget something. On some level, I may even be doing these things on purpose so that I can make sure I continue to be a “horrible, terrible, awful person”. What this particular “lb” does is keep me from being fully present, and more importantly, it keeps me from loving myself and being lovable person that I truly am.
(3) I want to be able to love myself, accept myself, be okay with myself, be kind to myself, be forgiving of myself…even as I make mistakes…especially when I make mistakes.
(4) My turnaround statement: “I am a joyful, lovable work in progress. As a spiritual being I know I am already perfect. While I’m here on Earth in this body, I accept that I am ‘human’ while continually striving to learn, grow, and improve.”
A good mindfulness practice would be to sit with being a joyful, lovable work in progress.
So how about you? Do you tend to shame yourself? Do you recognize the difference between guilt and shame? Can you accept the fact that you are a work in progress?
“You are a work in progress.
— Germany Kent
Give yourself the space
and grace for improvements.”
Blessings,
Maureen
The Mandala Lady
All Things Mandalas
An Invitation
I invite you to color along with me this year as part of what I’m calling “The Year of Self-Exploration and Expansion” with all of my “Mandalas of the ___” (day, week, month, year). If you’re interested in more of a self-exploration approach to coloring, check out my “Coloring Mandalas as Meditation”. You can download this mandala at MandalaoftheWeek.com.
Mandala of the Day 