Shaping Fear or Shaping the Future?

Are you shaping fear or shaping your future?

Dr. Success™ Challenge: At the beginning of each day, for the next 7 days, answer the following question: If I believed I was here to shape the future, what actions would I take today?

I might not have a constructive contribution to make regarding the debate about health care in the United States, but I can contribute to the conversation regarding living a life of less fear and more productive action.

1. Clarify what your future would look like if you shaped a future that was ideal. If you don’t think you know the answer to that, start with making a list of the future you absolutely do not want. From the “don’t want” list, now create a list of “ideals.”
2. Think of one action, no matter how small, that you could take today to move toward any one of the items on your list.

3. Committ to take that action.

4. Take that action. (Just so I am clear.)

5. Throughout the day if your mind wanders into thoughts of fear about anything, past, present or future, stop what you are doing, notice the thought, and say the word, “Stop.” If you are around other people and feel odd doing that, just do it silently. Remember that thought you were just noticing came in while you were with those same people, so you are clearly qualified to silently say the word “stop”.

There, all done. You have now begun the process eliminating fear about the future by taking action to shape it. Simple, yet not easy and the quicker you get over that fact the better off we all will be. And know that if your shaping your fear, you are shaping your future. Doesn't sound like fun to me.

Remember: We are not here to fear the future. We are here to shape it.
President Obama 09/09/09

Thank you to Stew Gibbons for his beautiful photo of the August 2009 Discovery launch.

Andrea T. Goeglein, Ph.D.
Dr. Success™
http://www.servingsuccess.com/
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