Shifting Stories and Writing Stories--all focused on the reason perception is reality and practical ways to shift it towards what you wish to experience in your life.
Perception Shift : Be Willing to Say No to Say Yes
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Sometimes, to figure out what we want to say yes to, we have to learn to say no first. We can all look back on our lives and remember times when we wish we had made different choices. When perhaps we should have said no instead of yes, or yes instead of no. After a chain of events that happened because of one spectacularly bad choice—when I said yes when I should have said no (in my defense, I thought I was making the right choice at the time)—I found myself sitting on a hill overlooking a beautiful stretch of ocean, thinking about where I had gone wrong. The view and the time to contemplate were a gift from my friend, Alan Cohen, who knew I needed a safe place to think and regroup. On top of that hill, I had no idea where my life was going or what I could do to fix what had happened. But I did know what I didn’t want anymore. So even though I couldn’t see what I would say yes to, I knew exactly what I would say no to. I still have that no-list I made that day, lifetimes later. And for the most part, I’ve honored it. That has made all the difference. Being able to make conscious choices makes no-lists invaluable. If you look terrible in burnt orange, no matter how cute the sweater is, you know not to buy it. However, there are downsides to a no-list. It might be outdated. What you said no to could no longer be relevant. Or what you said no to was never the real problem—something else was. Maybe someone told you that you look terrible in burnt orange, but further exploration revealed it’s actually your best color. The information was faulty. Therefore, all no-lists need to be consistently reviewed in light of current circumstances and a deeper understanding. On the flip side, being willing to say yes is essential. Actually, it’s critical to our growth as souls moving through this experience. We live in a time when the world is shifting beneath our feet at a pace never seen before. AI is reshaping how we work and create. Climate change is rewriting the rules of where and how we live. The ways we connect, communicate, and find meaning are being reinvented almost daily. Perhaps we can’t keep up with everything, but we do need to stay present. To remain engaged. And in today’s world, staying engaged requires an open mind and a constant willingness to learn, to do, to see, to understand, and to become something new. To keep evolving. We have to be like a snake shedding its skin, a crab leaving its shell, or a caterpillar dissolving into something unrecognizable before emerging with wings. We have to be willing to give up what once housed us comfortably and let go. As members of the 21st century, we have to embrace the new while staying rooted in the values, relationships, and loves that make life meaningful. It’s a tricky path to walk, I know. Years ago, before smartphones became ubiquitous, Del and I resisted getting one. I had reasons. My regular phone worked fine. Why did I need to pay more for features I didn’t understand? But our children and grandchildren were communicating through texts and apps—living in a digital world we couldn’t access. We didn’t want to be left out of their lives because we were dragging our feet, clinging to what felt comfortable. We didn’t want to become old in our mindset. Now, we’re among the first to try new things. We experiment with AI tools, explore emerging technologies, and engage with ideas that challenge us. We want to expand our minds, not shut them down.
The world has changed. You have changed. Be willing to say yes to an open, expansive, and transformational life. Here’s one important thing to remember: Saying yes to something and knowing how to do it are two different things. Don’t put them together. Say yes first. Then say yes to learning how—one step at a time. Ask for help. Explore. Show up for life. Saying yes involves knowing who you are and what you want, so we’ll talk about that next time. But in the meantime, why not make two lists: a no-list and a say-yes-list? See what emerges. See what wants to be released, and what wants to be welcomed in. To Saying No To Get to Yes!
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Victor Frankl says yes to life. Article in The Marginalian
What do you plan to do with your one wild and precious life? -Mary Oliver
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Beca Lewis
Shifting Stories and Writing Stories--all focused on the reason perception is reality and practical ways to shift it towards what you wish to experience in your life.
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