When You Want to Give Up, Don't.

The feeling of giving up is something we all face in our lives at some point or another. I can say that there have been many times when I have wanted to give up. When I didn't think I had the strength in me to keep going. When it was really hard to focus on the positive and I allowed my mind to wander into a limiting place. I felt that staying focused on the positive was a challenge that I didn't have the energy for.

But then I have also realized that we have a choice. We all fall, we all break down- we need those times of feeling low to appreciate the highs- but at a certain point we have a choice. Connecting with and expressing our pain and sadness is actually healthy, but it is when we start feeling victim to our emotion- it is actually at this very point when we think that we are out of control that we actually have the choice. We can stay where we are or we can get back up. We can get back up and decide to see the cup half full and have gratitude for what we have. We can decide to not be a victim.

We can wait and hope for circumstances to change or for someone to come "save us", but this might mean that we will wait for too long and lose sight of who we really are and the fact that we are incredibly powerful and we have the ability at any moment to shine our light and initiate a decision that makes us feel empowered and focused on what we want.

“Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”
― Confucius

I really love this quote. It has made me realize that our failures can actually be used as a motivating force. We can be aware of what we don't want and actively choose to pursue that which we do. Here is another quote that has always resonated with me.

“You can never cross the ocean unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore."
 – Christopher Columbus.

It takes courage to take the path less traveled. It takes courage to not settle. And sometimes when we go in search of our dreams, we find ourselves feeling alone. We let go of comfort and certainty. We just have to also remember to have faith in our ability to think and focus on the thoughts that will serve us. 

We become what we think about most of the time. Our life is a result of the thoughts we think- our thoughts are that powerful. 

So we may fall down, we may go through pain that is completely real. And we may want to give up. But we must realize that this is exactly the point where we can choose to try again. We can choose to ask for help (this is also a choice) and we can choose to focus on the way of thinking that best serves our greatness. 

Blessings,

Julie