Most of my clients and friends are seekers.
They like new ideas, get turned on by the latest innovations, and search for the best ways to be happier, healthier, wealthier, skinnier, savvier. You get the idea if it ends in -er, if it might make them better in ways that matter, they are going to look into it.
The chronic search for the best ways to attract abundance, balance checkbooks, heal from illness, flush fat, clean up sugar addictions, be positive, attain inner peace, parent wisely, love deeper In relationships, respond positively to infidelity, become more intuitive, or find passionate careers means one thing: buying a whole lotta self-help books and perusing the internet for new ways to get more of the er they are after.
Most us will research the changes we want to make, find the latest and greatest approach to help us, and probably even buy the book or product that will guide us along the yellow brick road to the Oz of our desired outcomes.
Did you notice that I said buy, but not read or use? YEAH…That wasn’t an accident.
Because here’s the thing about seekers, all of whom are driven to grow and deeply desire to be their best: most of those self help books are half-read and piling up on their night stands. Maybe some of these partially consumed books are dog-eared and have a few notes written in them, but they are otherwise forgotten- having been replaced by a newer book with the cure-du jour.
That’s right seekers I’ve got your number. I know you! And I’ve even been you- excitedly researching and launching into your latest purchase that promises to provide the answers, the path, to the happier or better self. Go take a stroll through your self-help graveyard and notice the tombstones about mindfulness, thinking and growing rich, manifesting with intention, realizing your own power, healing your life, cleaning up your body, finding true love. These books and articles- the ones you already bought, the ones that promised to provide the changes you’ve wanted, but lay untapped and under committed to. And it’s not that they can’t get you there-many or most of them are excellent guides. It’s that you haven’t done the work in them.
Which leads me to the ultimate take-away of this post, the one action step that will change your life as a seeker and your relationship with all the information you collect about how to truly be your best self:
Actually do the work in one of those self help books. That’s right. I’m asking you to pick ONE of those books you already own- and WORK it. Don’t just read a few paragraphs when you are in the mood, don’t get half way through and move on to something else, don’t just leaf through the ideas without doing the action steps the book suggests. No, do something different this time: make a commitment to yourself and to that book.
Though I’m not affiliated with one, I know that Twelve Step programs have a wise expression called “working the program” which means “don’t just understand your addiction intellectually, do the actual steps everyday to create huge and everlasting transformation.” Recently, in a session with one of my clients who is very ill, I was guided to tell her that she needed to actually “work the program” , meaning USE all of the many spectacular tools and spiritual practices she is already knowledgable about. In other words, stop hoarding more information and start using it in a deliberate, intentional, committed way if you truly want to heal and change.
I’ve never seen half-hearted effort create huge transformation. Have you?
So pick ONE self growth book- one that’s currently trending or is an old classic- and dive into it like it’s the last self help book you will every buy or need to read, like it’s got all the jewels of wisdom and answers embedded within it. This time, don’t just skim the surface of a book you might learn from. After all, when has treading water in the shallow-end ever gotten anyone olympic-size results?
If you take me up on this challenge, my guess is that you will experience enormous, magnificent shifts in your life just by buckling down and finally doing what you keep seeking. Because I know you want more than to just chronically search for answers, you want to live and breathe the solutions. And that’s why the best and last self help books you will ever have to read will be the ones you actually put into practice.
Share with me your comments and experiences along the way!
Beth Miller, LCSW-R, CEC, CAHC is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Certified Life Coach, energy healer, meditation teacher, and spiritual counselor in private practice in Bayport, Long Island, New York, USA. She is the owner of the group practice POSITIVE ENERGY Holistic Counseling & Institute where she and her fabulous team of therapists use the breakthrough model Advanced Holistic Counseling & Coaching™ to create transformational change in their clients. Beth is the creator of the trademarked Advanced Holistic Counseling & Coaching™: Modern therapy that combines the very best of traditional psychotherapy with life coaching, energy healing, science, and spirituality. Now, Licensed Therapists, Healers, and Coaches can learn how to experience huge transformation in themselves, their clients, and their careers by becoming Certified in Advanced Holistic Counseling & Coaching™. For free holistic and psychotherapy tools, visit the POSITIVE ENERGY Holistic Counseling & Institute YouTube channel, or contact us directly via phone at 631-533-0708 or email at info@positivecounselingli.com.
Opmerkingen