Lessons for Living
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How do your beliefs influence your life experience?
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When a sports team
loses a big game and the coach is asked how they will respond, the often-heard reply is
"Return to the basics." Re-focusing on the fundamentals of the sport is an
important way of ensuring future success. In life, as well, when things go wrong, a return to basics can be helpful and the fundamentals of our life experience can be thought of as returning to the ABC's of living. With this approach, "A" stands for the Actual Life Event -- whatever it is that happens to us. "B" is what we believe about the event, and "C" is the consequence that the event has for us. It is commonly thought that an event - A - immediately causes our reaction - C - but that is because we often forget our ABC's. If our favorite football team loses the Super Bowl, we can become sad and disheartened, or we could experience a sense of satisfaction and pride. It's not the loss "A" that causes our reaction or the consequence - "C". Rather, it is what we believe about the loss. It's our interpretation that creates our response. If we are busy thinking how terrible it is that all of the team's hard work came to nothing, we will be disappointed. On the other hand, if we are busy thinking about how well they played and how they had never made it this far before, we may be happily looking forward to next year's games and a championship season. While we cannot control the events of life, we can greatly influence our reactions "to" what happens "to" us, if we focus on what we believe. The more realistic and positive our understanding, the more positive our experience will be. You "can" choose how you interpret what happens to you, if you remember your ABC's because B stands for belief, and you determine what you believe. It's a choice you make everyday, and the better the choice you make the better your life will go. Give us your feedback on this article or |
