Accept Where You Are To Get Where You Want to Go

Coaching conversations are often around issues in our life that we wish were different.

Something we're not happy with, something we want to create that doesn't exist, something we want clarity on.

It's easy to think that the way to get where you want to go is by resisting/rejecting where you currently are.

If you accept where you are, the thinking goes, then you won't be motivated to get where you want to go.

There's some truth in this.  You can make some changes in your life by refusing to accept what is.

But often, the most productive and aligned action doesn't come from the place of resistance.  It comes from acceptance.

When you accept what is currently true, you are no longer at war with yourself. 

"I hate that this is true, I want that to be true."  That internal war clouds thinking.  It leads to reactive action, not creative action.

(Notice "reactive" and "creative" use the same letters but in a different order.  That could be a metaphor for the order of acceptance - If we think we can only accept our life and reality when XYZ is true, then we are reactive.  If we learn to accept what is true first and act from there, we can be creative.)

Accepting doesn't mean resigning or settling. It means I'm now able to act from a different energy.

I wish I was 20 pounds lighter. I accept that I weight this much. Now what do I want to do from here?

I accept that I want to have a larger audience for my business.  Now what do I want to create from here?

When we're at war with ourselves, wishing a fantasy was true, then we can't take joyful action OR rest.  Neither option is available to us.

When we resolve the war in us by accepting what is true, we can now rest (because maybe that's what's needed for a time) or we can see what creative, productive and joyful action we want to take next.

I'm amazed at how often I'm flooded with ideas and insights the moment I stop resisting reality and accept what is. It's like my eyes are opened to amazing opportunities right in front of me that I was too busy to see when I was resisting what is currently true.

Denying reality, fighting reality, is death.  It destroys your peace, your presence, your ability to think and be creative.

Accepting reality brings life.  New life.  New possibilities.  New ideas.  Creative action.

When you accept where you are AND that you want to create something new, that's where interesting things can happen. What might you realize is your next step?  What wonderful opportunity in your current situation have you been blind to because you were too busy cutting yourself off from being present?

I wonder what you can create from here?