If It’s Not Working, Face It
AFFIRMATIONS
for
Meditation and Reflection
I am acknowledging when something isn’t working for me, and taking action to fix it, no matter how uncomfortable or challenging it might be.
I am recognizing situations that I am afraid to deal with, boldly facing my fears and dealing with them anyway.
When something goes wrong, I am committed to finding out the reason why and taking prompt steps to fix it.
Our lives improve only when we take chances—and the first and most difficult risk we can take is to be honest with ourselves.
—WALTER ANDERSON
Author of The Confidence Course, former editor of
Parade magazine and a lifelong literacy advocate
When things aren’t going your way, it’s often difficult to face them—particularly if you’ve developed your other success skills and are accustomed to believing it’s possible, going the extra mile, and being persistent. But sometimes, things are just a train wreck. Sometimes, there’s just no fixing them—other than to wrap up your involvement, get them to a stable point, and move on. At other times, facing what’s not working actually brings about new solutions or even better outcomes than you were working toward. But you have to recognize these situations in the first place. And that can be very difficult.
Back in Week 1: Take 100% Responsibility for Your Future, we talked about internal and external alerts—those gut feelings you have or the suspicious charges on your household checking account. These patterns and signals hint that something isn’t right.
Don’t ignore these alerts—things will only get worse. If you are committed to living a truly successful life, you’ll face facts and be totally honest with yourself.
I am acknowledging when something isn’t working for me, and taking action to fix it, no matter how uncomfortable or challenging it might be.
Admitting that something isn’t working usually requires that you also do something about it, and often that “something” is uncomfortable: exercising more self-discipline, verbally confronting someone, quitting your job, or grounding your teenager. Often, because facing these situations is so unpleasant, sometimes we defend tolerating them instead of admitting that they don’t work.
How does denial actually represent itself? Through myths that we hide behind and platitudes that sound reasonable. Phrases such as these are telltale signs:
The truth is, if we could get past the denial and just face the facts, the situation would be less painful to resolve, our integrity would increase, and we’d feel better about ourselves. But first we have to get past denial.
I am recognizing situations that I am afraid to deal with, boldly facing my fears and dealing with them anyway.
Eliminating denial requires that you learn to recognize bad situations and react right away. It’s always surprising how many people find recognition and decision difficult. You don’t want to admit that your marriage is failing because you’d have to face the emotional stress of a divorce—especially if you have children. But, once you face facts, the ultimate solution might actually be marriage counseling or a commitment to setting new goals and boundaries together. Isn’t it better to know instead of living in fear?
The more you commit to facing uncomfortable situations, the better you will get at it. And the sooner you react, the easier it is to clean up these situations. Take time now to make a list of what isn’t working in your life—focusing specifically on the seven major areas where you set goals: financial, career or business, fun and recreation, health, relationships, personal growth, and making a difference. Choose one item at a time, decide what needs to be done to fix it, then make a plan and do it. Work down your list until you get them all resolved—you will feel an amazing sense of freedom as you do.
When something goes wrong, I am committed to finding out the reason why and taking prompt steps to fix it.