The principle of “What you resist persists” that I learned from one of my mentors, Dr. John Demartini, a world-class Human Behavioural Expert, is something I remind myself of often.
I find it gives me the courage to do the things that feel hard, uncomfortable or scary because I know the law of the Universe goes,
“What you resist persists.” Carl Jung
It also gives me permission to challenge myself because I know that avoiding or refusing to do what I know is good for me will just become more persistent and challenging.
It’s not about bypassing the fear or pretending it’s not there.
It’s about going right through the centre so that you can dissolve it.
Rather than avoiding the tough conversations, suppressing uncomfortable emotions or distracting myself from taking meaningful action, I try to do the opposite.
Not because I necessarily want to. But more so because I know that if I don’t, it’s likely to get worse.
I’d rather challenge myself and confront the thing, as not fun as that may be at the times than wait around for it to become so painful that I have no choice but to address it.
This is probably one reason I LOVE doing the most challenging thing first thing in the morning.
I find it frees up my energy and builds my confidence for the rest of my day.
Rory Vaden, one of my other mentors, has a great talk about a similar principle.
He has won numerous awards for his speaking, so I’ll give you the less polished Coles notes version. I highly recommend you watch his Ted Talk on it for the whole story.
In the face of a storm, you can either be a cow or a buffalo.
My suggestion is to be the buffalo!
When there is a storm, rather than trying to hit it head-on, the cow tries to avoid it and runs with the storm. By doing so, the cow stays in the storm and experiences its impacts for an extended period.
The buffalo, on the other hand, does the opposite. When there is a storm, the Buffalo runs right in the middle of it and hits it head-on.
Rather than trying to avoid it, the buffalo embraces it and, by doing so, ends up on the other side much quicker and with less resistance.
Yes, it’s challenging when you are in the eye of the storm, but it’s also challenging riding with the storm and staying in it for way longer than you need to be.
I would personally rather challenge myself and do the hard things that will move my life forward than wait around for challenges.
The truth is there are going to be challenges either way. You might as well choose your challenge!!
The beauty of this, too, is that you become more resilient, more confident, and inspired by embracing the storm. When you spend your time trying to avoid something, it takes away your power and keeps you stuck reacting.
My suggestion is to be the buffalo! Challenge yourself, and you’ll be supported!
What is one thing that you have been avoiding?
Carve out some time and hit it head-on! Remember, what you resist, persists.