It’s a Mind Game!

BY CARLTON WILBORN

A game can be defined as an activity wherein opposing players compete against each with a prize in sight. But what happens when the match is you against yourself; the prize being your overall peace and well-being? This enticing new realm of winning, however, will never be fully accomplished if we don’t first place our bet on the absolute adeptness of our most precious, amazing muscle—the mind.

Today, with reports of our gloomy economy, and with people losing their jobs, homes and self-esteem, many are struggling with an unfortunate degree of fear and hopelessness. If we proceed accordingly, we will neither be a voice of reassurance and strength to others nor remedy our particular situations. We owe it to each other and ourselves to enhance our thinking. We all want to feel good. I am breaking the news, right now, that we can. Feeling good should no longer be a mere desire but the new mandate, and we must consciously enlist ourselves to take a stand for it, no matter what.

As we look to the dawning of the new year, with the tradition of setting a resolution, let’s momentarily put aside our Band-Aid fixes. We ought to boldly live our lives standing up to obstacles, holding our mental mission firmly and nurturing its possibility of being realized. As we choose to remember and share this reality, we will notice our prior notions of inability and disconnection morph into a sensation of wholeness.

A crucial component that impedes our well-being is the affect the worship of idols has on our lives. When I mention “idols” I am not referring to the winners of a televised singing competition. I am directly addressing the word “idols”—those things that we give precedence to over God, inevitably ensuring our destruction. Though our personal idol list may not be as long as the list of contestants waiting to audition for Paula, Randy and Simon, the idols craving our attention can be just as desperate, disguising themselves in the craftiest of ways.

The gauging component of our spiritual makeup is our Emotional Guidance System. As I learned from watching The Secret, this highly effective system allows us to identify and distinguish idols in our lives.

It is imperative for us to commune with that small, divinely knowing voice that exists within each of us. This patient force awaits our acknowledgment, and upon receipt is capable of infusing us with an evermore-blissful state of living. This voice is our God, to whom we must be obedient.

We all must face either the truth or the consequences. If we are honest with ourselves, we all know what’s really helping us feel good and what is not. It comes down to how much self-validation we’re allowing ourselves to experience on a continuous basis. Clearly no plant could ever grow if we spent days stomping it down. Likewise, you cannot maximize development by expressing inadequacies daily.

Some people may not appreciate that we need time to disentangle ourselves, even complaining and labeling us as “selfish,” but it is not selfish to decline to live in the slim of life. I have decided that even if it takes anchoring my mind and stirring up affirmative thoughts by rising in the morning and laying still in my bed longer, going for a prayerful walk or dedicating myself to consecutive 30- or 40-day meditations, the time invested will be worth it.

Some competitive events require more assertiveness than others, and this is one of them. Choosing to play as the weaker, when our reality of influence differs, is irresponsible. We have an obligation to mature. That way we can stand before our target, not just accepting having gone for the mark but rejoicing in having truly hit a bull’s-eye.

Ask yourself: Will you do what’s necessary to remain still enough to allow your natural guide to aid you? Will you take hold of the guidance it gives you?

Approach this game like a warrior. Fight, claw, twist and beat them down—all for the sake of saving yourself. The time is now to get your soul to accept that the only true leverage for your freedom is your mind. Then step forward, face the challenger and take on the ride of life with peace and a smile.

Game On!

Carlton Wilborn is an award-winning author, public speaker and life coach, and has volunteered for many charitable organizations.