Top 10 Steps For Freeing Ourselves From The Downward Spirals Of
Life
1. NOTICE THE SPIRAL YOU'RE IN As is so often true, awareness is
the first step to intervention. Much of the power of a downward
spiral comes from our continuing to be unaware of the direction
of our life. Like a whirlpool, a downward spiral's power picks
up strength and speed the longer we're in it; so it follows that
the sooner we become aware we are trapped in a downward spiral,
the easier it will be to change the direction of our life. It's
often helpful to remember a downward spiral reversed becomes a
spiral of fulfillment.
2. ALLOW YOURSELF TO BE FULLY PRESENT TO YOUR LIFE. When you
first notice you're in a downward spiral, the tendency is to
quickly react in an effort to free yourself. This initial
reaction is often based in fear and may only exacerbate the
spiral. Instead, take time to notice what is happening from a
detached position. Witness your life by stepping outside of it
for awhile. One simple way to do this is to imagine you are in a
movie theater reviewing the "Story of My Life" movie. Watch and
Observe.
3. CONSCIOUSLY RELEASE THE THOUGHTS AND EMOTIONS As you begin to
"Dismantle" the downward spiral, be sure you release and let go
of the disempowering thoughts and emotions. You might envision a
large bottomless trash can in front of you into which you toss
each thought and each emotion attached to the thought or you can
write it all down then burn the paper, thus releasing their hold
on you.
4. RESIST THE TEMPTATION TO INDULGE Don't get sucked into the
drama of the movie. There's no point to watching the movie over
and over. This will only suck you further down the spiral.
Observe and Move On.
5. COMMIT TO CHANGING DIRECTIONS Make a conscious choice to
change the direction of your spiral. You may write down your
choice as a declaration or share it with a friend, loved one or
your coach. Draw a line in the sand.
6. KNOW THE MAKE UP OF A DOWNWARD SPIRAL. Knowing the basic
elements that are the composition of a downward spiral will make
it easier to change its directions. Downward spirals are
composed of "molecules of meaning" which can be further broken
down to fear, and lack based thoughts and emotions.
This includes such things as doubt, worry, "shoulding" on
yourself, jealousy, anger, fear, frustration, etc. All of these
come together to effect who you think you are(i.e., loser,
failure, unlovable, etc.) which then determines the actions you
take and what you say out loud to yourself. All of which then
determines what you have, as in the results with which you
measure your life.
7. USE THE LAW OF ATTRACTION TO CHANGE THE SPIRAL'S DIRECTION
The Law of Attraction states that "like attracts like." So just
like fear and lack based thoughts will attract more similar
thoughts, the same is true of love and abundance based thoughts.
By changing your thoughts and your emotions you change the
direction of the downward spiral.
8. PRACTICE PATIENCE AND PERSISTENCE Remember you didn't get
into the downward spiral overnight, so don't expect reversing
direction to take place in an instance. Just as it takes time to
stop a car and put it into reverse, it will take time before
you'll see the evidence that your downward spiral has become a
spiral of fulfillment. In the mean time continue to affirm and
trust that it is so.
9. BEGIN TO GATHER EVIDENCE FOR THE TURNAROUND. As you continue
the turnaround process begin to look for physical evidence that
the process is working. Start with the mindset that the evidence
is there already and your job is to find it like a detector,
rather than wondering whether there is any or not.
10. DEBRIEF, DECLARE THE ACCOMPLISHMENT, AND CELEBRATE At some
point you will know beyond a shadow of a doubt that the
turnaround is complete. Before moving on take a few minutes to
acknowledge what you've learned from the experience, declare to
yourself the accomplishment and celebrate it. You've made major
progress along your purposeful path. "Celebrate, Celebrate.
Dance to the Music."