I used to believe that people got what they deserved. But as I’ve grown older I've come to see that this is rarely true. People don’t usually get what’s coming to them. Life is indeed unfair.
But as unfair as this is, it’s not something worth dwelling on. So much of “what people get” is out of my control. Instead, I try to put emphasis on a similar but greater truth.
People do usually do get what they think they deserve.
I see this playing out over and over. Many people I know can’t see how they allow their past experiences to hold them back. It’s a sad, but true reality. They don’t move forward in life because they don’t believe they deserve better.
One of the world’s greatest psychologists had a lot to say about this.
“I am not what happened to me, I am what I choose to become.” ― Carl Gustav Jung
Jung wrote about how if we think we deserve to suffer, we usually suffer. Especially when it comes to unconscious things. If we can’t see how our limiting beliefs affect us, we can’t move past them.
Jung also said, “Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.”
If we don't constantly ask ourselves about our self assumptions, we are doomed to think either that 1) we don't measure up to the world or that 2) the world is out to get us.
Neither one of those options is very much fun.
On the other hand, if we think we CAN do something, we do it. Or at least we try to get it done. If we succeed, it confirms our belief. We feel stronger about the idea that we could succeed. If we fail, we are much more likely to try again.
Repeating mistakes is common and frustrating, but usually, we get tired of making the same mistakes until we find what works. We try and we fail until we find a solution. This is often how we find success. In fits and starts.
But if we begin with a negative attitude and think that we can’t do something the results are very different. We either don’t try it at all or we hesitate before trying.
Knowing the power of our beliefs is the greatest benefit of seeing how the creative process works. We start with a Belief then we ask what might be Possible. Then we take Action and when taken we evaluate our Results.
This 4 step cycle that repeats itself over and over.
If we have small beliefs, the rest of the cycle weakens. Creative growth happens very slowly with lots of pauses along the way. The result is a vicious selfish cycle.
But if we have greater beliefs and more faith in the system and in ourselves, we can start taking actions that confirm those beliefs. The result is a virtuous cycle that leads to positive change for many.
The book I’m writing, The Creator Quest, is about looking at the creative process as a simple four-part sequence. By learning the characteristics of each stage, you can find more joy in your life and work.