The Saboteur
Your decision paid off! You finally got it right! Then, as if out of nowhere, things start to take a turn for the worse. What makes this happen? Is it just a coincidence?
Sometimes when we are summoned to make choices that will affect our entire future, we get it right . . . or at least we think so. Then, out of left field, things seem to deteriorate. We don’t understand it. How can this be happening?!
Making it doesn’t have to be difficult. Making the right decision, and then reaping the fruit of that decision, is possible for all of us. But some of us can’t seem to get out of our own way. We may have the best idea we have ever had, and the project is underway. Things are really on track. But we think things are going too well, and we can’t stand it. We worry about how things might go wrong, we complain to others about how difficult things are, we know in our minds that this is just too good to be true.
It might be a new relationship, a new position in your company, or maybe you have started the new business that you have always dreamed about.
Why is it that when we take that step forward, some of us will do almost anything to derail our chances of success?
Many times as we embark on new careers, relationships, or investments, we naturally feel the pressure of that decision.
It is easy to become negative. We want things to go perfectly—no mistakes, just give us smooth sailing! Still, we need to endure the storms as they come our way. We need to have faith that it is going to work out. After all, we welcomed the opportunity in the first place. It is when we let that first negative thought take hold that we will attract more negativity, more problems. People that can make a difference will not want to be around us.
Many great people have had failures along the way prior to their success:
- Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper for lack of ideas. He also went bankrupt several times before he built Disneyland.
- Babe Ruth, considered by sports historians to be the greatest athlete of all time and famous for setting the home run record, also holds the record for strikeouts.
- Seuss’ first children’s book, And to Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street, was rejected by twenty-seven publishers. The twenty-eighth publisher, Vanguard Press, sold six million copies of the book.
- Henry Ford failed and went broke five times before he finally succeeded in making his famous automobile.
These people did not let the little things derail them on the way to success. They believed in themselves and had faith!
When we lose faith and we dwell on the negative, we won’t even realize where it is coming from. It is coming from a place so deep in our subconscious minds. We will get greedy and negotiate too high, asking for too much. Maybe we tell our partners that we must have things a certain way, being too demanding. Maybe we tell an employer that we deserve more, before showing them what we have to offer them. Sometimes we can’t seem to control the outcome.
In chapter six of my book, Wisdom From the Sea, I talk about the pirate, the saboteur, that lives inside all of us. This is the voice that will plant seeds of negativity in our minds. The pirate will try to take control of our thinking and steer us on a course away from what might very well be the right path for our journey. When this voice starts to tell us that we can’t make it, or we are not good enough, we need to ignore it. We need to stay positive and know that success will come when it comes. Going negative will do nothing to help the situation. The saboteur will do anything it can to take control.
Something that has helped me on my journey is to meditate or go into deep prayer. When faced with a tough decision or a bad day, you need to find a place to be alone. Connect with your self. Find a way to be still and connected. Try not to make decisions that will affect others in an adverse way. Do not react in a rash and hurried way. This is when the pirate will come up to do battle and want to engage with others.
As a daily practice, don’t let the pirate get control of your ship. Take time to slow down when facing big decisions . . . do not let the saboteur take advantage of your self.
We must forge onward in presence, and faith that all is possible with time.
All the adversity I’ve had in my life, all my troubles and obstacles, have strengthened me . . . You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you. ~ Walt Disney