By Sarah Sparks
I was frustrated years back at the outcome of my life. I was blaming a lot of people around me for what was occurring, and I was fed up with what life was serving me. I wasn’t taking responsibility for my part in my own life. Well…until I read this quote by Mahatma Gandhi, which put everything into perspective for me:
Your beliefs become your thoughts,
Your thoughts become your words,
Your words become your actions,
Your actions become your habits,
Your habits become your values
Your values become your destiny.
Wow! Everything starts with our beliefs expressed as thoughts! My thoughts are that powerful? Who knew? Obviously, not me. Now I understand that a thought in my mind is my greatest power. Everything starts with a thought, and I have the power to change that thought by shifting the belief that supports it. With that changed thought, I am then able to change the way I speak, act, and live. Again … WOW! Holy smokes! Change is really that simple. Change starts with a thought.
After reading Gandhi’s quote, I stopped blaming others and started taking responsibility for my own contributions to my life. The awareness of my thoughts changed my life. Let me share with you an example of how powerful the mind is in my world.
I was sitting on the floor of our living room, staring at the television, but not really watching it. My thoughts drifted off into the future when my daughter, who is now 17 months old, is 30 years old. My mind envisioned her talking with her friends about me. I snapped back to reality. I then thought: What would I want my daughter to say about me? I don’t want her to tell nagging, nasty stories about me to her friends. I hope, one day, she shares with her friends what an amazing, supportive mother she has and that she is grateful for the respect and love she feels from me.
This thought changed my world. You see, I had been frustrated with my mother about comments she made regarding the way I raise my daughter. I would tell nagging stories to my husband about my mother. Instead of wallowing around in the belief my mother did “XYZ,” I knew, because of my awareness, that I had the power to change my thought.
I then took the lead in changing the destiny of my relationship with my mother. I simply changed my thoughts, and now I speak to her differently. My actions toward my mother have shifted, my perspective has changed, and the value I place on our relationship is now different. Because of the brief two-second mind walk (it’s what I call it when my mind “walks” away from reality for a bit), I changed the destiny of an important relationship in my life.
When my mother makes suggestions about how I should or shouldn’t be raising my daughter, I let her BE. I have meaningful conversations with her, and I tell her I love her more often. I simply let her BE her, and in doing so I allow me to be me.
This is just one simple example of how my mind, through my thoughts, changed my destiny. How has your mind changed your destiny? I’d love to hear your experiences! Share them with me via email at sarah@createthespark.org.
Namaste, friends. Namaste.
Sarah A. Sparks, MPA, is the speaker and relationship mentor for Create The Spark, LLC. Sarah has her BA in Human Resource Management, a certificate in Training: Design and Development from the University of Northern Iowa, as well as a MPA from Drake University. Sarah worked as a leader for two local governments in Iowa from 2004-2010, in the capacity of an Operations Transit Supervisor and Safety Coordinator, and as a Parks and Recreation Director. While serving these communities, Sarah mentored and trained numerous employees. Through this experience, she discovered the belief in one’s self is what limits someone from creating the life she desires. From that point onward, Sarah made it her mission to guide those who want to be mentored to create the life they desire by having the confidence and trust in themselves to make the right decision and say what they need to say, with love! Email Sarah at createthespark@gmail.com or visit www.createthespark.org.