Can You Pause Life?

 

Strange how strong the instinct is, to see something incredible, and reach for a camera. As if to lend it some credibility, to prove that it's real, that 'I WAS HERE.' 

We live our lives in moments. Those rare experiences we stop to notice, and carry with us, in the hopes of stringing them together, trying to tell a story. But even in the moment, you can feel it start to fade.

So you try to capture it, and convert it into something that will last longer than just a flash. And over time a photo feels more real than it's subject. It lets you build a version of the world that you can take with you. 

A world flattened, and simple. A world that doesn't change. That fits in the frame. A little brighter and more colorful. With everything under control. You can travel the world looking for memories, and still find yourself standing behind a camera waiting for the world to hold still. 

With every click of the shutter, you're trying to press Pause on your life. If only so you can feel a little more comfortable moving on living in a world stuck on Play. 

A part of you knows you can't take it with you but that doesn't stop you from trying.

 "What if I could stay just a little longer?" "What if we didn't have to go?" 

We try to capture moments as if we're afraid they'll escape, but they'll get away eventually. 

Take one last look. One more shot. 

So years from now you can flip back through, and try to relive it all over again.

But maybe even then, you'll be thinking to yourself,

 

 "Ah well. I guess you had to be there."

 

 

 

TMJ

 

Why We Fail

1. We see success as being determined by external factors. (So, if I fail its due to my circumstances or someone else’s fault.) 

This takes away any sense of power and keeps us stuck in failure and helplessness.

2. We have personal blind spots.
Sometimes we keep failing but we’re blind to the fact that there is something we are doing that is causing us to fail. Failure factors could be related to our communication style, our attitudes, lack of knowledge and ability, pursuing something that doesn’t suit our gifts and talents, and so on.

3. Self-sabotage.

Sometimes we don’t feel we deserve to succeed so unconsciously we do something that causes us to fail. This includes getting stuck on self-limiting thoughts (E.g., “I could never …; I don’t deserve …”).

4. We feel ambivalent (indecisive) about the goals you’ve set.

We often set a goal that is someone else’s goal so we’re not sure if it’s what we want ourselves. That affects our motivation, and our will to succeed.

5. We FEAR of change.

All success brings some change – and that can feel relatively threatening. And we’re often comfortable with our life as it is now – and so we wonder if success will really make us happier.

6. Pressure from others who don’t want you to succeed.

It’s very common for our peers to be threatened by success, and we know they’ll be sarcastic or mean if we succeed. Therefore, we don’t give it our best shot because we recognize the cost will be social isolation, or rejection by our friends or other respected peer groups.

TMJ

05/28/2018