Past ≠ Future
Breaking out of the hamster wheel
MOTIVATION
In the last blog, it was about how we all have the power to shape our own hamster wheel and how we can transform a negative cycle into a positive routine for growth. A big thank you to all readers who shared their thoughts on the blog via DM and inspired me for this blog. I've noticed that for many, it's a significant challenge to put theory into practice. In this blog, I want to delve deeper into the topic of "breaking out" of the wheel and its obstacles. Often, it's a vice from the past that makes it difficult for us and binds us.
From the moment of our birth, our family, our social environment, and the experiences we collect until adulthood shape our personality. Perfect childhoods are rare since there probably aren't perfect people. The way we were raised lays the foundation for our values, beliefs, and what we consider to be our behavioral norms. Often, we unconsciously carry beliefs that were instilled in us during our childhood. Sometimes it's also hidden scars that still pain and paralyze us years later. It's the prejudices that hold us in invisible shackles, or the everyday habits that hinder us more than they help. These deep-seated beliefs can empower us but also harm us. They shape us into the people we are today and can also be an obstacle on our further path. Yet, it's not only the immediate caregivers who influence us. Culture, society, and media also shape our view of ourselves and the world around us.
The challenge lies in becoming aware of all this and having the courage to dare to change. It's about healing the scars of the past that unconsciously affect us and breaking the chains of prejudices and habits that hold us back. This process is by no means easy. It requires courage, honesty, and above all, the willingness to question and change oneself. The decision to change marks the beginning of this journey. It is the moment we allow ourselves to move beyond what is known and comfortable and to let go of the "compulsion to repeat" (described in the last blog). We realize that, although the past has laid the foundations of our being, we have the power to reshape our future. By facing this challenge, we open ourselves to a more conscious and fulfilled life.
Successful people often have a difficult past, which serves as motivation to create something new and beautiful, something they can be proud of. By setting their goals high, they find joy in intermediate successes, and ultimately, it becomes clear that the journey itself is the goal. We can no longer change the past, but the future is in our hands. You alone decide the influence your past has on you. Even if wounds do not always heal completely, they hurt less over time, and the scars that remain make you unique and toughen you up.
In my experience, awareness and acceptance of the past are created by asking oneself the following questions:
What exactly is holding me back?
How does this event or experience affect me today?
Why does it affect me?
Why do I allow it to?
Once you've asked yourself these questions and found answers, realize that it's not the past that determines your future, but only the present! You alone decide what you sow today and will reap tomorrow. If your past tries to catch up with you again, repeat these questions and remember your answers.
Finally, Matze's practical tips: The first step to change is analyzing the status quo. You can only change something if you know what you're dealing with. The past can't be changed, but it's crazy how we let something we can't change influence us and often forget that we can take the first step towards a beautiful future at any time. Focus on your future rather than your past. Project yourself into your future and imagine that you have reached your intermediate and main goals, and remember today, the day you took that first step.
