Personal Foundation

My mom loved(s) soap operas!  When I was younger, they flooded our 3 channels.  General Hospital, Another World, Bold and the Beautiful, and Days of our Lives.  They were filled with turmoil, drama, love, mystery and kept us captivated even though we knew there was no end in sight.  One of their slogans has stuck with me.  “Like sands in an hourglass, so are the days of our lives.”

Life is precious, yet as in the soap operas, we waste it on worrying about things we cannot change, holding grudges, playing it safe, settling for less than we truly want or deserve. At times it may seem easier to stay stuck in these states versus addressing the underlying elements that are contributing to our thoughts, feelings and actions.

I think of these elements like cracks in the foundation of a home.  Not all cracks are alike yet each crack is there for a reason as a result of some other factor.  Some are deeper, more serious than others, and may require immediate attention.  If left, they typically turn into larger concerns that may require more work and additional costs to repair. Attempting to repair these cracks from the outside or on the surface will provide a temporary solution – a solution that will not last.  However, cracks that are repaired deep from within, will support the foundation and integrity of the home. 

Another analogy to consider are cracks in a tooth. If the underlying problem is not resolved it can not only be more costly to fix but may result in further pain.

These analogies can be compared to the foundation of your life.  Underlying issues in your life may be forming cracks that are costing you in some way or another in terms of your happiness, fulfilment, relationships and opportunities.

When you think of your personal foundation what comes to mind?  Is it how you feel about yourself, your behaviours, how you manage your thoughts and feelings? To say that one has a strong personal foundation is very unique to each individual, as we desire and place importance on different things in our lives.  There are however elements to explore, implement and remove from your life that will make it easier to pick yourself up when you fall down and have the courage and resilience to pursue what really matters to you in your personal and professional life. 

Your personal foundation will allow you to create the framework needed to support who you want to be, what you want to achieve and how to live your life by your own terms.

Like in the Soap Operas, stay tuned as we explore many of these elements in our future posts.

“We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty.”

Maya Angelou