Who’s in Charge of Your Life?
“No one has power over you unless you give it to them, you are in control of your life and your choices decide your own fate.” ~ Anonymous
There is a chain of command that determines your success.
Indeed, several conspirators clamor for control, all very cunning in their efforts to convince you they are in charge. They are careful to hide the truth from you, knowing it would be their undoing. This secret is that they are entirely under your authority, should you choose to exercise it. Let me introduce you.
BRAT
Perhaps the loudest of the players is BRAT. Brat wants what she (or he) wants, when she wants it, and throws a royal tantrum when you don’t give it to her. She loves to be catered to, and her priority is comfort. The extra dessert, the snooze button, the shopping spree, and the lounge chair are but a few of her favorite things. We usually give in to her just to shut her up, but what we don’t realize is, like a toddler, her tantrums will lose steam if ignored. Eventually, she realizes she’s not going to get her way and showing Brat who’s boss today will make tomorrow’s demands less powerful.
BROKEN GIRL/BOY
Next in line is BROKEN GIRL (or BOY). We learned about her in the chapter on core beliefs. This poor thing believes all the lies given to us by significant people and events, and she lives according to a false set of rules. She resides so deeply in our psyche, we don’t even know she’s there, but her stealthy presence is overpowering as she persuades us to follow her lead. You might hear her saying things like, “I’m ugly, unlovable, incapable, or not enough,” and she stoops to self-sabotage and running away to protect her belief. She may be so powerful because her words feel true. Don’t worry, Broken Girl can be convinced of the real truth with a little elbow grease!
BODY
Then, of course, there is BODY who often steers us to healthy choices, but then again, may trick us into getting her way if she’s been undisciplined in the past. Body is so used to the SOP of things that it feels nearly impossible to change her ways. She craves eating, drinking, sleeping, and things that feel normal or comforting to her and can easily get greedy, pushing for overindulgence. Neural pathways, hormones, and other chemicals can manipulate her into being as demanding as a spoilt youngster.
ADDICTION
ADDICTION is mouthy and extremely convincing in her goal to get what she wants, always looking for that spark to the pleasure center in the brain. Substances like drugs, alcohol, and nicotine are common for this cohort, but so is sugar, salt, and other food. Addiction can latch on to just about anything, though, even behaviors like gambling, gaming, sex, and shopping. So, most people have Addiction living in them, whether they admit it or not, but even this bully can be overcome.
YOU
And then there’s YOU. These personas living within are not You. You are a perfect creation with God-given potential and desires. You want the best for your life and long to be all you were meant to be. Our imperfect nature holds us back, but the real us wants to flourish because that’s what we were made for. Many, if not most people, never realize they have power over these flawed characters, but we do! We get to decide what to think, do, and believe. We get to ignore Brat, heal Broken Girl, train Body, and free Addiction! We can quiet the cacophony of these accomplices and heed to the wise voice that leads to abundance. We only have to decide who is in charge.
For people of faith, there is another in this chain of command: God. He leads us, but He delegates the management of our body and mind to us. When we choose to manage well, the order is perfect, and we will find success … guaranteed!
To your success!!