Whatever you decide for yourself to be today, you may embrace that new version effortlessly. Photo: Pexels
From one of my recent conversations I’ve had and from one of the last books I’ve read, I came to the following conclusion. The only thing that exists, is the present moment. The past is a moment that exists only in our memory, while the future exists only in our imagination.
Everything we’ve known about ourselves – the identity we identify ourselves with – lies in the past, as the most recent situations we remember of ourselves, have already passed. Hence, we invent ourselves new in every passing moment! So far, so clear, no?
How we constantly, unknowingly recreate ourselves
Now, our brains prefer what is familiar, what it knows it can handle, to what is good, to what could make us happy. Happiness, oftentimes, lies in the unknown, making our minds subconsciously scared of it, which is why often, without even being aware of it, we don’t choose happiness for ourselves, even if we could.
This means, that because our minds prefer the familiar, we choose to reinvent ourselves as the almost exact copy of who we were yesterday. Because that was ‘good enough’.
The Power and Privilege of Choice
However, what we don’t realize is that we could wake up everyday, choosing to be a different version of ourselves. A version we never have been before. Nothing holds us back from reading a book we never would have read. From wearing clothes we wouldn’t normally consider. Taking different routes to work everyday. Calling someone we haven’t spoken to in a while. Being a little bit brave and taking a chance with doing something we have never done before.
We could do all of this. Yet, usually we simply don’t. We don’t, because we can’t predict the outcomes, because we can’t control other people’s reactions, because we simply don’t know what this new experience would bring.
The Beauty of the Unknown
Yet, we don’t understand that in the unknown lies the magic. If we ever only do what we’ve known, we will only ever experience what is familiar. This is called the comfort zone. And while ‘comfort zone’ sounds like such a snuggly place that people usually don’t go above and beyond to escape once in a while, we don’t realize that that is exactly where we stay small.
In our comfort zones, we will never find things that excite us (because all familiarity at some point loses its spark to us), the things that give us new meaning, the things that make us better, the things that transform us into new people and that make our lives outstanding, rather than ‘comfortable.
How Familiarity kills us, slowly but surely
Without being aware of it, we have created a firm identity for ourselves, that we follow more loyally than anything else. Everyday, we wake up and we choose to leave the house as the exact same version of who we were yesterday, limiting ourselves to the experiences of yesterday.
Easily, we could create a better, far improved version of ourselves. We could make ourselves braver, less timid, less shy, less anxious, less fearful, bolder, more daring, more confident. Everything that’s holding you back can be transformed into something that will bring you ahead.
And how a little bit of guts goes a long way
You just need to give that improved version of you a voice and some trust. Let her leave the house in your body today! Let her make the decision, and have the conversations and let her apply for new opportunities. The more brave we are, the more new experiences we seek – experiences outside of the familiar – the more diverse and fulfilling will our lives be.
And if we ever stop once in a while, and let each moment sink in a little, we realize that we can actually handle almost everything, even the most uncomfortable, risky and unfamiliar moments.
Wear your Identity like your Cape of Courage
You can control who you are and you can also choose which identity you want to take on during this day. An identity that doesn’t have to be the same as yesterday, or the day before that. You don’t have to be a fearful person, dreading the unknown. Instead, you can be that version you don’t really dare of imagining yourself to be.
You just have to decide this for yourself. That’s the energy you now radiate and this energy you will attract. That’s when the energies align again and you attract new, better experiences for yourself.
You will, by the law of attraction, have the life the identity you gave yourself has in your imagination. That’s when the best manifestations happen!
Let me know how that identity looks for you, and what made your days better because of it!
Love, Valentina <3
Written by Valentina – spiritual writer & founder of Valentina’s Diary
