Where Does Your Worst Enemy Live?

 Where Does Your Worst Enemy Live?

What a great question. And one worth some thought.

This is important, so stay tuned and read all the way to the end. I found this quote tonight and it is the centerpiece for this blog.

“Make sure your worst enemy doesn’t live between your own two ears.” ~Laird Hamilton

Oh my, the conversations we have with ourselves. They would be great comedy if they weren’t so true.

I’ve had running monologues with myself along these lines: 

~I can’t.

 ~I don’t know how. 

   ~ I might fail.

    ~People will laugh.
     ~It’s already been done before.

      ~I tried once and failed.
       ~I don’t want to look like a fool.

        ~She might say ‘no’.
        ~ I will lose my shirt if I invest in that.

         ~I don’t trust myself.

Well, I could continue, and by now you get the general idea.

We sabotage ourselves by what Zig Ziggler called ‘Stinkin’ Thinkin’.

Bottom line, we don’t believe. We are non-believers in ourselves and our worth.

I’ve told this story before, and again it proves beneficial. I was in my sixties before I realized I could do some things with great success and confidence.

One day, while reading Louise Hayes’ book “You Can Heal Your Life”, I read this four-word phrase.

I approve of myself.

I remember that day very clearly. I stopped reading, put the book down, and had a serious heart-to-heart with myself. For the first time in my life, I realized that I really had never believed in and approved of myself. Oh, I had had a few successes in life. I was a capable drummer, a fair singer, a good minister of music, and good at a few other career tracts I had followed, but in the course of life and in the study of P Michael Biggs, I had one major failure. I have never come to the place of approving of myself, my talents, my likes, my personality, my good side, and my own ideas.

I suppose it took me nearly an hour to cover that idea in relationship to my own life. At the end of that hour, I decided, yes, DECIDED that it was about time that I stepped up to the plate of self-esteem and self-analysis and start the process of approving of myself. I was not a bad person with a ton of secrets. No, no. I had not robbed a bank, cheated anyone, committed murder, or done anything worthy of jail time. I simply had never fully and completely believed in myself, my goodness, and my worth.

I made a laminated business-card size pocket reminder and for the next year, I suppose I pulled that card out and read it a dozen times a day. And the magic began to happen. I began to approve of myself.

I didn’t suddenly become Model Citizen of the Year, nor the best employee my employer ever had. I didn’t win the Noble Peace Price, I didn’t run for President, and I didn’t win the lottery. Carolyn didn’t like me, yeah, love me more. I doubt she even noticed the changes taking place inside of me, but I noticed. I walked with a bit more confidence. Not cockiness, not self- righteous pride, or narcissism. I just simply began approving of myself. I was quieting the voice in my head that had been plaguing me all my life. The voice of can’t, won’t, not worthy, I’m inferior.

The little kid that used to wear torn jeans and black tennis shoes was going away. You see, white tennis shoes were the fashion statement of my day, and torn jeans wouldn’t come along for another sixty years. I was beginning to believe in ME.

Just writing these words and going into this much detail is having a cathartic effect on me. I’ve never told this much of this part of my journey toward self-approval. It was indeed a marker in my life. And it made a difference.

Because of these circumstances, I realize now that my life’s mission is directly tied to those feelings of failure, and lack of confidence in myself. I want to help others find their own sense of self-worth and self-confidence, and I want to help a few people come to a place of declaring “I APPROVE OF MYSELF.”

If you have followed my blogging for the past thirteen years, you’ve read several blogs dealing with failure and how to overcome the label of “FAILURE”. The bottom line is this ... I may have failed at something, but I am not a failure.

My prayer is that this blog today will speak to someone’s heart and mind. I hope and pray you find your own ways to defeat your own worst enemy, the one living between your two ears. It takes hard work. It is not easy, and it IS necessary.

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