Never Give Up Your Pen

If you think of your own life as a play, movie, TV show or book, it makes you realize how in control you are. It puts the pen in your hand and, therefore, puts the power in your hand.

You are not only the author of your life, you are the protagonist of your own story. We all are the protagonists of our own stories…that it…assuming we are writing ourselves that way.

Every person in your life is another character. Some are co-stars, while others are extras; some are reoccurring characters, while others only make a single appearance and then move on to another show.

Many of these characters have lines, and although we can’t always write other characters’ lines in our show, we are completely in charge of writing our own.

Here is your challenge:

A challenge lies in the fact that, so often, we want to rewrite everyone else’s lines. We say things like, “Why did he say that to me?” or “Why did she do that?”

Here is your power:

The only lines in your life you are in charge of writing are your own. They are the ones you are responsible for. What you say and what you don’t say, whether you react to what other characters say or do, whether you choose to respond or ignore, all of that is in your control. Let the other characters ad lib, they are not your characters to script.

Here is your kryptonite:

When we write too much negative self-talk dialogue or lack of confidence into our own character, we ironically write ourselves as an antagonist in our own story. We are both the hero and the villain.

The problem?

You can only pick one. You have to decide which you are going to be…and then you have to be it.

Think about this…

When you watch a TV show or movie, read a book or watch a play, what gets you interested in the characters? You look at their actions, and you sometimes are able to get into their heads and discover what they’re thinking. You watch some personalities stay the same, while you watch others change. You question why people make the decisions they do, and why they don’t make decisions that seem obvious to make.

When you pick the pen back up in your life, and you get clear on what you want the next chapters of your own story to look like, only then can you take control. The more you do this, the less you are disrupted by others in your story. When you get more clarity on your protagonist (you), what they do (what you do), what they think (what you think) and what they push to the side or ignore (what you push to the side or ignore), all you are left with is how to move them (YOU) forward.

Here is your solution:

If now is getting in your way, turn the page and start a new chapter. Stop rewriting or rereading the old ones. Turn the page and start writing something new. When challenges come, stop trying to rewrite everyone else’s lines and change their characters’ traits; instead focus on your protagonist (you) and what you need to do to get exactly where you want to go. Then, make that happen.

After all, you always hold the pen to your own story.

Want to know how to have more confidence and less stress in your life so you can become the person you want to become? Reach out and let’s chat.

Photo by Hannah Olinger on Unsplash