By Pat Jones

Trust is a seemingly simple word, the meaning of which, I think, is really not simple at all. We have no difficulty saying to others ‘I trust you’, and we often mean what we say, but I believe our greatest difficulty lies in the courage to trust ourselves.

When we have the courage to trust ourselves, we give ourselves permission to listen to our own voice of reason, and then to make those choices that we consider best for us, for our growth, for maximizing our potential as human beings, for saying ‘yes’ to all of life’s new experiences, and for determining how we wish to interact with others.

We have been programmed from childhood to accept the choices that our parents, in their wisdom, and based on the prevailing circumstances at the time, have made for us. We go to school and follow the directions of our teachers. We join the workforce and follow the instructions handed down by our managers or supervisors.

We form intimate relationships and sometimes lose our personal identity in a desire to be all that we can be to our partners, and as we do so, we honestly believe that we are ‘trusting the process', and becoming the good citizens of the world we desire to be.

Why then, is this act of trusting often accompanied with feelings of anger, and sometimes deep resentment? It is because we feel that we are being given no say in determining the direction in which we want our lives to flow. Yet, we continue to comply with all the choices made for us, simply because we do not want to rock the status quo, for fear of rejection, of losing our jobs, of failing in the relationship, and of inviting unwanted repercussions to crash down on our heads.

We comply, because we were given the unwritten assurance that if we did, we would surely receive all the joys that life has to offer. And so, we live our lives in the realm of passivity, and allow this to be the obstacle that holds us back from many a great accomplishment.

It is time to become fully aware, to understand that we are the directors of our lives, we are the lead characters, and we truly are the ones in control. It is important that we come to terms with the fact that the way we treat ourselves will be the way others treat us.

So we must stop clinging to what is known and comfortable out of fear. We must release the desperate need to be authenticated by outside influences, whether by words, or actions. Think on this - we have already been authenticated by God, our Creator, in a blueprint uniquely our own, with talents and blessings not given to anyone else.

We can learn to love ourselves, to acknowledge, and accept all our many strengths and weaknesses, and then we can use this love to access the courage within us. Courage is a harbinger of trust, which, when we are prepared to boldly grasp, will allow the light of our own truths to guide us as we navigate our way through each fresh opportunity with which we are presented. With the wonderful tools of courage and trust we hold within, we can certainly be victorious amidst the complexities of life.

When we have the courage to trust ourselves, we no longer adhere to the perceptions of others with whom we do not feel in agreement. We understand that we each walk our own path and learn our own soul’s lessons. We open ourselves up to a whole new set of dynamics.

We are now able to experience the joys of self-confidence, and the ability to nourish our minds in ways that speak true to our own values. We realize with a sense of liberation that we are capable of living a life without struggle, with the ability to face our fears and work through them, and we understand that we can live a life dedicated to honouring our best self.

I now urge you all, to go forward and find the courage to trust in yourself, and begin the journey to the wonderful life you were meant to have.

About the Author

Pat Jones, Life Style Mentor and Successful Entrepreneur, is helping many become the next success story.

Source: ArticleTrader.com