Beating Myself Up Is a Way of Avoiding

People Sometimes Beat Themselves Up With Their Turnaround Examples

For example, if you’re questioning the thought, “He let me down,” and you come to the turnaround, “I let me down,” it’s easy to start beating yourself up.

But notice the mind’s trick in this.

By beating myself up, I become the aggressor of myself. I (the aggressor) can then be “above” the mistakes I made. It’s very subtle, but it’s a way of avoiding taking responsibility.

And it’s an especially great trick because it LOOKS like I am taking responsibility (by beating myself up).

But In Reality, I’m Not

I’m just being aggressive. I’m actually rejecting the part of me that made the “mistake.”

True responsibility would be to fully receive the turnaround, “I let me down,” and to own it, and let each example wash through me completely.

That’s when I fully get it. That’s when I see clearly that I let myself down, and that’s when I’m willing to change.

I Sometimes Say to People, “Let It Kill You”

Because that which is getting killed is not you, but rather who you thought you were. The one who knows it all. The one that never makes mistakes. That one (which never existed in the first place) is the one that your turnarounds may kill.

That kind of death is freedom. Freedom from pretending. But it only happens when you’re willing to take the turnarounds to heart.

So notice the next time you start beating yourself up with your turnarounds, and stop. Are you really taking in the turnarounds and transforming yourself, or are you trying to cling a life of control by beating yourself up?

Death of the ego is the sweetest thing if you’re open to it. It shows you your humanity. And it brings a sweet connection with the person you were judging.

Have a great week,
Todd

“The turnarounds are your prescription for health, peace, and happiness. Can you give yourself the medicine that you have been prescribing for others?” — Byron Katie, Loving What Is.

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