60-Second Mind Shift: From Survival Mode to Mastery - Creating a Life You Choose
Supporting you to free your mind so you can live from your heart!
“You happen to your life instead of your life happening to you.”
– Brooke Castillo
From Survival Mode to Mastery: Creating a Life You Choose
You might be wondering: How do you “happen to your life” instead of “your life happening to you?”
First, it’s helpful to understand the difference. When life is happening to you, you are living in a survival state. You’re operating from the part of your brain that reacts rather than responds, that searches for the negative to protect you, and often doesn’t recognize there’s another perspective available.
When you happen to life, you can observe that your brain is in survival mode and consciously shift into your prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain that can witness itself and allows you to dream, envision, plan, execute and respond intentionally.
Many of my clients struggle in the areas of building confidence and accountability when they come to me. I support them by helping them develop the ability to shift into their prefrontal cortex so they can finally follow through on what they say they want to do.
But why is this so important? Why do we feel such a deep longing to do what we say we will do? It’s because as human beings we are here on earth to learn how to master our own domain. Yet, it’s almost impossible to feel like the master of our domain when we're constantly giving in to distractions and allowing circumstances - people, places and things - to dictate our actions and happiness.
I know this personally from having lived for many decades stuck in survival mode and feeling like I was at the mercy of life rather than being the master of my own domain. It's a painful way to live. And it wasn't until I worked with a coach that I developed the skills to live intentionally, to focus my energy away from distractions, and be able to act rather than react to situations.
Our survival brain that is still operating the way it did one hundred thousand years ago avoids pain, seeks pleasure, and prefers efficiency to conserve energy. And you know what’s super efficient for the brain? Scrolling social media for hours, binge-watching Netflix or the news, basically anything that takes you away from your own reality, from your own domain. There’s no real risk here, so the brain settles into what I’d call a dormant or passive state. But there’s also minimal reward.
Today, more than ever, it’s challenging to break free from survival mode. Thousands of distractions are right at our fingertips, and this is by design. A distracted society is much more easily controlled and manipulated by the 1% who are creating the distraction vehicles for profit.
The real reward comes when we’re willing to get clear on what we most desire and begin taking small, intentional steps toward it. Keeping our word to ourselves is what builds both confidence and accountability, and gives us a meaningful and fulfilling life.
True failure isn’t when things don’t work out as planned; it’s when we don’t even try, because we don’t want to risk feeling disappointed. A failure is just an opportunity to learn and grow. If we are risking, we're succeeding.
I Affirm: Today I am willing to “happen to life” by risking disappointment and taking a small sweet step towards something I really care about. I am willing to feel messy and “fail”.
Step By Step,
Jessie
P.S. This was definitely more than 60 seconds. Sometimes the spirit moves me and I just have more to say! Thanks for being here. xx.
