I Still Remember When . . .
Last night I had a conversation with a dear friend. He brought up a relationship that has caused him some pain. I heard him retell a story I’ve heard him tell more than once before . . . only to explain again why what another person did was wrong and manipulative.
While he talked, he had totally lost connection with his smile.
I wondered aloud why he was telling me the story again. He told me it was because what had happened was so wrong. The rest of the conversation went something like this.
“I’m over it now.”
“No, you’re not. If that were true, you wouldn’t be talking about it.”
“I guess you’re right.”
“If you could shift your focus . . .”
“What do you mean?”
“Maybe it’s not about what that person did to you, but how broken that person is to have done that at all.”
“You think I should go see her.”
“No, I think you should quit giving that person power. What if you make it about her and not about you? That event shows the screwy way that she looks at the world. It just happened to be you that got hurt that time. If you let it go, she no longer has any power over you.” . . .
It took me a long, long lifetime to learn what I said in that few sentences there.
It’s the same in business and in life. When we leave bad feelings in the past, we get new power over our future. It’s a good thought to hold during holiday times.
May your future be shiny and bright.
–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz!!
