Look at the Graph

Here is a random graph.

Look at the graph.

If we were to hop into a car, and ride this graph in the dark from left to right – never knowing what was going to come next, of course – there would be 12 separate down phases.

When zooming out and looking at the big picture, it’s extremely easy to see that we eventually came back up from each of the down phases. But at the moments when we’re in the down phases, often times, we forget the big picture.

When we’re at our lowest (and highest) moments, that’s when we are in our least rational state of mind. When a freak spike happens upward, we can feel invincible. When a freak spike happens downward, we can feel like it will never end. It’s not even necessarily the falling down itself that’s the hardest part, it’s the fear that we’ll never get back up again that truly tries to break us down at the core.

The fascinating thing about our psychological tendencies is that even though these spikes are varied (and happen to everyone), the way we react to these spikes can actually begin to have a fair amount of control over their trajectory into the future.

Look at the graph.

WHEN WE ARE IN A PEAKING PHASE: We can become arrogant, self-congratulatory, and greedy. Or, we can become generous, nurturing, and grateful.

We’ve already established that the peak phase doesn’t last forever. However, when we’re in a peak phase, we can use our resources to support others and help them lift themselves up. Help them move towards their peaks. This will keep us grounded, and will keep the peak from becoming a stale plateau. Playing an active role in the experience of helping someone else up can be just as gratifying as doing it yourself.

WHEN WE ARE IN A LOW PHASE: Remember that it’s just a phase. Pull out the graph, and look at it again. A phase is just a phase; bad luck happens to all of us sometimes.

It can only become a curse if we choose to believe in it too much.

Look at the graph.

When we forget to look at the graph, and all we see is the free fall in front of us, we can begin to lose hope. When we lose hope, we lose belief in our abilities to change our circumstances. When we lose this belief, we begin to lose our willingness to visualize any scenarios or possibilities that involve things changing for the better. We take the ideas and action plans that could turn it all around, and we kill them before we even try. We end up removing ourselves from reality, and get caught living in a negative simulation controlled by a skewed worldview based upon temporary external circumstances. A self-created prison.

Look at the graph.

The day to day graph will always fluctuate. At times, it will seem to sway with the wind.

And that’s why we always have to look at the graph.

Because the graph will remind us of where we’re ultimately headed, and what we’re ultimately capable of.

No matter if you’re in the midst of the best or worst run of your life (or more likely, somewhere in between) – in the long run, you’ve got just as much potential to do miraculous things as anyone else that’s ever lived.

If you were to decide right now that within 10 years, you will achieve something mind-blowing, and really stick to it – is there anything that could stop you?

If you do this, do your temporary circumstances matter? Are they able to hold you back anymore? If you take on this mindset, obstacles become impermanent. In 10 dedicated years, you could become one of the best in the world at something. You could grow into a completely different person. Any temporary circumstances that seem like they’re holding you back are just that: temporary.

I know you’re probably going to read this and forget it a few minutes from now. Something else will pop up on the internet to distract you; and before you know it, your unconscious mind will guide you back on to whichever track your neural pathways have habitually taken you down thousands upon thousands of times before. I know because I’m probably going to forget too.

And that’s why I keep asking you to look at the graph; over, and over, and over again. So that you can remember. So that you can begin to create a new pathway that leads you to make the most out of this experience – in whichever way is most meaningful for you.

So one more time, look at the graph. And if you ever notice that I’ve forgotten, reach out and remind me:

Look at the graph.