Lets talk today about things we find easy compared to what we think is hard. I also think it would be interesting and informative to take this one or two steps further, and discover how we feel about easy vs hard.

Is it true that there are many things we could do, that would be good for us to do, but we don’t do them because we think they are too hard? Let’s find out. Alternatively, could it also be true that there are way too many things that are not so great for us, and we find our selves doing them because it’s just so darn easy?

I know that I go for easy over hard any day. And yet, even as I say that, I also know that I find impossible tasks much more interesting than easy ones, and impossible tasks are often “easier” for me to jump into than “hard” ones. I love a good challenge!

Often, especially in our relationships with friends and family, we find ourselves taking the easy way out because we want to avoid conflict. Maybe we don’t want to “rock the boat”, maybe we don’t want to take on the responsibility for the decision making. Personally, I like to avoid conflict, but I also like to be the one who makes the decisions. At the same time, I do not find it easy to let someone make decisions for me. What about you? Are you a peacemaker? A boat rocker? A decision maker? A loyal follower?

Let’s grab our notebooks and see what we can learn about ourselves by filling in the blanks of the sentence below. Keep writing variations of the sentence until you begin to see a pattern developing, or until you run out of scenarios. Ready? Here goes:

• It’s easy for me to … because …. but it’s hard for me to … because …

For example:

It’s easy for me to blog and write posts for my websites because it’s interesting to me and I enjoy the creative aspects of it… but it’s hard for me to do the mega WordPress update because that seems fraught with danger and I have no idea what will happen and I’m afraid that it might be a huge ordeal.

It’s easy for me to sit and watch Ray Donovan because I love Ray, the show is interesting and I get lost in the story… but it’s hard for me to get on the treadmill and walk while watching because my feet might hurt, and I’m already tired, and I’m just too lazy.

Already I see a theme developing. If something is interesting, I’m much more likely to do it. If something seems uncomfortable, well, chances are I won’t be too keen on it.

Another thing I discovered while looking for images to illustrate this post is that it is generally believed that “taking the easy way” is somehow wrong, easy is “bad” and hard is “good.” Success never comes easy, it only comes hard. I’m not sure that I agree with this, what do you think?

Today we are going to revisit yesterday’s list of “I am…” statements. I hope you wrote them down, and if you didn’t take some time right now to revisit yesterday’s post and make a list of at least 5 statements.

As you look over the I am statements from yesterday, take a little bit of time to read each one and think about how does it make you feel to say that?

• Good? Bad? Happy? Sad? Embarrassed? Ashamed?
• Maybe it just feels true… and neither good nor bad.

Today, I want us to take a look at the statement that we like the least. The one that makes us feel the worst when we think it. It might even be something that you wouldn’t even be comfortable saying out loud. Take that statement and write it in big bold letters on a new page of your notebook.

• Are you avoiding it?
• Hiding from it?
• Fighting with it?
• Overwhelmed by it?
• At a loss as to what to do about it?
• All of the above?
• None of the above?
• Something else is going on with it?

While you are contemplating this statement about yourself, make a circle around it. Any kind of a circle, a big fat circle, a raggedy jaggedy circle, a complicated spiral, a simple bubble… doesn’t matter. Just make a circle around your statement.

Once your circle is complete, on the OUTSIDE of that circle, write, draw, or doodle whatever it is that you’d like to do to it. Maybe you want to decorate it… maybe you want to poke holes in it… maybe you want to yell at it… drop bombs on it…  You’ll know when you’re done.

Now, underneath what you’ve just done, write (and finish) the following sentences.

• I am … AND …
• I am … BUT …
• I am … BECAUSE …
• I am … and that’s OK because …
• I am … and that’s NOT OK because …
• I am NOT … when …

The intention here is to begin to think about our deeper motivations, to begin to pay attention to ourselves, to take a look behind the scenes and really get clear about our perceived faults and flaws. Sometimes a fault or flaw is also a survival mechanism. Sometimes our “shit” gets us what we want, it might be attention, or comfort, or a way to control our environment or the people around us. Sometimes we use cruel words to force ourselves into action.

If this exercise gives you an insight into yourself, your behavior, your patterns… or anything else in your life. I’d love to hear about it.

Hello and welcome to the Laying the Groundwork Project.
I thought we’d start by introducing ourselves..
to ourselves.

As we discovered in the Violet Flame Project: “Every spoken sentence beginning with ‘I Am’ is a powerful spell exhaled into action.”

For our first exercise, you’ll need to have a pen and paper ready. I’m going to have you finish a sentence with the very first word that pops into your mind. Don’t worry, you won’t have to share that word with anyone except for yourself.

So… are you ready? Finish the following sentence with the first word that pops into your mind:

I am …..

Now, how many other things can you think of to finish that sentence with? Make a list. Write them down. Write as many as you can think of. It’s important to actually write them down because we’ll be revisiting our lists tomorrow. As the day goes by, pay attention if you find yourself saying or thinking “I am…”