From the "Passion Unlocks Prosperity" series:
The Principle Of Forgiveness
Forgiveness is a universal principle as well as a technique.
When practiced on a daily basis it will not only change your life but will literally open the doorway to your passion! How this principle works and why it unleashes passion is the subject of this article.
In our new online life coaching program: "The Intentional Prosperity™ System", my wife Gwen and I wrote a detailed explanation of this powerful life changing principle as well as how to use it as a daily technique. So I am going to borrow from our Intentional Prosperity™ lessons in order to present what I hope will be a very helpful and informative exploration of this powerful principle.
I'll begin by sharing secret with you: Why forgive?
Because it's always in your own best interest to do so:
1. It releases the control other people and events have over you.
2. It allows you to resolve and bring closure to lingering memories.
3. It stops the frustration and paralyzing effect of replaying a memory in which the outcome will never change.
4. It allows you to review a situation much more clearly, without emotional overtones and finally learn whatever lessons the experience has in store for you.
Forgiving is a process that begins with you accepting the reality that you cannot change the past. You can only change how you view the past and how you are going to react to the memory of it. This mindset puts you back into control over how you feel. It does this by dissolving away the "emotional trigger" of a particular memory.
Undertaking this process does not mean you are going to free someone from the responsibility for their actions!
It 's a decision you make to free yourself from continuing to endure the emotional pain that a memory evokes. When your attention is free from reliving a painful event there is simply more energy available to you for other things. Let's face it: It is difficult to experience passion about something when you feel drained! "Letting go" is a step by step process:
The act of forgiving may not, by itself, sweep away the emotional charge. It may require several "acts of forgiving" to finally dissolve away all of the residual energy. So don't feel bad if you find yourself falling back into your old feelings. Catch yourself and re-forgive!
Forgiving Yourself
To not forgive yourself is the most selfish egotistical thing you can do!
Selfish, egotistical?
This is what you are saying when you don't forgive yourself:
1. I am incapable of change so I would probably do the same thing again.
2. I refuse to review and analyze why I did what I did.
3. I will not allow myself to grow and learn from my mistakes.
4. I am no good and not worthy of love therefore I choose to embrace and hold onto my guilt and shame.
5. I refuse to acknowledge and honor those whom I have caused pain to by becoming a better person.
Living your life in shame, regret and guilt is allowing yourself to be very self-absorbed and is a way of turning your back on the responsibility you have to learn and grow from your mistakes. By the time you have reached the point where you are ready to forgive yourself you should have taken yourself through the following steps:
1. Reviewed the situation, understand how your thought processes, attitudes and opinions led to your actions.
2. Accept that the person you were then is not the person you are now therefore you could never repeat your actions.
3. Accept full responsibility for how you acted.
It is always much harder to forgive yourself than it is to forgive someone else
This is why many of us carry around a lot of emotional baggage, especially guilt. Unfortunately, we don't always recognize that we indeed need to forgive ourselves. Until you can face the situation which causes you to feel guilty you are actually protecting your ego from the self examination which is necessary to this process.
Your ego does not want to endure self-examination and will trade feeling guilty as a less painful alternative. It takes courage to forgive yourself and others. You must view the this process as something you do for yourself. How else can you move forward with your life unless you are able to sweep away the emotional chains that drain your energy, hold you back from experiencing your passion, joy and happiness?
Of course passion will replace anger, bitterness, guilt and shame! You'll be spending less energy on those unresolved emotions...
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