Life is happening for you and not to you: December 2018

David Graham November 29, 2018

Monthly Newsletter

So, it’s been a difficult month. A crash and burn, soul sucking, maybe I am in the wrong job kind of month…

Okay, so I may have exaggerated for effect, but that’s how it can feel at times. And when it does, it’s easy to fall into the trap of playing the victim.

“Ugh, it’s going to one of those days.”
“Why me? This is so unfair.”
“This always happens to me.”

You get the picture.

I consider myself to be a pretty optimistic person, but I’ve been delivered some pretty tough blows lately and I admit that I’ve fallen into that trap.

And then I remembered one of my favourite Tony Robbins quotes. “Life is happening FOR you and not TO you”.

As human beings, one of the things that we have the capacity for is to shift our perspective and to see a situation from a different point of view.

When the waters get rough, we can go with the flow
When we see a roadblock ahead, we can choose a different path
When there is too much noise, we can settle our mind and find answers in the silence

This is not an easy task, but when we decide to make that shift…everything changes.

It begins with this recognizing when we are playing the victim. When you hear your inner voice say, “this is the worst thing ever,” take note and realize that you are actually being nudged in a different direction; the way that you are meant to go.

Sometimes we need to trust our inner GPS, let go and take a step in a new direction. It’s hard to play the victim if you are on the path to becoming a hero.

If you are feeling stuck or you have reached a fork in the road, fear not my friends. Here’s some thought provokers to start the process:

  • What are the things that I can do right now that will benefit me?
  • What is in my circle of control? What is not?
  • What is that one baby step that I can take to get the ball rolling?

As we enter the last month of year, take time to reflect on all of the wonderful things that have achieved in 2018 and perhaps you can give yourself a well-deserved pat on the back for the obstacles that you overcome.

Of course, we’ll be here in 2019 with a new calendar filled with morsels of insights and inspiration to fuel your success along the way!

Happy Holidays!


David Graham

Dave coaches good leaders who want to be great leaders and he works with leaders to build high performing, super-focused teams. For transformational experiences, he takes teams out of the boardroom and into nature.