Have you almost given up on them? Those deep life desires that have failed to unfold for you: Are you contemplating a funeral for them? Or done so already?
These dreams have been stuck so long they become defined by their stuckness and unavailability. There’s no way to imagine getting started. Indeed, trying to imagine getting started usually only generates a sense of despair that keeps things from moving before there’s ever any chance.
These kinds of dreams tend to fall into a few important categories:
- love and relationships
- financial security
- work & other meaningful activities
- emotional struggles
What if there was a way to begin moving? It couldn’t be by the usual methods: writing a list, weighing the pros and cons, starting a class, etc. There’d have to be an untapped and unimagined wellspring of energy, possibility and resourcefulness to begin experiencing such dreams.
Remarkably, your own unconscious is that wellspring. Despite feeling like we are struggling with our own selves, the catalyst of moving forward lies within our unconscious self, which is always, always, always ready to serve us as best it can. You’ve probably noticed this yourself in the past: a time when something felt incredibly stuck, and then you had a dream, or the weather changed, or you took a hike somewhere unfamiliar, and suddenly you had the energy and inspiration to move forward.
Wouldn’t it be nice if we could put that kind of resourcefulness on “manual”? If we could reliably reach inside to find the manifesting energy for the thing we want but can’t seem to even hope for anymore?
Neuro-Linguistic Programming has a toolkit of practices that do just that. Here’s one simple exercise for you to try now.
Think of something you would like that you do not currently have or experience.
1. Up and to the right, make a picture of a future you in about six months who has that experience. (Making a picture up and to the right, with eyes open or closed, helps tell your brain that this will be happening in your future.)
2. Step into (associate into) that future you. You can close your eyes and relax them if you like. From the vantage point of your future you, ask yourself: Six months ago what were the signs that I was beginning to have this new experience of life? Was it a different emotion? A new pattern in my daily routine? An idea I got to do something? What was the evidence that I was on the path toward the experience I am now having so reliably six months later?
3. After answering that, then ask yourself: And, what showed up during the second month? What happened then that was part of getting me to where I am now five months later? Note that.
4. Continue for each of the six months, asking what happened during that month on the way to the experience you’re having now, six months later. Note each sign along the way.
5. When you are done, notice it all, from the you six months ago, to the you who six months later now has the experience you want.
While noticing all of this, take some deep breaths, and then squeeze a finger. Hold it firmly.
6. Keep holding it firmly as you disassociate from the future you back to the present you. Keep breathing deeply. Hold your finger for at least thirty seconds as you bring everything you just learned and noticed to the present moment.
7. Let go of your finger, and look back at the picture of the future you. Notice how deeply connected the two of you are. Notice how much inner wisdom your consciousness always has in a safe place for you.
On May 2nd, we’ll be doing many more exercises to gain access to your inner wisdom and energy for moving forward with the dreams you would like. For more information, click on How to Turn Stuck Dreams Into Movement Forward.
Nicasio Fence by Leslie Nipps
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