The Four Emotions That Can Lead to Life Change by Jim Rohn Emotions are the most powerful forces inside us. Under the power of emotions, human beings can perform the most heroic (as well as barbaric) acts. To a great degree, civilization itself can be defined as the intelligent channeling of human emotion. Emotions are fuel and the mind is the pilot, which together propel the ship of civilized progress. Which emotions cause people to act? There are four basic ones; each, or a combination of several, can trigger the most incredible activity. The day that you allow these emotions to fuel your desire is the day youll turn your life around. 1) DISGUST One does not usually equate the word disgust with positive action. And yet properly channeled, disgust can change a persons life. The person who feels disgusted has reached a point of no return. He or she is ready to throw down the gauntlet at life and say, Ive had it! Thats what I said after many humiliating experiences at age 25, I said. I dont want to live like this anymore. Ive had it with being broke. Ive had it with being embarrassed, and Ive had it with lying. Yes, productive feelings of disgust come when a person says, Enough is enough. There is nothing so life-changing as gut-wrenching disgust! 2) DECISION Most of us need to be pushed to the wall to make decisions. And once we reach this point, we have to deal with the conflicting emotions that come with making them. We have reached a fork in the road. Now this fork can be a two-prong, three-prong, or even a four-prong fork. No wonder that decision-making can create knots in stomachs, keep us awake in the middle of the night, or make us break out in a cold sweat. Making life-changing decisions can be likened to internal civil war. Conflicting armies of emotions, each with its own arsenal of reasons, battle each other for supremacy of our minds. And our resulting decisions, whether bold or timid, well thought out or impulsive, can either set the course of action or blind it. I dont have much advice to give you about decision-making except this: Whatever you do, dont camp at the fork in the road. Decide. Its far better to make a wrong decision than to not make one at all. Each of us must confront our emotional turmoil and sort out our feelings. 3) DESIRE How does one gain desire? I dont think I can answer this directly because there are many ways. But I do know two things about desire: a. It comes from the inside not the outside. b. It can be triggered by outside forces. Therefore, while searching for your hot button of pure, raw desire, welcome into your life each positive experience. Dont erect a wall to protect you from experiencing life. The same wall that keeps out your disappointment also keeps out the sunlight of enriching experiences. So let life touch you. The next touch could be the one that turns your life around. 4) RESOLVE Resolve says, I will. These two words are among the most potent in the English language. I WILL. Benjamin Disraeli, the great British statesman, once said, Nothing can resist a human will that will stake even its existence on the extent of its purpose. In other words, when someone resolves to do or die, nothing can stop him. When confronted with such iron-will determination, I can see Time, Fate and Circumstance calling a hasty conference and deciding, We might as well let him have his dream. Hes said hes going to get there or die trying. The best definition for resolve Ive ever heard came from a schoolgirl in Foster City, California. As is my custom, I was lecturing about success to a group of bright kids at a junior high school. I asked, Who can tell me what resolve means? Several hands went up, and I did get some pretty good definitions. But the last was the best. A shy girl from the back of the room got up and said with quiet intensity, I think resolve means promising yourself you will never give up. Thats it! Thats the best definition Ive ever heard: PROMISE YOURSELF YOULL NEVER GIVE UP.
Posted on: Sat, 20 Sep 2014 15:10:27 +0000