4 Ways I Channeled My Inner Scrooge (and it has NOTHING to do with money)
It’s that magical time of year...
It’s that magical time of year for most of us, but for many of us, it’s that time of year to reflect on where we’ve been, where we are, and where we’re going.
And if you’ve hung out with us for any length of time, you already know that I don’t really even need an invitation to be reflective; however, an opportunity presented itself for an awesome guest post and guess what the topic is? You got it—Tell about a time when change found you. This topic begs for recounting what has brought us to where we are today.
It is my goal today to share the 4 ways I channeled my inner Scrooge.
Read the post: https://ye-chen.com/why-do-we-do-all-the-things/
1. This journey requires emotional scutwork
First of all, to receive a wake-up call of sorts that asked me to evaluate how we’re living our life is already fundamentally Scroogian—is that a word?—but that was that is what I had to do, right? Actually, doing more than blindly doing what you’ve always done will most likely require asking yourself some difficult and often painful questions. To be honest, you really cannot move on and thrive if you don’t figure out what wrong turn you may have taken on your way to where you are. I don’t know about you, but I don’t like admitting that something’s amiss and that I had some hand in putting myself in this depressing situation. (If you read the post, you will realize that we once had a bigger vision for our creative life than what we were living and that we needed to figure out how to get back on the road to creating that reality.)
No matter how you slice it, Ebenezer Scrooge and I were likeminded in trying to ignore some of the signs that implicated personal blame.
2. You have to be ready for change
The next way that I channeled my inner Scrooge was to finally recognize—after that painful awareness of having gone awry—that I was ready for change and was willing to take drastic steps to steer the ship back toward the right place. Yes, I was wrong to deny that anything was wrong with the life that I had passively created through allowing life to push and pull me. I had not taken any kind of real stand and/or did not speak up when something in my gut told me that this way not the way to nourish our creative dream. But now that I figured that out, I was not planning to continue that 30 year-long vicious cycle.
So, like Mr. Scrooge, I was ready to make that change.
Here's how we get so much done; weekly planning method.
3. A death is the catalyst
I realized that there was a third way that I was channeling the Scrooge story was that it took a death to bring us to even getting to the aforementioned reflecting and to that determination to change. In Scrooge’s case, it was his business partner, Jacob Marley; in my case, it was Bruce’s parents and then my mom, who passed suddenly 2 years ago. Nothing seemed quite right for Scrooge, who in the story became more bitter as the years went on. Similarly, I still feel like I am in a fever dream and simply CAN NOT go back to the way things were. It was as if that was the line in the sand for me and I cannot rest unless I am spending every waking hour working on our vision! I just can’t. It’s not that I hadn’t been restless off and on over the years, but not only am I determined not to “let it rest,” I also now truly BELIEVE that it’s possible to create the life that we want to live. In fact, I don’t think there’s ever been a better time—but that’s a topic for yet another post.
If anyone you know is struggling with the holidays, please share this message of hope with them.
Suffice it to say that the Scrooge and I had a death to bring this realization to life. (—Punny?)
4. It has a hopeful ending
Finally, here’s the best way that the story of Scrooge parallels our own is that there’s a happy ending for both. At the end of the Christmas Carol, Scrooge wakes up on Christmas morning, trying to see if there’s still time to do something to change his future (and those tied to him) and make it something better. I am sure you already know that he is ecstatic to know that by opening up to new ways of vulnerability and taking different actions, he can find the joy that had drained from him long ago; only this time, he could actually appreciate this moment as a gift. He embraced life and every opportunity to show himself and others that a change had truly happened in what seemed like the blink of an eye. Wow, that’s so me right now! I hop out of bed, no matter what, ready for the joyful possibilities for our music, our message, and the community that we are creating of others who are ready to take active responsibility for making the things that excite them the focus of their lives and livelihood.
And just like Scrooge, every day that I am allowed to live and breathe and hug and connect and create, I feel like shouting from a window for all to hear, “It’s not too late! It’s not too late!”
Our Christmas Wish for You
We hope you find the joy, the peace, the vision, the love, the goals, the strategies and the determination that sets your heart and soul on fire for this Christmas season and beyond!
If you enjoyed this post,
please share it with someone you think needs
to hear this message of hope.
P.S. Thank you, Ye Chen, for allowing us to share our story and our mission. Read the post: https://ye-chen.com/why-do-we-do-all-the-things/
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Until next time, here's wishing a hearty helping of love, peace, and chicken grease!
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