You Paint Yourself Into A Corner With Reasons

Seems we never run out of paint to insure we paint ourselves into a corner.

Grasshopper Notes are the writings from America's Best Known Hypnotherapist John Morgan. His podcasts contain his most responded to essays and blog posts from the past two decades. 

Find the written versions of these podcasts on John's podcasting site: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1628038

"The Grasshopper" is the part of you that whispers pearls of wisdom that  seem to pop into your mind from out of the blue. John's essays and blog posts are his interpretations of these "Nips of Nectar." Others have labeled his writings as timeless wisdom. 

Most of the John's writings revolve around self improvement and self help. They address topics like:

• Mindfulness
• Peace of mind
• Creativity
• How to stay in the present moment
• Spirituality
• Behavior improvement

And stories that transform you to a wider sense of awareness that presents more options. And isn't that what we all want, more options? 

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Transcript

You Paint Yourself Into A Corner With Reasons

You ever notice how we can talk ourselves into staying exactly where we are?

Here’s something I know for sure: the more we focus on the reasons for our behavior, the more that behavior tends to stick around.

And I mean really stick.

Many of us struggle to change—not because we can’t—but because we won’t let go of our reasons. Those reasons justify what we’re doing. They make us feel right.

But when you're busy being right… you're not really looking for a way out, are you? It sounds like this:
 "You’d feel this way too if this happened to you."

And honestly? That logic checks out. Most of us would feel the same way. But here’s where it turns into a traffic jam: when we use those reasons to stay stuck.

I think about a boyhood friend of mine. Talented guy. Great ear for music, killer performer. But when I ran into him in his thirties, he was still chasing gigs, still struggling, and drinking himself into the ground.

I asked what he thought was holding him back. He said it was because—get this—his dad never bought him the organ he wanted . . . twenty years ago. That’s why he wasn’t successful. That organ would’ve landed him better gigs, better bands. That was his story.

Now, maybe it’s even true. But clinging to that reason? It was a brick wall. No path forward, just a stuck story on repeat.

Same goes for this one:
 "I have this addiction because my father was an alcoholic."

Okay. That may also be true. But staying married to that reason won’t move the needle.

Sometimes, we toss out reasons to distract from the real issue. Classic magician trick: "Look at this hand, so you don’t see what the other one is doing."

But here’s the real trick:
 You can’t change your behavior if you’re still gripping your reasons with both hands. It’s like trying to run a race while hugging a sofa.

Want an unfiltered fact? Here you go . . . Dogs are the only creatures that get to have their cake and eat it too. That’s because if they throw it up, they eat it again.

If we spent half as much energy looking for a solution as we do rehearsing our reasons, we might actually get somewhere. Because no amount of reasoning will blow away the smog we’ve let settle in.

Painting yourself into a corner? That’s not “reason-able.”

All the best,
 John