What is your emotional yardstick?

We love to compare ourselves to others. Whether it be appearances, certain behaviour, or attitudes, it is all part of the common human condition. We judge, we criticize, and we analyze. Our ego’s keep us busy creating fascinating internal dialogues about what the other person said or did based on what we observe, think or conjecture. Then we begin to form an opinion based on said internal dialogue. That just creates all sorts of fun for our ego’s. It is a mine field rich with grist, especially if we decide that we don’t or can’t ever measure up to what we see or decide.

Opinions develop into stories that form beliefs. Beliefs that we think are the truth but are really a lie. We decide what our truth is based on how we measure ourselves based on our own internal moral yardstick.

That internal measurement can lead to a lot of grief. It can hold you back and make you feel small. It can colour your entire life, relationships, career and health. I know, because I see it all the time with clients. I also know because I have done it to myself.

During one of my training courses, on Create a Successful Healing Practice, a student asked me for my definition, as a healing practitioner, of what is success. My response was, “It depends on what yardstick you are using to measure yourself.”

Let me explain what I mean by that.

When I first began my training as a holistic energy practitioner I had a full-time corporate job as a manager. When my colleagues at the office found out that I was training in energy work they all thought I was absolutely insane. No one made any attempts to inquire or try to understand what it was or how it could help. Yet, they did what most of us do when faced with a new idea or thought they formed an opinion based on their own internal beliefs and inner dialogue. Then out of fear and perceived concern for me they openly ridiculed, condemned and criticized.

If I had decided to measure myself against that emotional yardstick of other peoples personal opinions of what they thought I should or should not be doing with my life and career I would have never completed my training, built a international healing practice, written two books, appeared in a documentary and launched five different courses. Nor would I have had the chutzpa to open the Paradigm Centre for Wellness, a community based integrative healing centre.

I had to decide on what yardstick I chose to measure myself against. Did I want to believe them, or did I want to believe in myself. I will admit that for a time, their fears fed my ego of not being capable, responsible, smart enough or good enough. That lead to some really deep soul searching. In the end I realized that I was faced with this amazing opportunity to be of service and have my own business. This was something that I had always dreamed of but never thought possible. Was I really going to let my fears hold me back? Were their opinions, beliefs and fears really my yardstick? As my husband said to me at the time, “Well, if it doesn’t work out you can always get another job.”

It was as simple as that.

We all have a choice in what we believe about ourselves or another. We create our own internal yardstick of success. Everyone has a dream. It is belief in yourself that makes dreams come true.

How you live your life is your decision. You create your own emotional yardstick. Don’t let other people’s fear’s hold you back. There is nothing to lose by trying and everything to be gained by living according to your own internal yardstick of success.

Atherton Drenth is a clairvoyant medical intuitive and the author of Intuitive Dance. Building, Protecting & Clearing Your Energy, (Llewellyn Worldwide) and Following Body Wisdom. Atherton also appears in the documentary, Voyage to Betterment as one of 12 experts along with other internationally renowned physicians, researchers, and pioneers in the fields of consciousness research and spirituality.

www.athertondrenth.com
www.paradigmcentre.com