Closing Escapes

As you are working towards putting pieces of your dream together, embracing different strategies can speed up that process, like stepping on the gas pedal in a car. But there are other things that work in the opposite way, like putting on the brakes. You can even have one foot on the gas pedal and the other on the brake at the same time and wonder why you not going anywhere. If that is happening to you then you probably need to close some escapes.  

Escapes are the enemies of dreams...

So what are escapes? They are things that we turn to under pressure that undermine what we are trying to accomplish. Escapes can be ways of thinking or habits. They can be things we say to ourselves or others. Rather than bringing refreshing or inspiration, escapes actually steal from us, leaving us with less resources to work towards the things that matter, especially our dreams. 

How do we recognize our escapes? One way is to look at what we habitually turn to when things are not going well. Have you ever told yourself that you cannot do this anymore? What do you turn to after that, even temporarily, is probably an escape.  

Working towards your dream will bring out the best and worst in you. It is difficult when you realize how you have been escaping but it is actually a blessing if you will learn to recognize it as such because then you can close the door to that escape and what it is stealing from you.

You can try to close escapes by willpower but they have a way of springing open again. Escapes are rooted in lies that we have embraced. So when we try to deal with an escape without getting at the root of it, we are just fighting against ourselves. The only way I have found to successfully close my escapes is to expose the lies and embrace my higher purpose.  

We tend to picture ourselves walking into our dreams. But I am starting to think that the opposite is also true - that our dreams need to find a place in us where they will not just leak out again...