Selective Hearing: Turn it On

By , SparkPeople Blogger
Back in my high school days I was a long distance competitive swimmer and participated on my school team, as well as the city team. During those four years of swimming I put in countless thousands of laps, hours upon hours of training, but never fully mastered one stroke.

On one occasion I remember my coach having the entire team get out of the pool so they could stand there and watch me swim the butterfly stroke. He wanted to teach them how not to do it. Talk about utter humiliation. Eventually I graduated and moved on, finishing as captain of the team and successful in some distance events that others wouldn’t dream of swimming. Always in the back of my mind though, was the fact that for some reason I couldn’t master the butterfly stroke.

Fast forward three years into college and I met a friend who also was a high school swimmer that specialized in the butterfly stroke. I was quick to tell him how horrible I was at it and that I would never be able to do that stroke correctly. He gave me the “pffft” noise and said “get in the pool, and I’ll show you how to do it.” Within 30 minutes he had me swimming a great butterfly stroke, up and down the pool. How did that happen? 

I have kept this in mind for many years now, as an explicit example of how we can let someone else’s words and beliefs impact what we allow ourselves to achieve. I now use the “pffft” noise when someone says to me, “I’m never going to be able to lose this weight.” I tell them to "get on SparkPeople, add me as a friend and I’ll show you how to do it. I mean if I can lose all this weight, why can’t you?"

So now I encourage others to engage in selective hearing and tune out those around them that are unsupportive and negative about their chances for success. When they start telling you how you are never going to lose weight or reach your goals, just tell them to talk to the hand. You’ve got SparkPeople on your side and that is a winning combo. Not sure about that? Check out some of the success stories in the community tab. 

Start believing in yourself, and your ability to win this challenge to get healthy. Join together with other like minded individuals who want to build you up, encourage you, teach you, inspire you, and together we can all cross the finish line reaching our goals. Don’t let the naysayers hold you back anymore. This is your time to fly free!

Visit the Community tab on SparkPeople to find SparkTeams and Message Boards to help you connect with other members who are waiting to encourage you.
 

Have you browsed through some of the success stories? Are you the naysayer in your own journey? What can you do to take some positive steps toward believing in your ability to accomplish the task today?