Blog 4 | Clocks : Dave Counts Down

Understanding The Same Actions Differently By Changing How To Think

Understanding the same actions differently by changing how to think enables me to upgrade obstacles as opportunities. Then, I set in motion a continuation of my past that leads me more healthily towards understanding the somethingness of life and living and lessens my chances of getting stuck.

I do not condemn myself to repeat my past, and I do resolve to try to understand my past. I look forward to experiencing everything that my remaining life offers me.

Since the fishing trip with my best mate the fish man, I often remember the words ‘continue, don’t repeat’. Now that I know that continuing is more important than repeating, the progression along the path of life and living is becoming more free of obstacles and I can further explore my mission to be an agent of my own destiny with hopeful determination.

When We Perfect Our Passions Life Reveals More Meaningful Opportunities

The promises of our passions quicken the momentum of our progress. Our passions energise us. They drive us and satisfy us. Our passions help us to step through the gateway of opportunities that leads us along the inviting path towards excellence and mastery. Energy brings us purpose. Satisfaction persuades us to continue with life and living despite any obstacles we might still face.

Our passions improve the life we’ve been given. Our passions give us purpose, enrichment and fulfilment. They enable us to escape, for a while, from the stresses, pressures and demands that living expects of us. At the same time, our passions enable us to advance, develop and master our skills, to improve ourselves and perhaps to make connections with others too.

Passions satisfy us, motivate us, inspire us, compel us, drive us and challenge us. Passions regulate our mental and emotional well-being. Ultimately, they project our personalities, triggering us to extend beyond our limitations into unknown realms.

Curiosity Enables Me To Become More Proficiently Skilled

My passion is music. The funny, little man that lives in my head often pesters me to be curious about music.

‘Life is about actions and passions,’ he urges.

I don’t need the funny, little man that lives in my head to pester me to be curious about my passion. Curiosity alone propels me. I’m curious about the wonder of music. Curiosity invites success. My curiosity helps me fear less. I’m curious about the adventure of music. Curiosity invites participation. My curiosity helps me engage more. I’m curious about the activities of music. Curiosity invites mastery. Curiosity helps me doubt myself less. I’m curious about the perfections of music.

Nevertheless, the funny, little man that lives in my head endlessly pesters me to pursue my curiosity. He is irritating.

My best mate the chancer’s passion is football. He is not irritating.

My best mate the chancer is as curious about football as I am about music. He tells me how his curiosity helps him to be braver.

‘The ball gives me power,’ he exclaims. He enthuses about how his curiosity helps him to feel good about winning.

‘The ball unites us to score,’ he adds. He chats about how his curiosity helps him improve.

‘The ball brings out my skills,’ he claims. He talks about celebrating with his team.

‘And when they offer me that chance, I keep my mind steady, and I shoot to win. That’s the best.’ He pauses.

‘How can a ball do all that?’ He wonders. I wonder too.

‘It feels good to be curious,’ I reflect pensively. ‘It’s inspirational.’

‘We’re the same,’ he adds, after a gentle sigh.

Our paths cross from time to time. My best mate the chancer and I both share the curiosity of our passions.

Persistence Enables Me To Become More Proficiently Skilled

My passion is music. The funny, little, irritating man that lives in my head relentlessly forces me to practise music.

‘Stop thinking, stop planning, and just do it,’ he advises.

I don’t need the funny, little, irritating man that lives in my head to force me to practice my passion. Persistence alone propels me. I persist with the wonder of music. Persistence invites success. My persistence helps me fear less. I persist with the adventure of music. Persistence invites participation. My persistence helps me engage more. I persist with the activities of music. Persistence invites mastery. Persistence helps me doubt myself less. I persist with the discipline of music.

Nevertheless, the funny, little, irritating man that lives in my head persistently forces me to practise music. He is bossy.

My best mate the chancer’s passion is football. He is not bossy.

My best mate the chancer is as persistent about football as I am about music. He tells me how his persistence helps him to be braver.

‘The ball gives me power,’ he exclaims. He enthuses about how his persistence helps him to feel good about winning.

‘The ball unites us to score,’ he adds. He chats about how his persistence helps him improve.

‘The ball brings out my skills,’ he claims. He talks about celebrating with his team.

‘And when they offer me that chance, I keep my mind steady, and I shoot to win. That’s the best.’ He pauses.

‘How can a ball do all that?’ He wonders. I wonder too.

‘It feels good to practise,’ I reflect pensively. ‘I feel talented as well as inspired.’

‘We’re the same,’ he adds, after a gentle sigh.

Our paths continue to cross from time to time. My best mate the chancer and I both share the discipline of our passions.

Fascination Enables Me To Become More Proficiently Skilled

My passion is music. The funny, little, irritating, bossy man that lives in my head meticulously structures the time I spend immersing myself in music.

‘If you ask for more, you’ll lose what you already have,’ he warns.

I don’t need the funny, little, irritating, bossy man that lives in my head to structure the time I spend immersing myself in my passion. Fascination alone propels me. I am fascinated by the wonder of music. Fascination invites success. My fascination helps me fear less. I am fascinated with the adventure of music. Fascination invites participation. My fascination helps me engage more. I am fascinated by the activities of music. Fascination invites mastery. Fascination helps me doubt myself less. I am fascinated by the routine of music.

Nevertheless, the funny, little, irritating, bossy man that lives in my head unfailingly structures the time I spend immersing myself in music. He is controlling.

My best mate the chancer’s passion is football. He is not controlling.

My best mate the chancer is as fascinated about football as I am about music. He tells me how his fascination helps him to be braver.

‘The ball gives me power,’ he exclaims. He enthuses about how his fascination helps him to feel good about winning.

‘The ball unites us to score,’ he adds. He chats about how his fascination helps him improve.

‘The ball brings out my skills,’ he claims. He talks about celebrating with his team.

‘And when they offer me that chance, I keep my mind steady, and I shoot to win. That’s the best.’ He pauses.

‘How can a ball do all that?’ He wonders. I wonder too.

‘It feels good to be fascinated,’ I reflect pensively. ‘It makes me feel confident, talented and inspired.’

‘We’re the same,’ he adds, after a gentle sigh.

Our paths continue to cross from time to time. My best mate the chancer and I both share the routine of our passions.

Questioning Enables Me To Become More Proficiently Skilled

My passion is music. The funny, little, irritating, bossy, controlling man that lives in my head inquisitively urges me to question music.

‘Success is the courage to question,’ he promises.

I don’t need the funny, little, irritating, bossy, controlling man that lives in my head to urge me to question my passion. Questioning alone propels me. Questions keep me curious about the wonder of music. Questions invite success. My questioning helps me fear less. I question the adventure of music. Questions invite participation. My questioning helps me engage more. I question the activities of music. Questions invite mastery. Questioning helps me doubt myself less. I question the fluidity of music.

Nevertheless, the funny, little, irritating, bossy, controlling man that lives in my head unfailingly urges me to question my music. He is argumentative.

My best mate the chancer’s passion is football. He is not argumentative.

My best mate the chancer is as inquisitive about football as I am about music. He tells me how his questions help him to be braver.

‘The ball gives me power,’ he exclaims. He enthuses about how his questions help him to feel good about winning.

‘The ball unites us to score,’ he adds. He chats about how his questions help him improve.

‘The ball brings out my skills,’ he claims. He talks about celebrating with his team.

‘And when they offer me that chance, I keep my mind steady, and I shoot to win. That’s the best.’ He pauses.

‘How can a ball do all that?’ He wonders. I wonder too.

‘It feels good to interact,’ I reflect pensively. ‘It makes me feel collaborative, confident, talented and inspired.’

‘We’re the same,’ he adds, after a gentle sigh.

Our paths continue to cross from time to time. My best mate the chancer and I both share the fluidity of our passions.

Competition Enables Me To Become More Proficiently Skilled

My passion is music. The funny, little, irritating, bossy, controlling, argumentative man that lives in my head fiercely pushes me to be selfishly competitive with music.

‘Knowing how to lose is the first step towards winning,’ he asserts.

I don’t need the funny, little, irritating, bossy, controlling, argumentative man that lives in my head to make me selfishly competitive with my passion. Competition alone propels me. I am competitive at the wonder of music. Competition invites success. My competitiveness helps me fear less. I compete in the adventure of music. Competition invites participation. My competitiveness helps me engage more. I compete with the activities of music. Competition invites mastery. Competitiveness helps me doubt myself less. I compete in the community of music.

Nevertheless, the funny, little, irritating, bossy, controlling, argumentative man that lives in my head unfailingly pushes me to be recklessly competitive with my music. He is selfish.

My best mate the chancer’s passion is football. He is not selfish.

My best mate the chancer is as competitive with football as I am with music. He tells me how his competitiveness helps him to be braver.

‘The ball gives me power,’ he exclaims. He enthuses about how his competitiveness helps him to feel good about winning.

‘The ball unites us to score,’ he adds. He chats about how his competitiveness helps him improve.

‘The ball brings out my skills,’ he claims. He talks about celebrating with his team.

‘And when they offer me that chance, I keep my mind steady, and I shoot to win. That’s the best.’ He pauses.

‘How can a ball do all that?’ He wonders. I wonder too.

‘It feels good to compete,’ I reflect pensively. ‘It makes me feel included, collaborative, confident, talented and inspired.’

‘We’re the same,’ he adds, after a gentle sigh.

Our paths continue to cross from time to time. My best mate the chancer and I both share the community of our passions.

By Pursuing Our Passions We Reveal Ourselves To The World

After all this time, after the pestering, the forcing, the controlling, the arguing and the desperately selfish competitive pursuit for pride of place, I see the funny, little, irritating, bossy, controlling, argumentative, selfish man differently.

I notice how my passion transforms me.

Instead of shielding me, my passion reveals me. Music does not shield me, music reveals me.

The irritating pestering to get me to be curious about my passion satisfies the need for my passion and encourages me to be eager, ultimately empowering me with inspiration.

The persistent bossiness to force me to practise my passion brings order to my passion and teaches me to be disciplined, ultimately enlightening me with decisiveness.

The controlling timetabling so I immerse myself in my passion finds time for my passion and enables me to become aware of routines, ultimately equipping me with confidence.

The frustrating arguments to get me to question my passion create space for my passion and they challenge me to be flexible, ultimately engaging me with stimulating collaborations.

The ruthlessly selfish pursuit of competition against others with my passion unites me with my passion and I immerse myself in the wholeness of my passion, which in turn invites a selfless sense of community, ultimately encouraging me to be considerate and inclusive.

The funny, little man recognised the potential of my passion, long before I was even aware of its existence. I need to trust the integrity of my passion.

Just as the funny, little man is irritating, bossy, controlling, argumentative and selfish, so is the funny, little man also empowering, enlightening, methodical, challenging and considerate. Did he continue to have faith in me, when I had none in him? I need to trust the integrity of the funny, little man’s guidance, without fear or doubt.

By Better Understanding Ourselves We Interact With Others More Successfully

I now recognise that the same actions, even done in the same way, can be perceived differently. Instinct grounds me. Nurture reveals me. Agency leads me. Passions drive me.

The funny, little man guided the journey of my passion through the curiosity of my passion, the discipline of my passion, the routine of my passion, the fluidity of my passion and the community of my passion. We cannot succeed alone.

Reality is multifaceted. We see one version of reality outwardly with our immediate senses. Then, we see one version of reality inwardly with our senses and our thoughts. We see one version of reality expansively with our senses, our thoughts and our imaginations. Then, we see one version of reality collaboratively with our senses, our thoughts, our imaginations and our interactions. We see one version of reality inclusively with our senses, our thoughts, our imaginations, our interactions and our ability to recalibrate in union with others.

By pursuing our passions, the somethingness of life and living becomes enriched with versions of our realities previously hidden. We glimpse some of the many faces of reality. Our passions reveal layers of understanding that give us purpose, and offer us time so we can recalibrate as we seesaw outwardly, inwardly, imaginatively, collaboratively and inclusively. Which version decides need? Which decides order? Are these versions definitive or fluid? Is one version more valid than another or is each a part of an inclusive whole?

Once we seesaw between options with fluidity, then the jigsaw of choices can adapt so it expands spatially. Tomorrow, I start.

The rewards of living invite us to seesaw between the strengths and weaknesses of our skills, as the unique jigsaw of life’s big picture emerges piece by piece.