About four weeks ago I decided that with all the violence and negativity that was happening in the world today, I wanted to focus on self-love and compassion. Â So I picked up Debbie Ford’s “Best Year of Your Life Kit” and decided to draw one card each week and focus on that for the week, letting the ripple effect of love spread out.
This week’s card is Turn Off Your Shadow Box.  Debbie writes “One of the biggest obstacles we face on the quest to make this year our best year actually lives inside our own minds.  Most of us experience a deluge of negative chatter on a daily basis that reminds us of our weaknesses and reinforces our limitations.  For example “I should not have said that”, “I really blew it this time” and “I not smart/rich/skinny/important enough to ……..”.  Does any of this charming self-talk sound familiar?
Rather that take the negative chatter personally, I refer to it simply as our Shadow Box. Like a loud and obnoxious boom box that disturbs our peaceful slumber at the beach, our Shadow Box repeats the same messages over and over again. Â
The good news is that each of us has a choice to listen to this boom box, to believe its limiting messages and following its marching orders or we can simply shut it off and instead place our attention on something more life affirming.” Â
Your assignment this week is when you hear your internal dialogue chattering away about your limitation or your poor lot in life, just say to yourself “Aha, I am being visited by my Shadow Box?” Rather than wasting any time listening to it, analyzing it or bargaining with it to leave you alone, just distinguish it for what it is; a recording that has played the same old song more times than you can remember. Â
This week recognize you’re the one who chooses to listen to it and you’re the one with the power to turn it off.Â
So take up the challenge and give yourself more love, kindness and compassion this week!
Debbie Ford, The Best Year of Your Life Kit