Is your life on repeat?

Do you ever get the sneaky feeling that no matter what you seem to do, you keep winding up in the same place, with the same

people, in the same situations? Maybe you have even experienced the same dreaded outcomes and emotions that come with those experiences. So essentially, your life is on repeat. If this is you, then you need to carefully review the choices you are making so you can remove yourself from these repetitive behaviors.

The truth of the matter is, you make hundreds of calculated choices every single day of your life. For example, when you hear the alarm clock in the morning, you have the choice to either stay in bed and oversleep, or wake up and get dressed to go to work. The sheer actions of choosing to get up, get dressed and go to work are all choices you must make. In that regard, I want you to think about the choices you have made so far today. Whether it is changing the oil in your car to make it run efficiently or letting it go until it breaks down, taking the Interstate or taking the scenic route through town, eating a healthy breakfast or skipping it, answering a phone or letting it ring, dressing to the nines or dressing down, you are making dynamic choices for your life each and every single day. But are you making the right choices for your life?

Singer, songwriter and author Portia Nelson wrote a compelling book on self-discovery nearly two decades ago called, "There's a Hole in my Sidewalk - the Romance of Self Discovery". One of its fundamental passages talks about the chapters in life and ultimately, the choices you make during those chapters. She writes:

"Chapter One: I walk down the street. There's a deep hole in the sidewalk. I fall in.

I am lost. I am helpless. It isn't my fault. It still takes forever to find a way out.

Chapter Two: I walk down the same street. There's a deep hole in the sidewalk. I pretend I don't see it. I fall in again. I can't believe I'm in the same place! But it isn't my fault. And it still takes a long time to get out.

Chapter Three: I walk down the same street. There's a deep hole in the sidewalk. I see it there. I still fall in. It's a habit! My eyes are open. I know where I am. It is my fault. I get out immediately.

Chapter Four: I walk down the same street. There's a deep hole in the sidewalk. I walk around it.

Chapter Five: I walk down a different street."

In what chapter of your life are you? If you are making the same choices expecting a different outcome each time, you are going to keep falling back into the same hole. I understand each individual is very different and experiences life and its challenges at separate points in life. However, there is a deep need for you to accept responsibility for the choices you make both now and today. At the end of the day, you decide the path you will take in your life. You can choose to stay on indefinite repeat, or you can choose an alternative course. Choose to honor yourself by transforming your behaviors into those that benefit you and put you in forward motion.

Joan Marie Ambrose -- Author, Creative Writer, Motivational Speaker

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