My garden and nature are a huge inspiration for me (maybe you’ve guessed that already from my title as ‘the Thought Gardener’). Time and time again they show me insights about my life and how to live it well.
I’ve been inspired to share some of the lessons that I’ve learned from nature and my garden, as a mini blog and video series this summer, a kind of ‘open house’ for my garden inspirations.
I’m starting with the lesson that my garden has helped me with the most, which is to never give up.
Never Give Up.
I have to admit that, at times in my life, I’ve been quite deeply disappointed when things haven’t worked out how I supposed that they would, especially when I was really enthusiastic and excited about those things. Sometimes I wouldn’t want to try again, I’d prefer to sulk or have a tantrum and stamp my feet, as if to say to the Universe ‘this isn’t fair’.
I could have reminded myself that it took Thomas Edison many, many attempts to make a working light bulb.
“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” Thomas Edison
I could have pep talked myself into trying again, or starting afresh. Yet, that wasn’t always easy for me.
My saviour was my garden and the fact that even if I really messed up, even if the slugs ate my seeds or the weeds took over when I turned my back, I always had another chance, another opportunity to try again. Maybe it helped that what I grew in my garden didn’t feel like a life or death issue (whereas something like the success of my business seemed much more important, and thus ‘failure’ seemed more important too).
“My great concern is not whether you have failed, but whether you are content with failure.” Abraham Lincoln
My garden became my playground, where I could experiment, where I could TRY AGAIN. As I explain in this week’s video, I always knew that I had another chance, whether it be next year or even next week. I could sow some more seeds, I could do some weeding, I could change the parameters – whether that be the timing, location, or even the amount of water or fertiliser I applied.
Once I applied the same approach to my life and my business, things got easier and became more fun. It started to become a game, a curiosity about what I could change to get the results I desired, or even better than that.
It still is, most of the time and I haven my garden to thank for that.
What parameters can you change?
My intention is that this post helps inspire you to keep going, to change some parameters rather than quitting if things seem to be going wrong and also to learn from so called ‘failures’ and come back stronger.
So get curious, what could you change or do differently to help your life to flow more smoothly and to help your projects to be successful?
Often, mindset shifts can make a huge difference and can help us keep going.
The power of positive thinking, focusing on the outcomes of our goals (be it some tasty homegrown tomatoes or more confidence) and overcoming our doubts (such as ‘I can’t do this’) can be the difference between success and failure.
Tip: If you do find yourself feeling disappointed when things aren’t going your way, you could try my favourite technique, EFT tapping, and tap along with this mindset and tapping video that I made on that topic earlier this year.
If you’d like some further help, so you can overcome perceived setbacks with more ease, or arise like the Phoenix from the flames after disappointment, come and book a session with me or schedule a free 15 minute consultation with me to see how I can best support you.
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