The Ideal, Reality, and Progression

The Ideal, Reality and Progression

 

A friend and I had a short discussion on what they want in life. As we discussed I realized there are three major phases we cycle through. They are the Ideal, Reality, and Prgression.

THE IDEAL

     The Ideal is mostly thoughts-only; they are a conscious effort of what you wished your life would be. This is exemplified by Pinterest pins of "My Future Home" or by watching reality TV shows wishing you could have the actors' looks, money, possessions, or that sweet sixteen birthday party. It's your hopes, and dreams, and aspirations. It's where you want to be when you want to be there, in a positive way. As a side note, frustration is usually how we describe the inability to reach The Ideal - knowing that you could be further ahead but you're stuck behind that schedule. On the other hand, they say you have a feeling of "accomplishment", which is probably a mixture of relief, satisfaction, and glee, when you do reach your ideal (looking at you, all-nighter homework assignments).

REALITY

     Reality is mostly action-only; they are a subconscious and repeated pattern of your results. It's the average everyday actions one takes to get through the day. You get up, go to work, come home, and sleep. Or you spend day in and day out with your children. You might have a meaningful conversation here or there. You have some fun on weeknights or on weekends. You might take that annual vacation to somewhere exotic for a couple weeks. And then you're back to the same routine. Reality is your routine. It's what you're comfortable with.

     The reasons you're kept from your ideal are one or more of the following:

1) You lack control. Addiction to anything is a form of lack of control. Instead of being productive you are stuck with something addictive. There are other things to be addicted to beside drugs, nicotine, or pornography, too. Laziness or comfort can be addictive. Spending money can be addictive. Complaining can be addictive too.

2) You lack education. Or you're incorrectly informed. What were you taught about money? Read this following statement and examine how you feel or what you're thinking: "Money and the love of money is okay when applied correctly; obsession over money and the inability to part with it are pitfalls." What's your reaction?

3) You lack opportunity or the ability to identify opportunity. Opportunity is the fishhook of Lady Luck. If you take advantage of it passionately, legally, morally, and ethically you will likely earn yourself a blessing. However it is important to have the ability to recognize Luck's fishhook versus the lures of men.

PROGRESSION

     The intermediary phase between your Reality and The Ideal is called Progression. It's why you go to school, for education. It's why you're judged on your credit score - to see if you have control. It's why you should try to create (instead of burning) bridges between yourself and people in the form of new or renewed relationships - many opportunities come from grapevines. When you're improving yourself and changing your Reality to your Ideal, you step out of your old shoes and comfort zone to reach new levels of wealth, self-worth, and self-management!

     The way to go from Reality to The Ideal (or in other words Progression) is best facilitated by a third party, which is why we're encouraged to seek counsel from parents, church leaders, or other mentors. Just like when you're hanging a huge picture that will fall off unless you get it just right - you can't step back from it to see if it's crooked or straight. A third party can help you adjust until everything is in alignment. This is also why I am mentoring people - to help people go from subconscious living to conscious living; from their current Reality to their Ideal reality!

     If you'd like to schedule a mentoring appointment, please private message my Facebook page here!

Mahalo,
Jason Rivera