Subject: Resistance Is Persistence

Welcome to Celebrating the Journey!

produced by Margo Chisholm
Coach, Speaker, Author, Adventurer
Monday, January 10, 2000
Issue #9

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Resistance Is Persistence

It is one of the great ironies of life that only when
we accept something do we have the ability to let it go.
When we resist something, it persists. Change cannot
happen when we deny or hide or fight the thing we want
to change.
The first step to creating change is accepting
whatever it is we want to change. Many people believe
that accepting something we don’t like means we are
resigning ourselves to it for the rest of our lives. Nothing
could be further from the truth. To quote from the book
“Life 101” (see Recommended Reading), “Acceptance is
not approval, consent, permission, authorization,
sanction, concurrence, agreement, compliance, sympathy,
endorsement, confirmation, support, ratification,
assistance, advocating, backing, maintaining
authentication, reinforcing, cultivating, encouraging,
furthering, promoting, aiding, abetting or even LIKING
what is.” Acceptance is simply seeing something the way
it is and saying, “That’s the way it is.” Accepting
something doesn’t mean we like it. It does mean we stop
spending time and energy hating or fearing it.
If we don’t accept a situation exactly the way it is,
we will have great difficulty changing it. In truth, if we
don’t accept that situation, we never even know if it really
needs changing! Once we do accept things the way they
are, we have the time and energy and motivation to take
the actions necessary to make the needed changes.
Resistance requires a great deal of time and energy. When
we quit resisting, we can use the freed up resources to
make the desired shifts.
A very clear example of how this works can happen
when we lose something that is important to us. We
search the house top to bottom, bewail to our friends that
we’ve lost this precious object, wake up in the morning
with the missing item the first thing on our minds, spend
a great deal of time each day wondering where it could be,
where we haven’t looked, who could have taken it, what
we could have done with it. The lost item takes up an
enormous amount of space and energy in our life. Finally,
when all hope of finding the object is gone, we accept that
the item is gone and simply let it go. And it shows up a
half hour later.

COACHING:

Create acceptance breaks during your day. Create
one right now. Consciously choose to accept everything
around you, everything inside you, everything about you,
everything about everything. Do it now. If you can’t accept
the way things are around you, accept that!
Acceptance is a habit. It takes practice to develop it.

QUOTES:

Acceptance is the answer to all my problems today.”
pg. 449 of The Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous

The “failure” of not reaching the summit became a
gateway to a new level of acceptance of myself and the
perfection of the Universe.
pg. 156 of “To The Summit: A Woman’s Journey
Into The Mountains To Find Her Soul”

In order to make things different, first accept them the
way they are.
Coach Chisholm

DISTINCTION:

Acceptance vs. Resignation
Acceptance is about creating the space for action;
resignation is about giving up.
Acceptance is loving; resignation is indifferent.
Acceptance is dynamic; resignation is passive.
Acceptance creates possibility; resignation creates
limits.

RECOMMENDED READING:

Life 101: Everything We Wish We Had Learned About
Life In School — But Didn’t by John-Roger and Peter
McWilliams.
This is a delightful book chock full of marvelous
information that makes you say, “I knew that. Why didn’t
I think of it before?” The easy-to-read format — text on the
right hand page, a quote on the left– is inviting and the
short chapters contain a wealth of thought-provoking,
very useful concepts, tools and actions. I revisit this book
about once a year and recommend it as an easy way to go
to “school” in a whole new way. You can order it by
clicking here.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0931580781/tothesummit

You Can’t Afford the Luxury of a Negative Thought by
John-Roger and Peter McWilliams.
The subtitle of this second book in the Life 101
series is “A Book for People with Any Life-Threatening
Illness – Including Life.” Gerald Clarke, a senior writer for
Time Magazine, called it, “Common sense uncommonly
stated — a roadmap to a happy disposition.” I revisit it
regularly and find it an entertaining and thoughtful
guidebook for the journey from negativity to gratitude.
This book will improve your life. It’s available by clicking
here.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0931580579/tothesummit
Give yourself the gift of releasing resistance this week.

Namaste, Margo

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TODAY’S OPPORTUNITIES:

I am extending the Holiday Coaching Gift Certificate
program through the first quarter of 2000. The certificates
are for one month of coaching – that’s 4 half hour sessions
– at the discounted rate of $150. They are available as gifts
or as an introductory rate for new clients. Give the gift of
coaching to a friend or to yourself! Contact me at
mailto:margo@tothesummit.com for more information.

Margo’s book, “To The Summit: A Woman’s Journey into
the Mountains to Find Her Soul” is no longer available in
stores in the hardcover version. You can purchase a
signed copy by sending a check for $18 – a 25% discount –
to:
Margo Chisholm
37 Dakota Meadows Dr.
Carbondale, CO 81623
To find out more about Margo and her book, visit her
website at https://www.tothesummit.com.

Margo has a few spaces available in her coaching practice.
Every serious athlete has a coach. Why not have one for
the most important game of all: Life! Contact Margo at
mailto:margo@tothesummit.com or visit her website for
information and resources for YOUR life at
https://www.tothesummit.com.

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Copyright © 1999, all rights reserved, by Margo Chisholm

I invite you to share Celebrating the Journey with your
Mailing List, Friends, and Associates. We ask only that the
entire email with Copyright and Credits be included. The
author of this article is Margo Chisholm. You may contact
her at (970)704-9336 or at mailto:margo@tothesummit.com.

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My purpose in publishing Celebrating the Journey is to
provide you with resources, motivation, inspiration and
energy for YOUR journey to creating success and freedom
in all areas of your life. CTJ will use stories from my life
and others’, coaching tips and resources, quotes and
humor to deliver a learning experience that can enhance
your life. I am always looking for comments, ideas and
ways to improve CTJ. I welcome your emails at
mailto:margo@tothesummit.com.

To receive your own free copy of Celebrating the Journey,
send an email to
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Margo Chisholm is available for individual and group
coaching. Every dedicated athlete has a coach. Why not
have a coach for the most important game of all: the
game of life. Visit our website at
https://www.tothesummit.com for additional resources
and tools. To schedule a consultation, send an email to
mailto:margo@tothesummit.com

—
“At every moment of our life we have an
opportunity to choose joy.”
Henri J. M. Nouwen

Margo Chisholm
Coach, Speaker, Author, Therapist
Partnering you in having success,
freedom and joy in all areas of your life
970-704-9336 fax 970-704-9346
margo@tothesummit.com

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