Safety and security are such basic needs for a human being that we do not even worry about our other needs if these two needs are not met…hence why it is at the bottom of Maslow’s famous pyramid!  We need to feel safe in order to function.  It is a basic need and one most would list as a top priority.  People will do anything to feel safe…even things that are not so noble such as steal, lie and cheat.  Not only do we need to feel safe physically, but we have emotional and mental safety needs as well.  When we feel unsafe we tend to soothe ourselves with certain things and we all have those specific things we go to that make us feel “safe.”

I remember watching the movie “The Kid” with Bruce Willis and there is a scene where he sees his child self in his kitchen and cannot believe what he is seeing.  He feels mentally and emotionally unsafe.  He frantically starts to make a sandwich and is repeating over and over again, “Safety in a sandwich!  Safety in a sandwich!”  We find comfort in food, people, places, songs, books, and sometimes unhealthy habits such as drinking, smoking or drugs.  Our ego drives this safety need so strongly (because it is afraid of dying) that it talks us into doing anything we need to in order to feel safe.

The problem is, what we usually find in these comforts of ours is a false sense of safety.  If we truly believed these things made us safe, why would we be looking for a comfort?  We are looking for a “known” and think if we know what is going to happen, have a plan and can predict the future, we are then safe.  This could not be further from the truth!  Our true safety is in the unknown…in faith and trust itself.  Faith in a higher power; faith in yourself; trust that the knowledge you have attained throughout your lifetime has turned into wisdom; and trust that if in your heart it feels right (regardless of what anyone else says – including your own head!) it IS right!

I recently had an experience I would like to share that exemplifies that we are always looked out for and the power in trusting the process of living in the unknown.  I decided a few months ago to move from MD, where I live now, to AZ.  It was a scary decision because it is a new place where I know almost no one and my family and friends live out East.  I decided to take the steps to do it anyway, found a friend to move in with to share expenses and started looking for a place to rent.  My friend found a house that is in the perfect location and is absolutely beautiful, so we put in an application and prayed we would get the house, knowing if we didn’t get this one we would get one eventually.  The next day I got an email from my assistant, Ruth titled “You won’t believe this!”  Ironically (or is it), the man who owns the house my friend and I put in an application for in AZ is the next door neighbor of my assistant in PA!!!  He saw her name on my website when he looked me up and proceeded to contact her and got a glowing (thank you Ruth!) unsolicited reference!  Needless to say, we got the house and I am moving in 3 weeks!  J  Coincidence or divine intervention?  You choose…

Make a decision today or this week where you will not know the outcome.  Take a chance and do something just because if feels right.  Don’t analyze it, scrutinize it or judge it.  Just do it!  Then, see what the Universe brings to your door.  Sometimes you have to close one door before another one will open…the lock on one unlocks the other.  Just try it…the only thing you have to lose is the chance.  And if you lose the chance, don’t worry, another one always comes around the corner…just wait and see 😉

Making a choice instead of standing still,

Chris

For more information on Chris Sopa International, Inc. go to www.ChrisSopa.com.

“We can only be made as new as we are willing to let go of who we have been.”  ~Guy Finley

Change is a funny thing.  Some thrive off of change and some do everything they can do avoid it.  One thing I will tell you that I have personally learned about change is that it is the only constant in our lives…like it or not, change is going to happen.  It is happening all around us at this moment.

Many do not like change because it puts them in a space of unknown.  As humans, we like certainty.  We like being able to predict what may happen and plan for how to handle it.  Pretty much, we like to control as many circumstances (and sometimes people) in our lives as possible because for some reason that makes us feel safe.  We think we have more control than we actually do…

I have watched many of my family and friends (and myself) continue to repeat old patterns simply due to the fact that we were afraid of changing the circumstances because of the “unknown factor.”  Did you ever look at your life and ask yourself, “Why do I keep attracting the same people or the same circumstances into my life over and over again?”  I recently asked myself this question in regards to my relationships.  I seemed to attract the same type of men all of the time…ones who seemed nice on the surface but underneath were not what they claimed themselves to be.  When I was finally able to step back, after A LOT of pain I might add, and look at why this might be happening, I realized two things.  One, we are consistently given the same situations over and over again because there is a lesson that needs to be learned that we are just not learning.  And two, why are we not learning the lesson? Because we are afraid to change…afraid to change what we believe or what we are doing because of the “unknown.”  We constantly go back to similar situations, even if they cause us pain, because at least we know how to handle them…even if they bring us pain.  That seems safer than doing something new and dealing with an “unknown.”

To become more comfortable with the unknown you have to have faith…ACTIVE faith, that there is a higher power working in your favor.  A faith that everything happens for a reason and that everything, even though it may look “bad” on the surface, is for the higher good.  You need to realize that you are NOT in control, cannot control other people and their reactions to you and that your power comes from honoring yourself in everything you do.  How do you know if you’re honoring yourself?  Is what you are doing in alignment with your truth and highest ideals?  Is it honest?  Is it coming from a good intention that will benefit not only you but others?  Self-honor is self-love in action!
It is time to step up and change…do not be afraid.  Everyone, at a soul level is Divine and good, just align your actions with that Divine part of you.  Then you will understand the comfort of living in the unknown and feeling the warm wings of angels surround you with the faith you now carry.

I move forward fearlessly trusting that each step I take is perfectly and Divinely guided.

Honoring my true self,

Chris