I begin this blog feeling ambivalent about the title I chose. How can it ever be beneficial to manipulate one's memories? Aren't memories sacred? Why mess with one's mind?
Yes, dear friend, it is my personal opinion that memories should always stay intact and undoubted. I have been raised to trust memories. They are a source of reasoning, information, interpretation and sanity. I respect memories and I am not referring to an intentional intervention on the past.
What I am referring to is a premeditated interference with the present: the crest of later's memories. You cannot change what is done but you can change what you are doing.
Once you realize and own up to your power over memory, your life starts shifting to the better in accumulative steps that add up to a complete pathway. But before you do so, you need to admit to what I like to call "Your Story".
I will explain this concept right away.
About a year ago I created a Facebook community named Today I Failed At that was inspired by Arianna Huffington's Thrive, where my goal is to motivate people to overcome failure and re-strategize their ways towards what they want - no matter what that is (If you want to follow my page, like it through this link).
The way the page works is through communication. I want to learn more about you and respond to your questions. The members of this community that either interact with me through my Facebook page or via email at spyropoulosdaphne@gmail.com, generally introduce themselves to me and either ask a question, propose a subject for discussion or give me a different perspective on my views presented through my articles. I cherish this interaction since my main goal in life is to empower individuals around me and to help them help themselves. I believe in the power of you. I believe that every person is in fact unique and that he or she can and will take themselves where they want to be. I have seen it happen and I am committed to advocate for potential turning into capability through effort.
This week I was fortunate enough to present Today I Failed At in France through Le Huffington Post, as well as in Maghreb: Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria through Al Huffington Post Maghreb and Canada - Quebec through Le Huffington Post Quebec. The project was also presented in Greece through Huffpost Greece back in February and in the US through this blog in August 2015.
The reason why I am mentioning the locations where Today I Failed At has landed and has been welcomed in- which I am deeply grateful for - is to address a notion so recurrent, that I would dare to position it among the inherent traits of human beings internationally.
New members of the Today I Failed At community, no matter where they come from, no matter what language they speak and no matter the political or religious circumstances of their everyday lives, all find common grounds in referring to Their Story.
This week alone I was fortunate enough to receive several emails from Maghreb, hearing exactly what I've heard from people in Greece, France and off course the United States. When it comes to failure, they said, they are powerless against their destiny. Now, pay attention: this destiny that they are referring to has nothing to do with religion or ideology. They are talking about their paths in life that they think are linked to a permanent not-enough state.
They have failed so many times, they say, that they have misinterpreted the word "Failure" and they have added it in the list of their permanent characteristics.
No matter where they come from, people are all united by intimidation. Failure is global and failure is devastating. It feeds off of memories and forces itself on you without allowing you to protest.
But here is what I want to achieve through Today I Failed At: I want people all over the world to be united by empowerment, not self pity. I want people to stand against devastation and powerlessness in a united front. And I want them to claim reins over their future.
Before giving you my 5 empowering rules to remember, I have to tell you that I am one of you. I have failed again and again and I frequently find myself overwhelmed by failure. It feels like a wave that covers you up when you're trying to catch a breath. But I am making a conscious decision to keep swimming. Wave after wave we can swim. I don't want to stand alone in the empowering end. I want to become a part of a human chain of people supporting one another. If you do too, join the Today I Failed At community (click here).
So here are 5 things I have to tell you in hopes that I empower you:
1) When it comes to failure, memories are what is holding you back. Why don't you try again? Because you have before and you know you will not succeed. Fact is though, you don't know.
2) Memories form your Story. Your story is your crutch in your life. You were a mediocre student in school so there is no need to try out for a master scholarship. You were the fat kid so it is pointless to take dance lessons. Once you acknowledge that, the magic begins. 3) Your Story is your story up until this moment. You cannot change the past but you can limit it's interaction with your present. Don't let the past mess with your now. As much as you can, keep these two apart.
4) Form new memories right now. What does your Story tell you about you? Were you never a sports person? Does your instinct tell you that you want to tryout yoga? Create a new memory. Go take your first yoga class today. Who is not a sports person now? Look at you, you just shifted towards being a sports person. You went to a yoga class. You replaced your old memory of being inactive with a new one of making it through a yoga class.
5) Define yourself through these new memories. After all, they are products of a conscious pursuit of what you wanted. Don't allow memories of things that just happened have more power over you than the memories you chose.
Live by what you chose.
I will be happy to interact with you through Today I Failed At's Facebook page (click here), or via email at spyropoulosdaphne@gmail.comTake care!