“Did any of you catch the Gabby Bernstein Podcast last fall? She had an amazing conversation with Dick Schwartz about Internal Family Systems therapy. She asked him for a 9th ‘C,’ and his response was powerful: Choice—the Centered Self’s ability to choose..  Yes, feeling centered and grounded and strong in ourselves is based on our ability to choose.  The 9th C is choice.

I have had a tough Monday, mostly because of the circumstances of my weekend. The thing is, part of me is really angry about the choices that others made, which impacted my day. That part keeps wanting to rant and rave about the injustices that were “done to her.”  

Then there is my Creator-centered self, calmly and patiently bringing light to the situation.  Is it easy? No! I feel like a yo-yo this morning, up and out of drama, then down again and immersed in the rant.  What a crazy start.  But ya know what? I have been given the ability to choose, and I claim that right.

I have been practicing a Creator-based® life for many years now, and I welcome the chance to do so. You see, the more often I practice flexing my choice muscle with compassion, the stronger it becomes. 

Choice + Compassion = Peace.

This idea of choice is also at the heart of The Empowerment Dynamic (TED) triangle, which shows how we can shift from victimhood into empowered roles like Challenger, Coach, and Creator.  How is that done? Largely through the grace of our Master Creator and Savior, but as we continue to learn compassion and the power of choice, we grow in peaceful progress, spending more time in our preferred roles of challenger, creator, and coach.  We talk about this a lot in Mastermind and Coach n Clear, and we even offer free instruction on CMHCoaching.com—it’s all part of The Creator-based® Way.

In the principle of the Creator-based® Way, TED translates to ‘I am the Creator of my Life Experience.  I have within me light and truth, all the power I need to grow and progress.’ That, my friend, is the truth.  You are blessed to be a creator in and of yourself, one who can choose and, yoked with the Master Creator, flourish and grow to bless the lives of others.  You are a powerful influence in this world.

In Victor Frankl’s words, “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms – to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.

Choice is powerful! What will you choose today that will ripple out across the world and bring light?

Maybe your choice yo-yo is up and down all day long today as you practice working to stay centered in your Creator.  If so, you are not alone.  Know that you are actively creating peace, whether it feels like it or not.  Just keep going.

Steven Covey said, “Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.”  (We think this is another Victor Frankyl nugget, but folks aren’t super sure.)

Ever notice that when you throw your yo-yo, it pauses just a sec at the bottom of the stroke? Yup.  That’s your choice point. That’s your moment between stimulus and response.  Choose to connect to your Creator and let that yo yo bounce right back up to the top!

So this week, when you feel the yo-yo dip, pause and claim your power to choose. Choose Creator-Connection. Choose light. Choose Compassion. And trust that as you do, life will lift you back up.

Hit reply and let me know—what are you choosing today?

Just keep practicing!

All my love,

Beth