Most people have no problem understanding that action of some sort is required to achieve their goals. However, even though they know this intellectually, they still struggle with making the progression from "knowing" to actually "doing" in their lives.

Day after day, they tell themselves they need to do something, but they continue with their usual routine.  As a result, nothing happens and the desired achievement eludes them.

You know the feeling: you want to move forward with your plans, but something is holding you back.  You might be struggling to identify exactly what it is and where it's coming from.  But it's there, that nagging feeling of being unsettled that's keeping you from going full steam ahead. 
 
What you're encountering is resistance.  It may be frustrating and confusing while you're experiencing it, but it's actually a good thing!  It's an important safety mechanism; you're being alerted that things aren't quite lining up the way they need to.  The next step?  Taking a closer look to determine why things aren't lining up.
 
There are an infinite number of reasons why you may be encountering resistance; here are three of the most common ones.

It's wonderful when someone can provide a safe haven for another, and the following poem expresses this concept simply and beautifully. As you read, I encourage you to take time to reflect on the sentiments expressed.

How do the images come to life in your mind? Do you find yourself thinking about specific people in your life, or recalling those special times when someone's love and support served as a safe haven for you? 

Or perhaps you're going through a period where you're longing for that "hand to clasp" as you go through the ups and downs of life.  If so, I hope this poem inspires you to extend your own hand, with faith and confidence that the gesture will help guide the way towards what you're looking for.

Safe Haven by Leilani Biswas (reprinted with permission)

A ray of sun to illuminate the way
Clear the shadows and fears allay
A tropical breeze to warm the air
Displace the chill that lingers there
A shoulder to lean on when times get rough
Just being there is comfort enough
An ear to listen with concern and care
A safe, secure haven for a heart laid bare
A hand to clasp on a bumpy road
Share a laugh, share the load
A soul to connect with outside space and time
Transforming the mundane into the sublime

How many times have you committed to a new goal (or recommitted to an old one) with a fresh burst of energy and enthusiasm, only to find yourself getting derailed somewhere along the way?  You encounter an obstacle that throws you off course, and your efforts come to a halt.

All that confidence and enthusiasm you started off with fades away, replaced with frustration and discouragement.  As those feelings intensify and gain a deeper foothold, many people wind up abandoning their goals entirely.  How do you avoid this scenario?

You know the feeling, an inner exhaustion that doesn't go away after a day or two.  You're missing your inner spark; you lack the energy and enthusiasm that makes you want to dive into your day.  You're not depressed, but you feel a sense of inner tiredness and you're finding it hard to get motivated.

These are symptoms of being emotionally drained, and the impact can reach across all areas of your life.  In order to regain your emotional energy and equilibrium, you need to know what's causing the problem. 

Here are five common reasons for why you feel emotionally drained.

You receive an encouraging call or message from out of the blue.  A door suddenly opens, or a great opportunity comes your way.  A windfall lands in your lap at just the right time to get you out of a jam.  Multiple pieces come together and fall into place perfectly. 

To someone else looking on, the event that occurs may appear small, perhaps even meaningless.  But to you, it's quite meaningful.  It puts a smile not just on your face, but on your heart, too.  You sense that the stars have aligned in your favour, and it fills you with wonder, joy, peace and confidence.

"Do your own thing and stop caring about what others think." You've likely read or heard this sentiment at some point, if not many times. But is this sound advice? Do you benefit by living your life with no concern or regard for what other people think? 

Despite being well-intentioned, when taken literally or at face value, this sentiment overlooks the reality of who we are as human beings, how we function, and what it takes to maintain healthy, harmonious relationships.

There's a general assumption that as we get older, we grow in our maturity and wisdom.  After all, with all that life experience under your belt, how could you not become wiser and more mature?  But age alone is not synonymous with growth, maturity, and wisdom. 

Just as you've probably met someone who seemed incredibly mature for their age, you've likely also met someone whose age clearly hadn't conferred the level of maturity and wisdom you would have expected.
 
Life experience on its own is no guarantee of maturity and wisdom; it's what you do throughout your life that matters.  Maturity and wisdom go hand in hand with growth.  When you allow yourself to become more receptive to growth in your life, you lay the groundwork for maturity and wisdom to follow.  Therefore, it makes sense to guard against self-imposed limits that stifle your growth.  

Here are some common self-imposed limits to watch out for.

Most people are aware of the placebo effect.  It's when a treatment with no medicinal value results in healing due to the patient's belief, trust, and confidence in that treatment.  Fewer people are familiar with the corresponding nocebo effect, although it's arguably far more important.

The nocebo effect occurs when someone's negative expectations lead to harmful, undesirable, or adverse effects on their health. For example, a patient is told they only have three months to live, and their belief in this as an undeniable and inescapable truth brings it about.

It's important to recognize how powerful the nocebo effect can be.  There are documented cases where a misdiagnosis has caused someone's health to decline rapidly, even to the point of death.  Even though the individual did not have a sever health condition, their belief that they did led to detrimental (and in some cases fatal) outcomes.  We truly need to guard against unwarranted negative beliefs that compromise our health and well-being.  

Here are some areas to watch out for, where the nocebo effect can crop up through negative language and interactions.

“At a certain level of self-awareness, we perceive something supernatural in us.”   
Leo Tolstoy, Writer.
 
The term self awareness comes up a lot these days, but it's not a new concept. 

For thousands of years, self-awareness has been recognized and valued by different cultures worldwide, evidenced through art, literature, religion, and a variety of ritual practices passed down from one generation to another.  But what is self-awareness exactly, and why is it so important?