The Mirror

In order to be at our maximum effectiveness, in any area of our lives, from creating the perfect supportive relationship, to manifesting a million dollars, to experiencing perfect health, we have to first determine where we are: the position, perspective, or platform we are coming from, the place from which we intend to launch out toward the completion of our goals. How do we do that? How do we determine where we are? The most common way is to look out into our lives and catalog exactly what we have, in all areas, and then out of that list, determine where we have been. But where we have been is still not where we are. Doing that cataloging is like looking out the window and because there was snow on the ground yesterday, saying that "today, it's going to snow." The weather and human beings are simply not that static. So a second method must be employed in order to see where we now are, that of using the mirror.
What, is the mirror? The mirror is a tool, a piece of reflective glass that does not care what it reflects, has no opinion, no voice, no means to do anything else but reflect back what it sees. We must become like a mirror. When we become a mirror for ourselves, the reflection we see in that mirror will be where we are. We may at times not like, be embarrassed by, resist, argue with, or deny the image of ourselves that the mirror holds, but it does not care about any of those things either. It simply reflects what's there in front of it. Until we learn how to do this non-judgmental reflecting, we will always be launching ourselves toward the completion of our goals from a place other than the one we are really at, and in doing so, be left wondering why we are always arriving someplace we don't want to be: too short, not enough, and not quite it. Not very satisfying places! Yet we don't have to do this out-of-alignment launching ever again.
How then? How do we become a mirror for ourselves? Think about it. How long does it take for you to see your reflection in a mirror? A couple of seconds, and you know exactly what you look like. Mirroring ourselves is no different. This isn't a long and drawn out process that takes forever and is excruciatingly painful. Quite the contrary. It is easy because what we want to do is see ourselves, decide if that's an effective place to be coming from in order to get to where we have determined we want to go, and then choose. Do we stay the same, or do we shift our perspective into a more useful one? Always, we have this power to choose. And always, we have the power to look into the mirror and determine what platform we are standing on. This mirroring process is important to undertake before beginning any new project. One of the most useful questions you can ask yourself for the facilitation of this process is, "What would someone have to believe in order to have exactly what I have in my life right now?" For instance, if you have experienced partners who always seemed to have abandoned you, then what you have always reflected in that mirror might be the belief that "People always leave me after a while." If then, what you desire is a more stable relationship with your partner, you just might consider shifting your belief! Your new affirmation that confirms this belief could look like "My partner loves being around me all the time." Go ahead, pull up to a real mirror and say this to yourself until you begin to believe it.
Beginning to believe this new fact just might work better to support your desire to have a more stable relationship than continuing to feed your old beliefs energy. At one time, each belief we have started out by using the same exact process. All beliefs, including our newly chosen beliefs started out in this same way. We saw something happen, believed in it, and then repeated that circumstance over and over again in our minds, until our belief in it happening again and again was so strong that indeed, it did happen time and again. Maybe it's time to use that same process to strengthen some new beliefs! You were already successful doing this feeding of your energy to a particular belief once, why not again? You've already mastered the process anyway! Now just shift the direction that process is going in to one of your choice, and there you have it! Success! Just remember, this is a mirroring process, not some competition, even inside of yourself, for winning "the best belief" prize. Just tell the truth, and the truth shall set you free. Free to choose your new beliefs, which is where your real power is.
Then, choose. Choose which feelings, thoughts, and beliefs work for you in order to have the most efficient completion of your goals possible, and for your maximum in-the-moment joy, then work to strengthen those beliefs through whatever practice you feel best about. There are many means you can choose for your practice, just pick the first one you resonate with. Despite the fact that it is a highly sophisticated process, it is short, sweet, and to the point. The most useful things usually are.
The question is, "What does your mirror reflect?"