The cycle of success - realizing your dreams (part one)

The creation spiral consists of 12 phases representing steps in the creation process from a wish to reality. This creative process is an ongoing process that, in fact, never ends. After all, it is human nature never to be completely satisfied.

The moment we realize a wish, that reality again inspires new desires. And rightly so. Those who can crawl want to walk, and those who can walk wish to run. Pleasure in life lies in constantly discovering new wishes and realizing them. It is a spontaneous process of natural development. The trick is to make that process as pleasant as possible. Because everyone develops and realizes new wishes during their life, the build-up of the creation spiral will feel intuitive and logical. The 12 phases are recognizable and immediately applicable.

While going through the creation spiral, you learn how to turn your wishes into reality in logical steps. You can apply these steps in various segments of your life, such as self-employment and personal development. In part 1 of this blog, you learn about the first six steps of the creation process. These steps teach you about the inner hurdles you must overcome before you begin the practical implementation of fulfilling your desires. The second part of this blog takes you through practical steps. We start at step 1 of each new cycle of creation – the process of receiving.

The spiral of creation

Receive

Receiving means accepting both positive and negative thoughts, emotions, and situations as they are. Thoughts and emotions have an essential function and always want to tell you something. It is not conducive to the creative process to resist it. The situation you are in is no different. In other words: where you are is where you are. Only when you accept your situation, thoughts, and emotions and where your qualities and pitfalls lie will space create change.

The core realization is that thoughts and emotions are a form of information and not a personal attack on your well-being. People are often ashamed of negative emotions, thoughts, and situations in their lives that are less than optimal. But it is precisely in the unwanted where treasures hide because once you allow yourself to receive the information about what you don't want, you can discover what you do want.

The art of receiving is not to resist the information that the world (situation) and your own body (thoughts and emotions) give you. By resisting anything negative or 'things that shouldn't be there,' you're missing out on that crucial information.

Receiving means accepting the information that negative things offer in your life. In addition, you can, of course, also receive information about positive things. When you find something beautiful in your life, the desire arises to receive more of it.

Appreciate

When you receive information – whether it originated from a positive or negative situation, thought, or emotion – you want to appreciate it extensively. Appreciating a favorable situation seems easy, but many people still have difficulty doing it. For example, receiving and enjoying compliments or applause can be quite a task. Complimenting yourself seems unthinkable to some people. Appreciating yourself and everything that is already going well in your life not only makes you feel good but also empowers you.

Valuing negative situations, thoughts and emotions don't seem obvious, but the most beautiful wishes often arise from negative things in our lives. The essence of appreciating is not that everything should be pleasant but that an experience turns into meaningful information.

If you look back at your life course, you will probably find an example where negative experiences formed the contrast from which a new wish arose. Without those negative experiences in your life, you could never have grown into the person you are today.

Appreciating helps immediately take the edge off negative emotions and focuses on the inspiration that change offers. Moreover, people who appreciate negative things in their lives are never victims.

Relax

Problematic situations, thoughts, and emotions have the universal characteristic that they feel dramatic, creating tension. But if you can appreciate everything that comes up in your life, the drama will subside on its own; this creates space to relax.

Use that space, allow yourself to feel the relief that comes when you don't want to take immediate action to deal with problems. Make time for a walk in the woods or meditate, even if you seem to be dying at work. By relaxing, you create the necessary peace and space to arrive at constructive wishes that align with what you do want.

People who develop their wishes from the drama of problems mainly focus on what they don't want. The brain is in survival mode, as it were, and desires are focused on survival, so you inadvertently invite even more of that drama into your life. Someone who takes a step back and relaxes will spontaneously make wishes that lessen the drama.

No need for a genie, YOU hold the power

Wish

Wishes are an essential part of giving meaning to life. Our inspiration and passion only arise when we want something, with ourselves, our lives, and others. Good wishes and desires are focused on the future. People experience the most joy in life when they renew, change and grow. Wants and wishes related to the past stand in the way of that growth. The process of innovation comes to a halt.

Wanting to go back to the past is also completely impossible. After all, everything changes. If you take a trip and then return home, you are not the same anymore. In other words: someone who walks a hundred meters in one direction and then walks back a hundred meters - although he stands in the same place - has still walked two hundred meters. We cannot wish for things to be as they used to be. It is human nature to think ahead and move forward.

Our desires are not arbitrary but link strongly to who we are. It is about our calling or destiny, which is the mainspring of our existence. You do not randomly choose your wishes and desires, but feel which ones best suit the person you already are. And when we choose desires based on what other people think is suitable for us, we miss satisfaction and authenticity.

In its initial stage, a wish can be quickly negated or repressed by the influence of others. As children, we learn that it is better to fulfill others' wishes rather than fulfill our own. That is why it is crucial to create space to find out which needs and desires drive us forward, which desires make us feel best and which vocation drives us.

Imagine

Imagining means allowing yourself to fantasize about your wishes; that you play with your own needs without feeling guilty. And that you creatively generate images that express your wish. Imagination gives substance to what used to be an abstract desire.

In this step, you mustn't yet think about the feasibility of your wish. You want to look at which dream gives you the most joy in life and then show that dream as concretely as possible. You can use all creative means, such as drawing, making clippings, writing stories, painting, and building. What innovative means you use to shape your wish is not so important. You must develop a sharp and clear picture of your wish.

Although you do not have to take reality into account when imagining, when you visualize your wish in concrete terms, you will already develop ideas about how you can realize that wish. The creative process thus also contributes to the development of ideas and possibilities. If you skip the creative process of imagining, you will miss many ideas that contribute to realizing the wish.

Believe

Nothing feels worse than having a wish you don't believe in. And there is nothing more pleasant than having a desire that you do believe in. We have already seen that 'belief in change' is indispensable in the change process. And Henry Ford's famous quote also applies here:

"Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right."

Rather than looking at reality and deciding what to believe based on that, faith is a creative force you can use to effect change. You can roughly divide your thoughts into two categories:

- Thoughts that reinforce your wish

- Thoughts that hinder your wish

Of course, practical objections sometimes make a wish impossible, but you can avoid most of these problems. Most people who do not realize their wish do not do so because of the practical objections, but because they estimate beforehand that 'something will not work anyway' and then never try it. Even though it may seem impossible, people who try something with faith and conviction often achieve their goals.

Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi are just a few inspiring examples of people who clung to their faith against all practical objections and did the seemingly impossible. If you believe that your wish cannot become a reality, remember that less likely desires were realized because people believed in success.

Start by believing in small steps that you expect to be achievable. Once you achieve those manageable steps, the next step (which previously seemed unfeasible) will suddenly seem possible. Trying to realize wishes you don't believe in is the best way to block yourself from growth.