Wait or Anticipate

Hello loves!

Happy first week of October! It's crazy how quickly this year has gone by. I feel like yesterday it was still July, and all of a sudden it's the beginning of October!

Now, I love the fall and Spooky Season (and the oncoming approach of Christmas), and I'm so excited about changing leaves and cold weather. There are a lot of things to look forward to about this month.

However, a new month beginning-- especially one towards the tail-end of the year-- also forces me to think about how quickly time is moving. And the things I thought I'd have by now still haven't happened.

The people who are close to me know how rough the job-hunting season has been. It's been nice having a break, but after a certain point, the rejections & ghosting go beyond frustration. When you've heard 'no' one too many times, it can be easy to think what you want or what you're working for will never happen.

A lot of my friends who are in the same boat as me have said they feel it as well. Other people may be waiting for something other than a job; a relationship, a baby, a house, etc. Whatever the case, we've all been in positions where we have wanted something, waited, and, after a long period of radio silence, given up.

No shame about that; we've all given up on dreams at one point. It's so easy to mistake the waiting as a No.

Growing up, I was told to take my wants and needs to God and that I would get 3 possible answers back: Yes, No, Maybe.

However, I think that saying should be reworded a bit. Instead, the 3 possible answers are: Yes, No, and Not Yet.

That may not seem like an important distinction but it is.

First of all, I think using the word "maybe" as a possible answer from God aka the one in charge of ~everything~ is a bit silly. Historically "maybe" is used when you are uncertain about something. Whether you believe the Bible or not, one of the most noteworthy descriptors of God is "all-knowing" which means He can't exactly be uncertain about something, now can He?

(Side note: I also take issue with the word "maybe" because almost everyone I know has joked that "maybe" is just a nicer way of saying no. Which, yes that's true on some level & again makes "maybe" redundant in this scenario.)

Which is why I think the actual three possible answers for our wants-- whether we loudly project them through the universe or carefully hide them in the tiniest bits of our hearts-- are Yes, No, and Not Yet.

"Not Yet" is pretty great, for a lot of reasons. It isn't a no. It encourages hope and even anticipation for something good coming.

A perfect "Not Yet" example can be found in the first Pirates of the Caribbean (I just rewatched that movie, so apologies for the outdated reference but oh well). When Elizabeth gets kidnapped by the bad pirates, Will understandably wants to go after her right away. However, he's taken on various, seemingly dumb side quests by Jack that involve grand theft autoing a ship, going to a 1700s Spring Break island, and putting up with a barely-sober pirate's theatrics for multiple days. But, if you've seen the movie, you know that all those road bumps not only helped Will rescue Elizabeth but were also completely necessary for stopping the bad pirates once and for all. If Will had gone after Elizabeth right away, a lot of people would have been terrorized by undead pirates (very Halloween season of them).

The waiting didn't make sense at the time, but it was necessary to let all the pieces fall into place for the best outcome.

Now in real life, a lot of our waiting periods are way less exciting and it's even harder to see if we're making progress or not. But, to reach our goals, we can't lose hope in the waiting. Which is where shifting your mindset comes in.

I think one of the coolest, real-life examples of how shifting your mindset can change your life is Helene Hadsell, otherwise known as "the Contest Queen". Why was she called that? Because it seemed like she won every contest she entered. I kid you not, Helene won a free trip to Europe, a new car, and an entire house built to her specifications along with other highly valuable prizes because of her mindset while entering the contests.

Helene affectionately called her method "Wish Craft", but it's more commonly referred to as the S.P.E.C method:

Select It.

Project It.

Expect It.

Collect It.

There are a lot of in-depth articles & YouTube videos about Helene and her method, which I recommend checking out, but the short of it is that by shifting your mindset with the S.P.E.C. method, you will always be a winner.

Select what you are after. A desired job, a weight loss goal, getting married... Whatever it is, be as specific as possible.

Then Project the feeling of already having it. I know this step can sound "manifesty" but I have met so many people who live like this and wouldn't you know it, they somehow do get the things they're after. Part of it is also scientific because if you are living your life as someone who already has *inserts selected item*, you'll find yourself making smart and beneficial decisions that will help you reach your goal sooner. Say your 'selection' is to be a Marathon winner. So you start projecting into your life that you already are a marathon winner, and you'll find yourself training, eating, and having the positive mindset of one. Watch how quickly that hard work pays off until you for real become a marathon winner.

Expect it is the section I think everyone struggles with the most, and it's why I said to change the waiting answer from a "maybe" into a "not yet". Think of your goal as an online order. When your order is taking longer than you expected, which would you rather hear: "Oh it's not there? Well, maybe it'll come" or "It's not there yet, but it's on its way"?

I think all of us who have experienced losing packages in the mail know how awful it is to get the "maybe" answer.

That's why, when we take our requests to God, and we don't get a straight-up "no" (which I promise, you will know when it's a "no"), you can assume it's either a "Yes" or a Not Yet", which is still a "Yes". Think of how much more encouraging it is to be working hard for something when you are certain it will come, rather than maybe come.

Helene knew that, and it's why everyone remembers her as a winner. Now, Helene actually didn't win all the contests she entered, but it feels like she did. And that's because when she hadn't gotten a straight 'no', she knew that meant her prize was coming eventually. She was always a winner because she didn't give up at the setbacks in her waiting period.

When we don't give up in our own waiting periods, no matter how long it takes or how hard it seems, then we are certain to Collect our goals.

So if you're in a rough, seemingly unending period of waiting, I want to say two things:

First, you are not alone and you do not have to go through this waiting alone. You are so loved and supported and the ones who care about you are there when the waiting starts to get overwhelming.

And second, don't give up. You didn't fail. There's nothing wrong with you. Your dreams haven't arrived yet, but they will. And it will be so worth the wait.

Love y'all!

"There's no failure, only delay in results" --Helene Hadsell

“Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him.”--Isaiah 30:18