Beliefs come from many different sources such as what our parents, family members and religious leaders teach us, from what we observe happening around us and the things we experience directly as well as from what our culture (including music, books, television and movies) teaches us.

We are constantly being programmed by all of these sources from birth to adopt a specific set of beliefs which are frequently called ‘values’. The primary purpose of all this programming is to keep us alive by teaching us to avoid danger and also to help us fit into society. Human beings have been using both laws and religion since the beginning of time as a way to get people to conform to what their society considers acceptable behavior.

Using laws is pretty obvious, but why religion? Because, you have to get caught doing something considered against the law before you get punished. If we believe that we will be punished by God, who is all powerful and all knowing, we don’t have to caught to be punished so we are much more likely to do as we are told then if something is just against the law.

I am sure you can see that with our beliefs being influenced by so many different sources, serious conflicts are bound to occur. So, what do we do when there is a conflict? Small children adopt the beliefs of their parents and other care givers. Children need approval from their parents and usually will do whatever it takes to get their love and approval.

The basic foundation of our belief system is learned by the age of five. Most of the time, we are not consciously aware of what those beliefs are. But, if we don’t live according to our true beliefs, we cannot have a life of happiness and contentment.

Are you happy and content with your life?

A belief is a method that we use to define the world around us. The fact that we believe something doesn’t make it true nor does it make it false.

Small children believe in Santa Clause, the tooth fairy and that everything mommy and daddy tell them is true. They also believe that the way their family, culture and religion do things is right, good and normal. As adults, we realize that Santa Clause and the tooth fairy are harmless fantasies that bring joy into the lives of children.

We all create beliefs based on the things we see, hear and experience. From birth on we are developing our belief system and it changes as we experience new things.

For example, if I eat something and it makes me sick, I might try the food one more time to be sure that it was the food that made me sick. But, if I get sick the second time, I will create a belief that I cannot eat that food because it makes me sick. Once I adopt that belief, you will have a very hard time getting me to ever touch that food again. However, I really have no idea exactly what made me sick, just that something in the food I ate did and I don’t like getting sick so I will never willingly eat it again.

Have you ever really examined your beliefs?

Some people define success as having lots of money and material possessions. Many people talk about power and celebrity status. Others talk about love, family and self esteem.

Who’s right? … Or is there really a “right” answer?

I define success as having enough resources to do the things I really want to do…the things that bring me happiness and contentment. The resources can be money, time, material things, friends, family, education, social status, power, etc. It all depends on what you want to do…what brings you happiness and contentment. The answer is different for each individual.

Do you know what you really want to do?

This blog is dedicated to all of the people who have played a significant part in my life on my journey from a totally screwed up teenage girl to the woman I am today.

If I had to write a title for my life’s story, considering everything, it would have to be,

You Can’t Get There From Here!

Yet…here I am. I plan to tell you all about where I started and what I needed to do to get to where I am today. If you want a little more background on what this Blog is about, click on “What This Site Is About” over there in the right hand column under the sign up form.

Please feel free to join in the discussion by leaving a reply below.

Donna