This edition is for my father: For teaching me to embrace the fight rather than fear it.

For those of you who know me well, know that by a twist of fate, I have been implicated in a nasty lawsuit here in California. Something I tried to get away from 4 years ago, has followed me. And it is a nasty business. And it is not my fight.

However, what this process has taught me, is to look for the gift in the situation and that gift has manifested itself in a mental armor, bulletproof.

What makes us the best? I tend to think it comes from the struggle. It is the choice to face a challenge head on instead of avoiding it. Endurance. Mental endurance. The ability to endure whatever life throws at you, to keep going no matter how hard it gets.

Mental armor

It is an internal firewall against the harmful words or actions of others that might otherwise undermine or diminish you. 

Developing this kind of shield gives you agency and allows you to choose what you want to take in and what to keep out.

Like bubble wrap around a piece of china. It makes us more willing to put ourselves out there and less afraid of failure and rejection. Another benefit is that it’s there when you need it. It is meant to be used when you need it. 

Fight, Flight, Freeze

It is important to discover your pattern and know how you will typically respond to a threat. Exert control over yourself: identify what you will do before it happens and assess the tactical costs and benefits of that response. 

The more control you have over your F3 response the better you will be able to deal with difficult situations and thrive. This is a fundamental lesson to becoming bulletproof.

To survive and thrive comes down to one thing: mental attitude. Mastering yourself and your response. Being able to think while keeping your panic at bay.  The best way to manage fear is preparation.  Become your own hero - control fear and even harness it. 

The visualization about our future is called the theory of possible selves. We self identify using experiences from our past and project those into our future.

We manifest our possible selves in 2 ways: through our hopes and fears. Fear keeps us alive, but fear can also keep us from living.

Courage is knowing what not to fear. (Plato)

Before we identify the most effective method for fixing a problem we must first understand the mindset we are in when the problem occurs.

Solutions require innovation. Creativity. 

Find meaning in our personal tragedies and use them in a way to enhance our lives or the lives of others. We will emerge stronger and more resilient.

Think about the difference:

Look what I became.

Look what became of me.

Don’t let nice get in the way of being smart. Pay attention to that force inside you. Standing your ground is not about physical strength, but mental conviction. The world is full of people who will try to dismiss you, intimidate you and violate you.

Create a bulletproof mindset. It requires a change in your mental makeup. Do not fear conflict or confrontation but embrace it when you need to.

When a predator enters your life, become a counter predator willing to defend yourself against anyone who tries to overpower you. Walk through life with a quiet sense of calm and inner strength.

The secret: predators primarily seek out those they perceive as weak. The ones they think will go down easy, who won’t put up a fight. Why? Because they don’t want a fair fight. They want someone they can conquer. An easy target. Don’t give them one.

Most predators modus operandi is to test you before deciding whether to attack or not. However, there is a misconception about predators. We assume they are strong and full of self confidence. We conjure this grandiose dominant persona who can crush us. We project our fear and we volunteer the role of prey.  Reality is they are feeble and insecure. 

You dictate what role you want to play in this world.

With love, Christina

We are twice armed if we fight with faith. (Plato)

Know a woman in agriculture, or any woman growing where she has been planted, who would connect with this message?
Forward this to her. She may be exactly who herloom is for.

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