There are many ways to succeed in our lives. Sometimes we need to unlock our potential and sometimes we need to lock away other aspects of our personality that do not support us. Knowing what to unlock and what to lock-up are the key (nothing like a bit of pun) to our success.

I am going to define these as the ABC’s of opportunity. A is for those things we need to avoid. B is for be careful they can sneak up on us. C is for things to choose for getting aligned with the highest version of ourselves. Each of us has a higher and better version of ourselves if we choose to express it. And make no mistake. It is a choice.

Each of us instinctively knows that part of ourselves which is better locked up than out in the world. I would say most of the things to “lock up” are things which are easily identified as negative. The emotions jealousy, hatred, malice, greed and envy come first to mind. They are destructive. They are divisive. They are classified as “A” emotions for Avoid at all times.

It is easy to spot those things we need to “lock away” because they are isolating and push us away from each other. The other important distinction is that I am talking about the source itself and not just the behaviours or their outcomes. For example we could have an addiction or we could just have bad habits like “petulance”. These are the manifestation of a source issue not resolved. The source issue could be many different things but the outward sign of the problem would be the addiction or negative behaviour towards others. When it is just “bad behaviour” we can choose new behaviours but another approach (especially for issues such as addiction) that I am suggesting is we delve to the deepest part of our ego psyche to eradicate the thing itself thus changing our surface behaviours. And finally, and most importantly when I say “lock away” I mean deal with as opposed to cover up, ignore or pretend to resolve. Only when we resolve our issues do we truly have them under lock and key.

The next group of negative energy which can drain our positive intentions are more difficult to spot because they are not so obvious. Pride, low self-esteem, apathy, criticism, avarice, disdain, confusion and judgement can overtake even the most positive personalities and wreak havoc in our lives and relationships. Unlike the “A” types they can come and go. All of us have experienced low self-esteem for example at some point in our lives. It is easy to be judgmental sometimes. This is the “B” group of emotions so named because we need to Be careful or Be on the lookout for when they may appear in our lives.

Finally we come to the solutions. The “C” level are in fact the Choices we make that combat the negative and help us to regain a positive energy and balance in our lives. The “C” level are also easy to spot because they are uplifting and immediately we feel better when we express and experience them. They are hope, faith, charity, generosity, empathy, love, kindness, confidence, courage and inspiration. In all instances choosing these will immediately lessen the hold the “A’s” and “B’s” may have upon us.

Over the course of the next few weeks I will concentrate on creating exercises for dealing with the negative emotions and exercises to unlock the solutions but for today remember that we always have free choice. And sometimes to discover who I am I discover who I am not. And when I choose the negative path to discovery it does not change the fact that free choice still remains my faithful companion.

So if today you find yourself choosing some aspect of yourself that you do not enjoy or creates negativity within you or isolates or even negates others then simply choose again and make sure you choose from the right list!