Look Up!
I’m an equestrian and my horses bring me so much joy. This morning in my quiet time I remembered a short phrase my riding instructor always used that had so much meaning to it. The phrase she said was “Look Up!”
Look up is a phrase used by dressage trainers to denote a philosophy of good physical riding form which instills confidence in the horse and rider. The unspoken part of the phrase is “Look down – go down” meaning, where ever we look, is where our brain takes us and then the body follows. So, if we want to be a good rider, we need to look up and focus on where we are going. A horse is so sensitive they will instinctively pick up on our cues and follow. This simple rule of horseback riding is so basic, and yet sometimes so hard to follow – simply look where you want to go. Horses are very intuitive and perceptive animals. They can feel even our smallest movements, including where we are looking. Many times, our tenancy is to look down at the horse and see what they are doing, which is completely ineffective in steering them. Instead, look where you want to go, and this will make the communication with the horse much smoother and effective.
It’s just as if you were driving a car; you wouldn’t drive down the road looking at the steering wheel; neither would you continue looking straight as you turn off onto a different road. Instead, you’d be looking up at what was coming ahead so that you were prepared and ready for it. Just as in horseback riding, goal setting is an important part of everyday life. We can make long term goals about where we want to go and what we want to be doing when we get there and hold that vision in our mind’s eye.
We need to set a course for ourselves and be the director in our lives. If we stumble, we can quickly correct the situation by noticing where our focus was. More than likely we lost our focus and looked elsewhere or even down to the ground where we feared going. If we continue to look down, we’ll go down. If we immediately check ourselves and ‘look up’ our horse will correct itself and we will once again be seated properly and avert the fall. The command ‘look up’ has so many meanings for me. It is a metaphor for keep your eyes on the prize, set your course and move toward your goal, and never waiver in your faith of your desired outcome. Keep your focus laser-like and your brain will follow, which will keep your body on track. This is how an athlete mentally prepares for a game. By holding the vision in his mind, he plays the video of himself performing the play perfectly and plays it over and over mentally so that when he’s finally in play it comes off perfectly.
The mind is an amazing tool that can help us achieve anything we wish to have or be. Our subconscious is like an accommodating robot that will deliver whatever we ask it to (think Google, Siri or Santa Claus). If we begin to understand the brain-body connection and learn how to use it, we can manifest all that we desire. If we will hold the state or feeling as though we had already achieved that which we desire and act as though we have already achieved our goal, we can accomplish anything. We need to live from this feeling and act as if. Once we operate from the state that we’ve already got what we want, we’ll be happy. We’ll be confident. We’ll be excited. This will raise our vibration or energy and the universe will deliver our deepest desires. Change your state and change your circumstances.
Set your course today. Stay focused and look toward the goal. Know that you are on your way.
Keep the faith! You can do it. You are worth it!
