SHOTBEFORE

If you look close enough you will see more than the superficial, you will see the layers of alternative perspectives that open your eyes to the truth. Where the facts are being ignored lies are put in place to mask the truth of the true situation all to protect those who are willing to be honest from being punished for stating the obvious truth. People who are aware of the outcome of sharing their honest thoughts choose to divert to lies all to ensure that their vulnerabilities aren't on show for the cynical minds to be able to disect their views and use them as a negative tell. If no one knows what your annoyances are then you are safe, but the actual truth is buried under all the lies of your deceit and neglect of the truth. So is it better to share the truth and risk the outcome that it brings for speaking the truth? Or is it better to not be the nail that stands up infront of the hammer waiting to knocked down? The answer is what do you have on the line? and is it worth your honest opinion?. We are all made different some of us see deeply into life while others are content being happy in their own ignorance, either way you do you because whatever gets you through the day and to the next is better than you being miserable and therefore struggling with life's challenges.

Some people get frustrated if they are not the centre of attention all the time. When they are not included in the conversation they will pony around until the groups eyes are only on them. Showing off only when the crowd is watching them in the hope that you would see them as though they have things under complete control and that they are stand out happy all the time. Their disguise may please the crowd but when your show pony varies so much from your true self that will only come out when the doors are closed in the comfort of your own home it is unhealthy. Their insecurities force them to take part in a conversation even when they have nothing to say, this leads to them putting their dignity on the line all for a laugh. They parade the floor showing others that they are confident in all aspects of their life even though they might have struggles in their life that are adding to their insecurities. To ignore the pain is to deny the pain and how you are actually feeling now masking it with a smile will mean your sorrows will be overlooked and you will never have the assistance that could get you out of your slump. They don't realise that our struggles might be different but we all try to deal with them the best we can by not ignoring them and pretending they dont exist will put you in the line of faking your conversations all to prevent anyone from getting to know the real you. The more you act past what you are really feeling the more the show pony takes control of you and puts you into a rollecoaster where you will lose yourself. So entertain all you like but not at the detriment of who you are. Acting the fool will lead to people treating you like a fool. Their is more substance in being real than ignoring your reality, so less pony and more you.

We strive to remove the hardship from our life so that we can live a life without stress and struggles, but its the intolerable levels of hardship that we have to face that has helped us in discovering our true potential. Living a life where the things that you desire are handed to you on a silver platter will only take your desire to try further away, because there is no sense of achievement for something that comes that easy to you, this eventually leaves you in a weaken and vulnerable state of mind where you wont do anything ever for yourself untill those helping remove thier assistance. A life that is so simple leaves us feeling that we cant achieve greatness because we have never got ourselves out of our comfort zone because the fear of failure has controlled us. Not trying to pursue our dreams and staying where we are most comfortable is failing yourself because you have never given yourself the chance to meet your full potential. Let your passions guide you to a place where its worth the risk and even though you may fall there is nothing that can hold you down when your are focused on your passion. So if you plan to use your life appropriately then live it trying to reach your full potential chasing it passionately and maybe you'll surprise yourself because we only know what is around the corner if we get off the couch and look.

We live in a world where there are rules put in place to keep things in an organised order rather than letting the chance of chaos to determine our fate. No matter whether it's right or wrong the order to things that keeps the momentum moving forward is regarded as the path that should be followed, so if your not keeping up with the direction that the world moves in then you'll be left behind no matter of your status. When faced with a dilemma that may compromise your views Is it better to bend your values or fold them?. The choice to say what is on your mind should be weighed up against the likelihood of your point being interpreted in the way that it is intended rather than opening up and telling all while others keep quiet with their personal views. If your point of view no matter how valid it is, is ignored and brushed aside because the facts fail to impress then you have wasted your time trying to show someone the sensible option and all you've managed to achieve is creating conflict between you both. Sometimes choosing to speak their language, play the same games that they play is the better option otherwise you'll give them all while they give you bare minimum. So choose your battles wisely and make sure you ownly open to those who aren't trying to tear you down. Your life will be less weary if the drama in your life is on the TV set not a part of your lifestyle.

We are surrounded by information everyday, but how we interpret that information varies from individual to individual. People who believe in multiple truths will always highlight their views as "my truth" but if truth was based only on your own personal view point and not a universal view point then how are we ever as a society supposed to see eye to eye when there is conflict. Truth is universal because it is aligned with facts that is why we all have to accept it as factual reality whether it works in our favour or not because that is the first step to establish common ground with one another. Without the right information infront of us we would all struggle to make sense of the world because where reality and truth collide there will only be conflict. Our core belief system influences how we interpret the information that we receive as either true or as false but because the information is siphoned from a limited source it forces us to fill in the gaps by guessing the rest, this is why we all may think we are right but where common sense is ignored its likely not to be you. Our version of the truth relys solely on what we think is the best representation of the truth even though we may only have a piece of the puzzle, but this can change easily with the discovery of new valid information. So before you choose to make up your mind on what's true maybe put a bit of thought on the other side of the fence and try not to be distracted by your emotions.

The preferred lifestyle we all desire is based on our personal interests. Some of us chase fulfilling careers while others are content with a simpler lifestyle, both are right because it should be about each to the own as long as you don't affect someone else's dream. No matter what your passions are let them be the guide you to happiness and dont let the doubt of others lead you ashtray.

Leading by example may sound simple enough, but unless you practice what you preach you'll find out that the respect your expecting from your peers will never come. People will only follow your lead if they feel that the rules that you have put in place are for everyone equally to abide by and not just there when it suits your preferred situation. Respect will not sit well with those you surround yourself with if you've chosen the mentality "do as i say not as i do" because this will have your peers half heartedly supporting your flawed rules rather than following them because they just makes sense. When you show them that your rules dont apply to you then your lack of devotion to what should be set in stone crumbles with any influence that you might have over your peers. The power to motivate only works if you see yourself on the same level as those that you are in charge of. If your actions lack consistency then don't be surprised that confusion sets in and your influence degrades. Rules are put in place to keep the foundations from collapsing, rules dont bend just to suit your scenario, if it's wrong for me then it's wrong for you. You can not be both a friend and foe at the same time to the same person because bending the rules to shield your friends transforms you into a foe to the misfortunate who are without your selected leanancy. So more leading to whats right and less choosing whats right for now and you will notice that their will be less confusing moments that you can not justify when your questioned by your peers.

Most people choose to only see the good qualities in others while that may at first glance seem to be an admirable quality to have, choosing to ignore the bad qualities is a show of weakness. We do not have the luxury to pick and choose what we consider a good quality in persons character so we choose to highlight it and ignore the less desirable qualities in someone by playing dumb never to admit that we have noticed the flaws from the get go. When you choose to give your support you must accept people for who they are, even if that means accepting their flaws. Denying their dark side because it doesn't sit well with your morality means you are denying your own morals because if you dont believe that they are a good person but you are still standing by them it says more about how you've chosen to compromise your own personal values, so then maybe the real problem goes further than them and its all about you. Maybe you are not the person that you think you are because we all have our own flaws but only few of us accept them as a part of who we are, accepting the truth will mean you don't need to hide behind ridiculous excuses which always end up with you getting yourself caught in a lie. The idea that once you accept the truth and confront someone for their manipulative ways it might mean that the repercussions may affect your so called perfect relationship with them but at least its not going to hurt twice as much when you've invested so much more of your time in them. A lot of people would rather choose the easier path where you restrict yourself in looking too deep into someone's else's character for where it might lead you, but they are even more afraid of self analysis because it's hard to keep on smiling if you find out that you are not a nice person underneath all your broken promises. So keep your moral compass aligned with your actions and stand proud that you have stuck by your word because without our word we are lost.

We are our memories, it is our memories that we refer back to when we are trying to learn from our previous experiences. It is our lifes bookmarks that steers the direction of our path and can explain why we do the things that we do. What we choose to remember can highlight our priorities whether its consciously or subconsciously our brain chooses what it wants to retain. Negative experiences linger longer in the brain than positive experiences this could be because our built in primary instincts are to protect ourselves from harm by doing what ever we can to survive. Without our past being referenced we are more likely to repeat the same mistakes that we made in our past this is why it is important to reflect back on to the various stages in our life where we have felt powerful emotions that either have made us promise to try to feel the good that we did on a good day or never to repeat the mistakes that we made on that horrible day again. It is normal to want the best life experiences you can have but it sometimes necessary to hold onto the memories that prevent you making the same mistakes. If you wipe your memories clean of the past you will also lose the you that was smart enough to dig yourself out of the trenches by getting your life back on track. So choose your life plan carefully and don't blame others for your bad choices because it is your responsibility alone to learn from your past so that your past mistakes wont live in your future.

Shame can be a great preventative because it can be the barrier that reminds us of who we are and where our line is. The rules we live by and stand by are put in place so that we don't compromise our preferred set values. Your line is defined by your moral compass so if you adjust your base line just to benefit your own selfish needs then you will find it harder and harder to grasp onto the person that you are striving to be. It is immediately after you have gone through a shameful experience that your toughest lessons are learnt. The bad feelings that remain with you lingers on to remind you that the bad choices you make will lead you to bad experiences. So all you need to do is to stay consistent with your values and remember no matter the outcome you have stayed true to your preferred self without the sacrifice of your dignity. If you are going through a tough period in our life where you are feeling hopelessness you can have solace in the knowledge that you have stayed true to your self and not given in to the corrupt path just because its easier. It is through the difficulties of your life experiences that strengthens your soul so if you get knocked down remember to say out loud "Is that all you've got because i have more". So strive to be the better you that you can be and let you shame remind you of where your moral compass starts and ends because we all have to have to draw a line in the sand some time or another.

Throughout our life we strive for more because we believe that once we have more of whatever we desire that we would reach our utopian lifestyle. We believe our life will improve if we put all our time in focusing only on the steps that will get us closer to the things we dream of. Whether its fame fortune  or anything in between we believe that the sooner we reach our goals the sooner we will reach our highest level of happiness. Your attempt to reach your goals shouldn't come at the cost of your values. Sometimes when you live your life with your head in the clouds you can lose sight of what you currently have. Living your life in fast forward may feel like the right thing to do because you won't get distracted by the things that arent on your check list but the journey is as, or even is more important than, your destination. So enjoy the ride because it is lifes struggles that help strengthen us to toughen up so that we can handle our next challenge. Remembering your roots will keep you grounded loyal to the person that you once were before you let lifes struggles taint your views. It is our past that connects us to our future, to deny the person that you once were is denying an important part of your true identity. Choosing to step on anyone just to reach your goals will be a dishonour to the innocence you once had and will only lead you to live a lonely lifestyle. If your younger self met the person that you've grown up to be would they be proud of that person or ashamed of how got there. You should respect that it was your past self that got you through the hard times triumphantly  so that you could take one step closer to your  preferred future.

The common mistake that people make when they are trying to advise someone about changing their lifestyle is that they are purely focused on what has worked for them rather than thinking about what would be beneficial for the other person. They believe that if someone took their advice and followed it to the letter that they too would be as happy as  they are, even though what may feel like a sure thing to them might not even be a consideration in the eyes of the listener. The wrong advice has the influence to dampen someone's else's interests even though it is unintentional. We all vary in our interests and believing that the formula to happiness is based on what one person's success will only end up in making a carbon copy of that person giving the advice. Those who stray from their own pathway of interests will only get lost in the end and be left questioning why they went against what felt so right. Advice needs to lead to a pathway that the person requiring the advice wants to reach but is struggling to see, not as a new goal furrher away from their personal interests of the one listening. So maybe the best advice is to not give advice so that people can work themselves out without someone steering them away from what matters most to them.