Empty Your Trash Can

I heard something recently that really intrigued me: “We’re kind of like trash cans and we fill our trash can with a lot of emotions, expectations, thoughts of what people are thinking about us.”  When a trash can fills up to the brim, you have to empty it.  To put this thought even more clearly, “Our minds are like trash cans.”  They sometimes get so full of negativity (self-perceived and received from others) that, if we don’t get rid of those negative thoughts, they will paralyze us and keep us from progressing.  My goal in this post is to motivate you to empty your trash can so you can move forward (and I need this pep talk as much as any of my readers).

I have a lot of personal worries and insecurities, as I’m sure we all do.  When I am facing a task I find particularly challenging or unpleasant, these insecurities often become front and center in my mind.  One of the main ways I empty my trash can is by talking to my mom. (Sorry, Mom, but thank you so much!  I don’t know what I’d do without you!)  Another thing that helps me is to write out (type out, actually) my feelings.  Even though I have weaknesses and insecurities, my rainbow is that I have my mom, other people I trust, and my computer keyboard as means of sorting them out and working through them.  I hope that you have your own ways to release negativity.

To motivate you to do this, I’m going to share an example of what can happen when you empty your trash can.

Two weeks ago, Canadian figure skater Patrick Chan competed at 2015 Skate Canada.  It was his first major international competition since the 2014 Olympics.  He took last season off to recharge and explore other activities, such as snowboarding, surfing, and skydiving.  He toured with Stars on Ice and skated in various other shows, but he missed the training environment and the environment at competitions with his friends, so he decided to make a comeback.  When it came down to business at Skate Canada, it was very stressful and uncomfortable for him.  Emotionally, he felt uneasy during the 6-minute warmup for the long program and got off the ice knowing he had four programs to wait through before it was his turn to skate.  In his own words, here is what Patrick went through between the 6-minute warmup and the moment he stepped back onto the ice to do his long program:

“Kathy [Johnson, his coach] and I were talking, I’m like ‘Why did I make this choice? Why do I make myself do this? Why do I fear competing so much, and why do I put myself in such an uncomfortable position?” . . . .

“I got overwhelmed with emotions,” he said. “I felt like I owed people something, felt like I wanted to prove something to people, that I’m back and I wanted to skate well for them.

“Maybe breaking down into tears kind of opened up that path to letting go of all the pressure. I really did feel a lot lighter mentally going into the long, having let out all those emotions and realizing, ‘Alright, I’m just going to go out and do what feels good.’” (Source)

With this quote in mind, watch the long program he was able to put on the ice, mere minutes later:

I chose this particular video because it has no commentary to disrupt the mood that Patrick creates, and also because it includes Patrick’s full reaction to his performance.  His hug with Kathy Johnson at the boards as he sheds tears again is just precious.  It’s as if he’s saying, “Thank you for bringing me to this moment.”  I’m not going to analyze the program for you because there is no need to.  Everything simply flows as one, all the elements woven together seamlessly by the nuances of his beautiful movement.  He becomes one with the music and the choreography.  Enjoy this masterpiece in all its glory.

In another article, Patrick said, “I stepped on the ice, and as soon as I found myself in position in the middle of the ice, I felt very light and a lot more focused. So, it became my comfort zone again. I neutralized everything around, and that’s what made the program so successful.” (Source)  In other words, with his mind clear, he was able to skate one of the best long programs of his career.  He won the gold medal, by the way.

I am a member of an online figure skating forum called Golden Skate.  There is a “Fan Fest” thread there for Patrick Chan, which I absolutely love.  Fellow forum member “Violet Bliss” posted this piece of wisdom in Patrick’s Fan Fest after his amazing long program at Skate Canada: “When a person can mind his/her mind, life is bliss and success is joy rather than struggle.”   Don’t forget to mind your mind so that life can be at least a little more blissful.  Minding your mind makes it easier to see all the rainbows in your life.