Unlocking Growth Through Letting Go of Resistance

What would your life look like if you stopped wrestling with resistance and embraced the unknown instead? Join me as I reflect on a childhood experiment that taught me the magic of letting go, and how the same principle from a New York City dance class can be applied to personal growth. Resistance, often seen as an adversary, might just be the key to unlocking hidden potentials, much like how dancers achieve greater flexibility by first creating resistance and then surrendering. Inspired by my book, "The Places When There Are Spaces," I explore how consciously choosing to release resistance can lead to surprising opportunities for growth and change.
Exploring the magic of letting go, this episode encourages listeners to rethink their resistance to change and embrace it as a tool for growth. By sharing personal reflections and life lessons, the discussion reveals how surrendering can enhance flexibility and transform our lives for the better.
• The transformative power of releasing resistance
• Personal anecdote illustrating the magic of letting go
• Dance as a metaphor for flexibility in life
• Recognizing resistance as a signal for growth
• Reevaluating the concept of futility in resistance
• Inviting reflection on personal obstacles

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Transcript

Speaker 1 0:24

Hey there, I have a question for you. What would be different if you voluntarily stopped resisting things in your life? I'm curious. Think of something right now that you might be resisting. What would be different if you voluntarily just stopped resisting, dropped the rope, as it were, if you simply just let it go? What would be different? I'm going to read something that I wrote a while back and now appears in my book, the Places when there Are Spaces. That talks a little bit about this. It's chapter 45, and it's called the Magic of Letting Go.

Speaker 1 1:19

When I was a kid, I used to stand in the doorway of my bedroom and press my arms as hard as I could against the doorframe for 30 seconds and then step away to feel my arms magically rise up. How wondrous it was to feel that involuntary lightness. I never much cared to wonder why it happened, but was completely delighted every time that it did. Years later, when I was teaching dance in New York City, I discovered that a similar principle could be applied to increasing flexibility. So one dancer would stand against the wall while the other helped them raise their leg up, and when the dancer with the leg in the air had stretched as far as they could go with the help of their partner. They were instructed to press down as hard as they could against their partner's hold to create resistance. The interesting part was that when they stopped resisting and let go, their flexibility increased. They were able to stretch even further than they had before. So today, through my lens as a coach, I can't help but wonder if this principle can be applied to the way we approach our lives.

Speaker 1 2:40

What things in life are we resisting that might be opportunities for growth if we consciously choose to let them go. Think about it. What would be different if we voluntarily stopped resisting things in our lives? Resist means to fight against or oppose, to refuse to accept or be changed, or to stop oneself from doing something that one wants to do. Do you know how much energy that requires? Each of these definitions imply that there is something undesirable on the other side, an adversarial person, thought or thing that you are using all your might to keep out, not to mention exhausting yourself in the process. But what if you reframed resistance as a tool that increases your flexibility, when used consciously, as my students did all those years ago in my dance class? What if resistance was an indicator of a place to grow to stretch, as opposed to a primitive defense mechanism that operates on fear.

Speaker 1 3:59

If you're a Star Trek fan, you'll recall the mantra of the enemy Borg resistance is futile. But resistance is not futile at all If we draw awareness around where in our lives we are resisting. We can also shine light on how we can use resistance to stretch the limits of what's possible. Well, to increase our edge. We do this not by continuing to resist, but by letting go. Not because you can't resist any longer, but because it serves your growth. So once again, here's the prompt that appears at the end of the chapter what would be different if you voluntarily stopped resisting things in your life? I'm Lisa Hopkins. Thanks so much for listening. Stay safe and healthy, everyone, and remember to live in the moment.