I am convinced that the main reason education is so attractive to people from all walks of life and at every stage of their lives is because becoming educated should provide us with opportunities to do the very things we were born to do—learn and create. Not only does schooling in general offer us this opportunity, college in particular provides us with an environment that is specially designed to support these two activities. In college we have an opportunity to immerse ourselves in an environment where everyone else is doing what we are there to do—learn and create. Nearly every member of a campus community is engaged at some level in these activities, be they students, faculty, or staff. This is the allure of college.
But for people who have been conditioned to have negative emotional responses to learning and creating, who have self-limiting beliefs about their learning and creative abilities, or who have unpleasant memories associated with learning and creating, school becomes a tremendous challenge. To make matters worse, for many people, the impact of these negative emotional responses, self-limiting beliefs, and unpleasant memories may not be understood at a conscious level. The body is an energy field that stores memories, beliefs and emotions at a cellular level. Even if we aren’t consciously aware of what limits us, those limitations control our behaviors. Nearly every choice we make in life is influenced by the memories that are stored in our cells.
The good news is that we now have a method for clearing the energy blocks that are formed by these negative emotions, beliefs and experiences. But in order for this method to work, we need to develop a certain degree of self-awareness. A lack of self-awareness can stand between you and the goals you wish to achieve.
We are fortunate to live in a world that offers us numerous ways to spend our time. But along with all this opportunity for countless ways to spend our time come endless messages about how we should spend it. Rarely, if ever, are we told to turn off all the outside noise and focus our attention on ourselves. This is the paradox of contemporary life. For it is only when we become still and quiet enough to hear and follow the guidance that comes from within that we are able to find a direction for our lives that will lead us to happiness and fulfillment.
If you dream of academic success but previously have been unable to succeed in your pursuit of that dream, or you have any doubts about your ability to succeed in school, I urge you to take the three tests that are included on the following pages of this chapter. These simple tests will allow you to a) assess your receptivity to learning; b) assess your access to your own creativity; and c) assess your willingness and ability to make time in your life for your education. They will also challenge you to listen inward to identify the sources of any blocks that may be standing in the way of your academic success. The more accurately you can identify the blocks that stand between you and the degree you desire, the more successful you will be at clearing those blocks.
At first glance, the tests you are about to take may seem quite simple. In fact, they have the potential to provide you with a wealth of information about yourself, information that can be used in Chapter Three of this book where I explain to you how to use EFT to achieve your dreams.