STORY:
When walking through an elephant camp, a man noticed =
that the elephants were only secured with a small rope that was tied around=
one ankle. He wondered why the elephants didn’t break free from the =
rope, as the elephants were certainly strong enough to do so.
He asked a trainer =
why the elephants didn’t try to break free, and the trainer responded=
by saying that they use the same size rope for baby elephants all the way =
up to adulthood. Because they’re too small when they’re babies =
to break free from the rope, they grow up being conditioned that the r=
ope is stronger than they are. As adults, they think the rope can still hol=
d them, so they don’t try to fight it.
THOUGHTS:
The elephants had “le=
arned helplessness” as they anticipated discomfort without having a w=
ay to avoid it or make it stop. In the same way, a person will stop any att=
empts to avoid the pain, even if they see an opportunity to escape.
Such a fixed =
mindset is the result of “since we failed in the past, we give up try=
ing that is required for ultimate success”. Don’t let other peo=
ple (or your own past experiences) tell you that you can’t do somethi=
ng because you failed in the past.
&nbs=
p;
~~
Dr Bob Griffin
[email protected] www.grif.net
"Jesus=
Knows Me, This I Love!"
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