“Boundaries are imaginary lines we establish around ourselves to protect our souls, hearts and minds from the unhealthy or damaging behavior of others. It is recommended to extend your boundaries at least two or three times beyond where they are”
Thomas Leonard, Coach Inc.
Last week, we activated the electronic dog fence for our dog, Brady. Until then, we had kept him on a leash, tied him on a long-line to the tree, or he ran around our neighbor’s yard and even worse, into the street. Teaching him the boundaries of the fence over several days got me thinking about how we establish (or don’t establish) boundaries in our own lives.
Similar to the electronic dog fence, boundaries are an imaginary line of protection that you draw around you. This is done to protect your soul and what’s important to you. You cannot grow without boundaries.
When a person has healthy boundaries, fear diminishes significantly and trust is rarely an issue. Your family members and friends respect you more and they you can begin to grow more both emotionally and developmentally.
When someone’s boundaries are weak, they attract needy and disrespectful people into their lives. People without good boundaries end up wasting much more energy to keep life going for themselves. And it’s very hard to move forward or grow when you feel drained or even violated.
Three steps you might want to consider in order to have extensive boundaries:
1-Review (or set or reset) your boundaries around your time, relationships and spirit
2-Be willing (and patient) to educate others on how to respect your new boundaries
3-Make a list of the 10 things that people may no longer do around you, do to you or say to you.
It’s helpful to see that having weak or undefined boundaries can be a source of great friction and energy for you. In fact, you may have learned to do quite well with this type of energy (albeit expensive and toxic as it is).
So, I urge you to set new boundaries and see that you will begin to attract people who have a similar respect for themselves, and you’ll have more room to grow because you aren’t being drained.
 Mandy works with talented, high energy self employed professionals and very small businesses who struggle to market their business effectively, stretch their capacity and play a bigger game. Mandy’s client’s receive proven, specific information on what they need to do to get more clients and grow their business. As a result, those who coach with Mandy increase their business, get more clients and make more money, faster and easier than they ever would have on their own. Sign up for her free Cd “7 Productivity Secrets of Successful Entrepreneurs” right down below. |
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