DANGLED CARROTS: PROOF YOU’RE HEADED TOWARD YOUR DREAMS

Dangled carrots are, for the purposes of this post, those little offerings from the Universe that pop into our space right around the time we commit to something really brave. (I would venture to say that we attract them in for our own growth and re-commitment). They are the little thoughts that distract us from our dreams, the ones that say, “We know you want this dream, but do you REALLY want it?” A dangled carrot will say, “Look what I have to offer you! Are you sure you want to do that thing that’s going to take more work, more heart energy, more soul juice? If there’s any part of you that’s waffling, or wants to opt into the easier path, here is a very tempting proposition in the opposite direction of your dreams, but it is all yours if you want it!” Often dangled carrots represent something that has been very comfortable in our past, or that offers pleasure. They are not always negative, but they most certainly showcase forks in the road. They highlight alternatives to our heart’s direction that may lead to more suffering, more feeling stuck, and potentially adding more time and complication to reaching our highest expression.

Dangled carrots attempt to challenge our courage.
Ultimately however, they do have the potential to yield a boost in self-worth and help us re-commit to that which we are stepping towards and creating in our lives, here are a couple of examples:

• Getting married to the love of your life, there has never been a better match for you but you have cold feet the day before the wedding, and maybe an old lover calls asking for another chance. “We know you said you wanted to get married to this partner, but do you really want it?” 
• You have committed to getting back on the exercise train, and you’re eating well too, all signs you are taking care of your body, and investing in the longevity of your health, and the Universe delivers you free donuts in the lunch room, or a diet pill that promises to take it all off.  “We know you said you wanted to get healthy, but do you really want it?”
• A dream job takes you away from home, it is offered to you, but it entails a move somewhere unfamiliar and scary, and maybe will require a few more sacrifices. “We know you said you wanted this new job, but do you really want it?”
• There is an opportunity to creatively express for work. You are an artist and it is everything you’ve ever wanted. But you have a family to feed and this job does not guarantee a steady bi-weekly paycheck. “We know you said you wanted to be a full-time artist, but do you really want it?” 

And the question is sometimes, “We know you said you wanted this, but do you really feel worthy of it?” That’s where we can grow. We can re-commit to what it is we are setting our sights on, where our internal compass is pointing. We can dive inside and find a reminder from the light within that is immune to our inner-critic and worthiness issues, the part that always knows the truth. We are moving toward our alignment and our soul’s harmony, and we are worthy of choosing that in every moment, regardless of the circumstances presented for us.

 Dangled carrots will stretch us.
They will allow us perspective, and should not be taken as a sign of weakness; instead, begin to recognize them and interpret them as an opportunity to grow, to heal and to re-commit. Take them as a sign that you are making progress toward your dreams! They are a natural part of evolving into a higher expression. As you move toward your dreams, you know that fears come up, feeling nervous and anxious is normal, but start to see the dangled carrot distractions and potential sabotage points as also being very normal manifestations of our fears coming up for us to heal. Take a deep breath and check in with your truth because we always have choice to move toward our highest expression, we have choice when we are manifesting our experience; we have choice to take the high road and step with courage and faith toward our dreams. The dangled carrots are simply there to help present the places we still need healing.

A blatant example of a personal dangled carrot in my life appeared when I decided that I needed to do my soul work, which meant I needed to quit my perfect-on-paper-ego-satisfying-corporate-day-job. Not only did I need to leave the safe corporate job, I also had no real idea formed about what my soul work would look like. The world thought I was crazy, I had incoming doubts from family, from friends, from colleagues. By society’s standards I had it really good. I had a nice six-figure income, I was working for a Fortune 500 company in biotech, I was in an elite sales position, I worked with thought-leading experts in the medical field.

There was a higher calling in my soul. It was time to move on, I felt it, and it was becoming overdue. I quit my job, and my husband and I decided to make the move from San Francisco to San Diego to start a new healing practice together.

Dangled carrot #1:
The company I worked for offered me a job in San Diego. The thoughts running through my head were tricky. Things like, “Well, I could move and take the job down there, then eventually transition into the work of my dreams…I could take the job and then quit again when we get settled,” I even thought, “Maybe this is the Universe’s way of helping me have a comfy place to land with this transition.” 

Our thoughts can be so convincing, and our egos will do anything to avoid discomfort in the unknown. I closed my eyes and dropped into my heart and asked my own higher self and inner guide, “Do I take the job in SD?” I got a very clear, “No,” followed by a flooding sensation that I can only describe as suffocating. Then I asked, “I need a little re-assurance, help me see where I’m going.” I didn’t see the hundreds of people that I now work with, I didn’t see our amazing little healing office by the beach, I didn’t see the community of wonderful patients and clients that would love our office at TUNE. I simply felt, I felt completely supported, I felt a flood of love that burst my heart open that gave me faith. I re-committed to my soul work, and to leaving the old job.

Dangled carrot #2
I received a phone call with the news that “Oops, we forgot to give you this 5 figure bonus,” which felt like, “Are you sure you want to leave?” Once again this dangled carrot required a tuning in to my inner wisdom, I was tempted to stay…my heart said: “This is what you asked for. It is going to help you start your practice.” It did. I left the job, stuck to my guns, and took the bonus to help launch TUNE | Chiropractic, Health & Healing and Harmony Compass.

 The carrots continue to show up in my life, and in the lives of those that choose to daringly and courageously live from a place of guided faith. Living as a light for the world, creating our dreams and becoming our highest expression on a daily basis can be a more challenging way to live, but with those challenges comes growth, and with growth comes fulfillment. We are human, so these little carrots are natural! I now expect these triggers, and remember that they are there in some way simply announcing to me, “You’re at it again! Moving toward your dreams! You must have taken a few steps forward for this dangled carrot to exist.”

What are your dangled carrots? Please share your experiences!