Choose Your Metaphor Carefully
What metaphor do you use to describe life? Specifically your life.
For example:
Life is a playground of possibilities
Life is an adventure holiday
Life’s a bitch and then you die
Life is a war
Life is a battle
Life is a roller-coaster ride
Life is an improvisation game
Life is a mystery
Life is a garden
Life is a classroom
Life is a test
Life is a race
Life is a prison sentence
Life is a delicious smorgasbord
Here are some responses I received from friends when I posted a Facebook question asking people to share their metaphors:
Susanna Donau: Life is a precious gift, full of surprises
Brian Greytak: Life’s a beach. Then you’re shark bait.
Olga Balance: Life is a piano keyboard with black and white notes
Julien Bertrand: Life is improvised
Fleur Filmer: Life is amazeballs
Jaz Goven: Just do it anyway!!!
It’s your choice.
Just remember that the metaphor you choose makes a big difference, because it’s the lens through which you see your life and the world. It colours the way you approach everything: your life, the challenges and opportunities you face, and the way you think, feel, assess people and situations, relate to people, make decisions, take action, work, play, ponder your past, measure your progress, face your future…
So ask yourself whether your metaphor is useful to you, right now and in the long term. Is it getting you closer to the feelings, experiences and results you want in your life? Is it driven by love or fear? Does it feel light and playful, or heavy and joyless? If it’s not working well for you, do you want to hang onto it and let it control you forever, or are you willing to let it go and choose a more useful one?
Please leave a comment about your metaphor and how it serves you (or not).
And if it’s not serving you well, what do you plan to do about that? To prompt your thinking, below are two questions for you to ask yourself, from my “The Playground of Possibilities” card deck.
See the Card Deck page here on this site for more info, and to buy a deck (or several decks, to share with your friends, family members, clients, students…), please go to the Shop page.
Love – Kay, Your Head Tour Guide in The Playground of Possibilities
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