Who controls your mind and your reactions?
How people treat you is their karma; how you react is yours.
– Wayne Dyer
A Wayne Dyer Fact
Wayne Dyer published his first book, Your Erroneous Zones, back in 1976. He was 36 years old and it became one of the best-selling books of all time.
(BTW, that is an Amazon affiliate link. I may earn a small commission and it doesn’t affect the price you pay.)
Who Controls Your Mind?
It’s always easier to see behaviors in other people than it is in yourself, so watch people. See what they show you about yourself.
The mall is always a great place to people watch. I used to work for Disney in Orlando, FL so I went to the parks to people watch.
Watch how people react to the people and events around them. Do they get mad at things or do they brush it off? Do they react or do they respond?
Could they have handled it better?
Now take a look at you. How would you handle the situation?
React vs Respond
A reaction is like a reflex. It is habitual or programmed. You don’t think about it at all.
You know how your doctor taps the tendon below your knee to test your reflexes? Your leg kicks out no matter how hard you try to hold it back. You can’t prevent that reflex action because the signal from the stimulus doesn’t go all the way back to your brain. It only reaches your spinal cord and it sends back the built-in reaction.
A response on the other hand is one that you think about first. Something happens, you take a moment to consider how you want to respond, then you take some form of action. Or not. You make the choice.
Take Control of Yourself
So how do you handle the situation? Do you react or do you give a considered response?
That’s what Wayne Dyer is saying in today’s quote of the day.
How other people act, how they treat you, is all on them. It’s their responsibility.
But how you choose to respond is on you. You have complete control of your mind, your body, and how you respond to any given situation.
Use that, because you also have the responsibility.
This ties into the previous quote of the day as well – what is success? Take control of yourself and create your success.
