The Frankl Pause

Victor Frankl wrote the book Man’s Search for Meaning, after surviving the Holocaust. Here is the exact quote:

“Between the stimulus and the response, there is a space. In that space, we have the power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and freedom.”

Any transformation requires new decisions and new actions. Within you, there is the older version of yourself and the new you.

The old you chooses certain actions, the new you chooses new actions. For example, if I’m wanting a new level of fitness and I have the decision between going to the gym or staying home… the old me would prefer to stay at home. The new me chooses to go to the gym. If you want to change anything you have to make millions of these micro-decisions. You have to choose the new, over and over again. At least 80% of the time. 

In relationships, this decision could look like this. You and your partner have a disagreement. The old you would have chosen to respond in that way. The new you chooses the new way.

The decision of choosing the new you is always harder than the counterpart. The brain likes comfort. If you let your conditioning choose it will always choose the easy path. When you choose the harder option over and over again you will inevitably hit that fitness, business, or relationship goal.