Allow Yourself to Want Everything

"You’ve got to be kidding, you may be thinking.

How could I?

It would be indecent!

Who am I to want everything? Everything?!

Actually, we can ask, “who are you NOT to want everything?”

Ever watch a toddler? They waddle around the house grabbing everything they can get their hands on, putting much of it into their mouths or picking it apart with their tiny fingers. We watch them marveling at their curiosity and relentlessness. We have even had the thought, “Hey, that’s their job, those toddlers, to want everything they want and to see if they can get it.” Secretly, we’re excited. We admire their energy and passion to pursue what they want.

So when did wanting become a sin, not permissible, and, clearly, not socially acceptable? Ah, when we began to judge our wanting: we don’t deserve it (to be rich or loved or super celebrated) or it’s selfish to have everything we would ever dream to have when others don’t. We believe someone, somewhere, might be keeping an imaginary scorecard. Suppose getting what we want has nothing to do with ‘deserve’ but everything to do with our willingness to reach out and seek what we want. Suppose we either all deserve everything or no one deserves anything. What happens if we decide to really go after and get what we want? Then, if we have more abundance than we want, we can just start giving some of it away. We could give it all away! We will never live in an abundant world if we don’t believe in abundance for ourselves."

-"Bears" Barry Neil Kaufman, Author of Happiness is a Choice