Look around you.  Go on.  Look around.

Chances are there’s some stuff you like, some stuff you don’t like so much and probably some stuff you’re currently pretending isn’t there.  My vacuum cleaner’s been sitting in the middle of my hallway for a week as a reminder to do the vacuuming.  I’m still pretending it isn’t there.

Cavemen were just the same as you and me, for 2 reasons – firstly that we have a remarkable ability to shape the environment around us to suit our needs, and secondly because we have have the ability to adapt to and be shaped by our environment.  Nothing to do with abundant facial hair or loin cloths, I’m please to say.

Your environment is the things you move around in every day, but it’s more than just your physical environment. It includes your relationships, work, your network, finances, body, spirituality, belief system and your sense of self.

Your environment is important for 2 reasons -

1.  For better or worse, your environment will reflect your thinking and the game you’ve been playing.  If it’s a game you can’t win or don’t want to play, your environment will reflect that.

2.  As well as your environment being a reflection of yourself, you also adapt to the environment around you, which in turn shapes your ability to step up and play the game you want to play.

This is why your environment is a critical piece of playing a game that matters.  Your environment needs to reflect who you are and it needs to be congruous with the game you want to play.

The simple rule is this –

If there’s something in your environment that takes away from your ability to play the game, then you won’t be playing your best game.

Think of it like driving down a long road on your way to somewhere important.  If the road is full of pot-holes and blind corners, if there are no petrol stations, if your radio and air con’s broken and if parts of the road are flooded and other parts so narrow so your car barely squeezes through, then it’s not going to be a pleasant journey.

You’ll be so worried, stressed and frustrated by the trip that you’ll want to forget all about where you were heading and prefer to turn back and get back under the duvet.

It’s these flippin’ bumps in the road – or tolerations as I call them – that distract you and divert your energy and focus away from the game.  Your tolerations are the things you’re putting up with, the things that drain your energy or make you feel less than.

Left unchecked, these tolerations can create blocks or obstacles that make the game more difficult to play, or put a stop to your ability to play altogether.

So take another look around you, not just in your physical environment but in your relationships, your work, your acquaintances, finances, body, spirit, beliefs and sense of identity.  Go on.

What are you tolerating in your environment? Maybe an outstanding bill, an unsupportive relationship, a leaky tap, a belief that you can’t do something or a niggling back pain?

Tolerations suck because:

1.  They’re like bumps in the road, making things rockier than they need to be. Tolerations in your environment are always there distracting you and draining you, and they make your game more difficult to play.

2.  They add up over time, and leaving them be sends yourself a clear message that you’re not capable of changing things or don’t deserve anything better – and that will strip your confidence to the bone.

But picture it another way.  What if the road you’re on was designed specifically to allow you to travel easily and simply?  What if you had everything you needed on the trip?  What if you could drive smoothly, enjoy the views and sing along to your favourite music on the way (tell me that isn’t just me)?  The trip instantly becomes a pleasure.

It becomes something you want to undertake because you’ll enjoy the trip alone, and suddenly the journey comes alive.

How much easier would the game be if your environment was aligned in favour of the game?

How much more pleasurable would the game be if you were playing in an environment that allows the game to come to life?

Set up your environment so that your tolerations can be managed or removed, and suddenly you’re bump-free.  Your environment is smoother with fewer sharp edges to catch your clothes on or stub your toe on.

Your environment becomes congruent with the game you’re playing.

And that makes a whopping great big difference.