What is this 1 to 11? People usually ask
It’s a philosophy & start point to help with any task
Many look outside themselves, they blame and they complain
When we play the victim, our energy does drain
We take away our power, have feelings of despair
Or anger & resentment, start pulling out our hair!
So the vicious cycle, we think we can’t outrun
We lack the understanding that if you run you’re done!
What we fight we strengthen, what we resist persists
Some of us eat our feelings while others just get pissed!
That doesn’t solve our issues, just temporary relief
Long term it’s much more damaging, we lose hope and belief
In ourselves essentially, that we lack the skill
We do have the ability, it’s just we lack the will
To cultivate the courage in taking that first stride
I am not criticising, for months I lied & cried
What I then discovered, the thing that scared me most
Was through my admittance, that’s it, the end, I’m toast!
But what actually happened, by learning to accept
I was able to move forward, not quickly so I crept
I started to recover, I thought I had it cracked
But then a relapse hit me and put me on my back
I’m not the quickest learner, the rise and fall again
“I’ve had enough of this” I thought, sick of all the pain
So then I thought I’d figure, see what was going on
What I did when things went well & not when they went wrong
Was it just coincidence, eleven things I found
“Win your battles 1 to 11”, in my mind the sound
That’s what managers told us when we played the game
That is when it struck me, life is just the same
It ebbs and flows, defence, attack
On the front foot or on the back
One decision changes the game
Can’t change it so stop with the blame
The crowd on your back, baying for blood
Shouting obscenities, saying you’re no good
This is what goes on in some of our heads
Decide if whether to live or decide to be dead
That’s been my experience some of the time
Now I accept it, used to feel like a crime
So that is the starting point, where it begins
ACCEPT any failings, misgivings or sins
Forgive those around you, what’s happened in the past
If you can’t do that, the pain, it’ll last
After you’ve done that, then look deep inside
You’ve played your part in this, don’t try to hide
Next was COMMUNICATION, I wouldn’t explain
Wouldn’t listen either, guess what? Pain remained
Therefore no movement forward, “nobody’s helping me”
How ya gonna get SUPPORT? The ‘I’ never becomes the ‘we’
You continue to point the finger, blaming everybody and everything
Easier to do that than look inward cause that does sting!
Once you start to realise, employ that GRATITUDE
See what you’ve got to live for, there’s improvement in your mood
Next you check your VALUE’S, see if they’re aligned
With how you’re currently living, I wonder what you’ll find?
Implement some GOALS so you have some direction
Even if it’s getting up, just set the intention
The goal maybe, “how will I get through today”?
What is your plan when you wake up this way?
What were you doing when you felt at your best?
How did you learn to pass the test?
Did you have STRUCTURE, a plan or process?
Or just see what happens? Life now appears a mess!
They say that success, well, some say it leaves clues
So what are you doing when you don’t have the blues?
Once you have it figured, you’ll know what to do
Follow your plan, how to see it through?
DISCIPLINE & CONSISTENCY go hand in hand
So do their opposites which determine where we land
That doesn’t mean we’re stuck there or have to stay
With COMMITMENT to your goal then you can change the way
You feel & think about yourself
It’s all about you, nobody else
You are your problem but that is ok
You’re also your solution so remember today
You are the manager of your own football team
Let them work together to achieve but one dream
Work with them daily, watch how things change
It will not be instant, that isn’t strange
Rome wasn’t built, just like you in a day
We didn’t just suddenly wake up and feel this way
It happened over TIME, we just ignored the signs
Couldn’t see it happening, didn’t read between the lines
You’ll stumble again, maybe you’ll fall
Isn’t this part of the game after all?
What is the 1 to 11 people ask
It’s a philosophy & start point to help with any task.
Martin Pemberton