It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade ~ Charles Dickens

Spring is coming … March is here … yipppeee !! Yesterday the sun was BLAZING in her glory, only to be blown out a couple of times by the ferocity of the wind. Thank goodness she lit herself back up again 🙂 Today, the sun is hiding behind the rain clouds and the wind is still whipping around NYC. Reports from SW Florida – windy and muggy – the porpoises are happy. From Maine – rain is coming, very windy, lots of mud and ice – a great day for a bike ride. From Nigeria – lots of sunshine and fresh air – great day to be alive !!

Did you know that a little over 2,000 years ago this month Roman Emperor Julius Caesar was stabbed to death by dozens of members of the Roman Senate, uttering "Et tu, Brute?" before collapsing into a pool of his own blood. Caesar's last words in 44 BC were directed at a man he thought was a steadfast ally — Marcus Janius Brutus.

A very clever Elizabethan author, William Shakespeare, used words describing the circumstances surrounding Caesar's death to turn this time of year into one of pensive foreboding, writing "beware the Ides of March", a phrase which has stuck with us and has been widely quoted since the 1600's.

I know what you're thinking … "What does all that have to do with life and business?"

Before I get to that, I've got a little story to share with you 🙂

The Scorpion And The Farmer

One blustery March day, a Scorpion looked around at the mountain where he lived and decided that he wanted a change. So he set out on a journey through the forests and hills. He climbed over rocks and under vines and kept going until he got to an 8 foot wide stream of fast running water.

The stream was too wide and running REALLY fast because of all the rain. The scorpion stopped to consider the situation. He couldn't see any way across. So he scuttled upstream and then checked downstream, all the while thinking that he might have to turn back.

Suddenly, he saw a farmer getting some water on the other side of the stream. "Wow … that farmer has really long legs. This will be sooo easy now", chuckling to himself at the thought. 

He decided to ask the man for help getting across the stream.

"Hellooo Mr. Farmer!" called the scorpion across the fast moving water, "Would you be so kind as come over here, pick me up and carry me across this water?"

"Good day to you Scorpion! How do I know that if I try to help you, you wont try to kill me?" asked the farmer hesitantly.

"Because," the scorpion replied, "If I try to kill you, then I would die too. You already know that I cannot swim!"

The farmer knew the scorpion was telling the truth about not being able to swim. He had also heard from other people how deadly the sting of a Scorpion's tail was.  He was VERY cautious.

But, something about THIS scorpion seemed different,  so he asked,  "What about when I get close to the other side? You could still try to kill me and get back to dry land!"

"True," agreed the scorpion, "But then I won't be able to get to the side of the stream that I really want to be on!"

"Sooo Scorpion … how do I know you won't just wait till we get to the other side and THEN kill me?" asked the farmer.

"Ohh… that is simple," crooned the scorpion ever so sweetly, "Because, once you've taken me to the other side, I will be so grateful for your help, that it would hardly be fair to reward you with death, now would it?!"

"Wow … THIS Scorpion IS different!!" the farmer said to himself.

So the farmer was delighted to help the scorpion across the river. He crossed the stream with several big strides. He reached his hand out to pick up his new friend. The scorpion crawled onto the farmer's hand, his sharp claws digging into the soft flesh of the farmer's palm. and the farmer took his first step back across the stream. The muddy water swirled around his boots, but the farmer held the scorpion high above the water so he would not drown. He strode confidently into the water, his steps sure and solid in spite of the strength of the current.

Halfway across the stream, the farmer suddenly felt a sharp, red hot pain shooting through his hand.  When he looked down, he saw the scorpion whipping his tail around, pulling his stinger out of his hand. A deadening numbness began to creep up his arm.

The farmer started to shake his hand frantically … but the Scorpion hung on digging his claws deep into the farmer's numb hand. The farmer stumbled, the shock of the betrayal and the venom quickly running through his system making him dizzy.

"You LIAR!! … I TRUSTED you!!" shouted the farmer, "Why on earth did you do that? You said YOU were different!! Let GO of my hand !!"

Desperate with fear and pain, the farmer did what instinct told him to do. He plunged his hand deep into the water, holding it there until he saw the body of the Scorpion washing away … Then he scrambled to his feet … knowing that he needed to get medical attention as soon as possible. Lucky farmer … he ended up being OK … the Scorpion that had stung him was not lethal to humans. The only thing that had been massively damaged was his ability to trust his own judgment …

"Et tu, Scorpion?"

The Scorpion knew he was going to die … and he was totally ok with that.

As he felt the cold and darkness slowly engulfing him, he actually did some happy tail waving. With no remorse, shame or guilt, he said to himself, "What did that silly farmer expect anyway … He knew what I was before he picked me up.  I'm a Scorpion. I sting anything that gets in my way. I have no choice. It is simply my nature."

It Is What It Is In Life And Business

Two legged Scorpions are everywhere and just about everyone, at one time or another, gets stung. It's unavoidable. Thankfully most survive (Julius Caesar being the obvious exception to that). However, the scars that are left from a scorpion sting can be pretty ugly and very slow to fade away. 

Accept The Critter For What It Is

A Scorpion is what it is. It is an opportunistic predator. It's sole purpose on this planet is to KILL and EAT whatever it can to ensure it's own survival. Accept that fact, because a Scorpion's intrinsic nature cannot be changed.

Extending the analogy out to the two-legged species, I am reminded of something T Harv Eker once said, "How you do anything is how you do everything." People are very unique in that they have choice about what their intrinsic nature is. Past performance (history repeats itself) generally is a good indicator of "How and Who" a person chooses to be in life and business.

The species count is HUGE when it comes to two-legged Scorpions. Because they all look very different, it can be really difficult to spot them right away. Some of the more common types are the gossips, murmurers and complainers. Also those who are jealous, judgmental and critical.

And the most lethal of all are the Undercover Scorpions. They hide in plain sight, disguised to look just like our family, friends, coaches, mentors, political leaders, spiritual leaders, teachers, doctors … the people that we have been told to LOVE, RESPECT and TRUST.

The venom in their sting is time-released and intensifies over time. It can bring paralysis and even death to life and business  because of the trust and respect we give them and the value we give to their opinions of us and the things that are important to us …

Their venom is the words that so easily and unguardedly fall from their lips.

"Why can't you be more like your brother … he ALWAYS gets better grades than you"

"Do you think money grows on trees? We can't afford that!"

"If only I were running this business … that guy doesn't know what he is doing"

"Did you SEE what she wore today …. Who does she think she is?"

"Oh … I tried one of those "things" before … It didn't work …they are all scams."

"You can't do that … You're a girl … Only boys do that!"

"It's a sin to have money when so many other people don't."

"For heaven's sake …You're a lawyer Bob … You're crazy to even consider giving up a respectable job to do something like THAT"

Words about everything … from the way someone thinks and behaves, to how they spend their time and money, to what they do for a living and how they run their business.

Life and Death live in the power of those words … they cut right through people just like a hot knife slicing through butter. When those words are positive and constructive, they have an incredible way of building up someone's sense of self-esteem, self-worth and self-confidence. However, the exact opposite is also possible.

If all a kid ever hears from his parents are harsh, abusive words of condemnation, criticism and negativity – then that kid’s self-esteem and self-worth can be severely damaged for a very long time.

There are far too many adults who never end up doing what they are really supposed to be doing with their lives because they are unable to pull themselves free of all the poisonous negativity and pessimism they heard from the people around them while they were growing up and from the company they keep on a day to day basis.

It's up to you to pack your survival kit. The farmer in our story knew that he needed to get proper medical attention quickly. But what do you do if you realize that it is YOU who has been stung by a Scorpion?

• 1. FORGIVE yourself for allowing it to happen. Sounds crazy right, especially if you realize that it is something that occurred when you were too young to know it was happening. But there is tremendous FREEDOM found in forgiveness.
  

• 2. FORGIVE the person who hurt you as completely and quickly as you possibly can. You end up releasing yourself from the power they have over you. Your forgiveness BLESSES and RELEASES them from their ties to you and you can start the healing process.
  

• 3. Listen to your own inner self when you need to discern the TRUTH about what you heard. Always ask yourself; is there any truth to what was said. If your gut tells you that the information is not true, get rid of it as fast as you can! Here's something my coach told me that I took to heart. It has saved me a ton of money, time and self-doubt … and I hope it does the same for you!
  

  Never take ADVICE or pay attention to OPINIONS from anyone who has less money than you when it comes to investing or spending your money. Never take health advice from someone who is not as healthy as you want to be. Never take relationship advice from someone whose relationships are in a shambles. NEVER pay attention to business advice from anyone who has not achieved what you want to achieve and who does not have documented results to PROVE the advice they are giving you.
  

• 4. Choose to ALWAYS speak life over everyone. Make a conscious decision to LIFT PEOPLE UP with your words. The words you chose to speak have tremendous power. Use that power wisely. Use that power to bring life, love, healing, encouragement and edification into other people’s lives.
  

• 5. Choose to spend your time with people that speak life over YOU. Your life and business will blossom and thrive. As you are blessed by their words, you will be able to bless more people with YOUR words!

Click on the link to download a copy of Peter Murphy's  The Power Of Forgiveness if you would like to learn more about using forgiveness as a tool in your life and business!

The Ides Of March will soon be here 🙂 …

Who is going to celebrate that most auspicious day with me by choosing to speak LIFE over the people in their life and business? Let me know in the comments below so that we can celebrate together !!

Go ahead … don't be bashful! When you choose LIFE … LIFE chooses YOU 😉

If this has helped you in anyway, come chat with me on Facebook. If we aren't friends yet, let's change that !!

 

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  Rose Mis is the author of “Dead Blogs Don’t Lie ~ 7 Secrets To A Wildly Popular High Traffic Blog” and the editor and publisher of The Frugal Networker Newsletter. She is the creator and Executive Chef of the internet's only Award Winning Attraction Marketing Training Kitchen. Rose is one of the top MLM / Network Marketing bloggers online today and is a featured blogger at thatMLMbeat.com. You are invited to stop by the Kitchen anytime you have any questions about blogging, marketing or mindset. Rose is here to help you get the results you are looking for as quickly and cost effectively as possible.