Are You a 2 Ton Elephant?

I do not mean to offend anyone with that title, but just bear with me here. The great philosopher Maxwell Maltz tells the following story.



Did you know that full grown circus elephants have been known to die in fires while chained to small stakes they could easily move? 2 ton animals trumpeting in fear as the flames and smoke slowly take away their last breath. Why is that?


It is because when the elephant was a baby, it had a 2 inch band strapped around its leg, which was then fastened to a stake that was hammered into the ground.



As a baby, she soon learned the futility of trying to pull free of the chain, and mentally, accepted is a part of her life. By the time she had grown strong and powerful, she had stopped trying to break free, seeing it as fruitless.


As long as she was fed and given the occasional peanut as a treat, she was content. Then the fire came, and she died when she could have easily escaped.



That is the way you and I are sometimes. We allow our life and abilities to be defined by "chains" we could easily snap, because we have been conditioned to believe things that simply are not true.



The problem is that we, like the elephant, have believed some downright lies about ourselves that were impressed upon us as a child.