Surrender to the Inferno

The phoenix mindset

Failure is always an opportunity for growth. But sometimes, failure stacks. Failure after failure. Setback after setback. Heartbreak after heartbreak. The pain builds faster than you can process it.

You start to realize that the only thing in common between all of those painful episodes is you. Introspection reveals small behaviors, actions, and beliefs that led you to those failures. It's hard to admit, but what's happening to you is a reflection of the choices you've made, of who you are. And sometimes, when the pain intensifies to this level, you realize that who you are isn't worth saving.

The inferno has arrived. While you can delay it, you can't avoid it. This isn't the time to iterate. It's not the time to make small changes. It's not the time to stick to your habits. It's time to surrender.

Surrender requires the courage to stop trying. You stop trying to change people who don't want to be changed. You stop trying to save relationships that are beyond saving. You stop trying to enjoy the things you don't enjoy. You let go of your toxic sources of comfort.

Surrendering means embracing the inferno. Laughing as it destroys what you thought was sacred. Expressing gratitude as it tears down your false edifices. It means putting down the fire extinguisher. Allowing yourself to pass into the flames.

People will exit your life, and those that remain will take on new meaning. Old sources of comfort will be forcefully confiscated. The art that used to interest you will soon bore you. The stripping away will be excruciating. Let it happen. It's painful on the way down, but glorious on the way up.

Are you willing to destroy yourself so that you can see what's on the other side? Like I said, it's glorious. When you surrender to the fire, it burns away the chaff. The excess. The parts of you and your life that no longer serve you. What's left behind is priceless: The diamond, fire-resistant core. The seeds of your new self.

Those seeds will grow new flesh, new bones, new limbs. Doors will open that were previously closed. You'll develop new abilities, experience new relationships, and discover new horizons. You will walk out of the flames like you walked out of the womb: naked, raw, and defenseless, wielding all the potential in the world.