Presence is the state of being fully engaged and focused on the current moment, without being distracted by thoughts or worries about the past or future. It involves being fully aware of your surroundings, your thoughts and emotions, and the people around you. When you are present, you are fully engaged in the current moment, and you are not distracted by other thoughts or concerns.
Presence can be a powerful tool for personal growth and development. It can help reduce stress and anxiety, improve relationships, increase productivity, and enhance creativity. It can also help us appreciate the small moments in life and find joy in the present moment.
However, being present can be challenging in our fast-paced and often distracted world. It requires practice and intention to cultivate a state of presence, but the benefits can be significant. By learning to be more present, we can live more fulfilling and meaningful lives, and find greater peace and happiness in the present moment.
Becoming present can be a challenging process, but it is possible with practice and intention. Here are some tips for becoming more present:
Practice mindfulness: Mindfulness is the practice of being fully present and aware of the current moment. You can practice mindfulness through meditation, deep breathing, or simply paying attention to your surroundings.
Focus on your senses: One way to become more present is to focus on your senses. Take a few deep breaths and then focus on what you can see, hear, smell, taste, and feel in the current moment.
Let go of distractions: To become more present, it’s important to let go of distractions. This might mean turning off your phone or computer, or finding a quiet space where you can focus on the present moment.
Practice gratitude: Gratitude can help us appreciate the present moment and find joy in the small things in life. Take a few moments each day to reflect on what you are grateful for.
Engage in activities that bring you joy: Doing things that bring you joy can help you become more present. Whether it’s spending time in nature, playing music, or spending time with loved ones, find activities that help you feel fully engaged in the present moment.
Remember, becoming present is a process that takes time and practice. Be patient with yourself and keep practicing, and you will gradually become more present in your daily life.
Presence can have a significant impact on our lives in many ways. Here are a few examples:
Reduces stress and anxiety: When we are present, we are focused on the current moment and not worrying about the past or future. This can help reduce stress and anxiety, as we are not dwelling on things that are out of our control.
Improves relationships: Being present in our interactions with others can help us connect more deeply and empathetically with them. We are better able to listen and understand their perspectives, which can lead to stronger relationships.
Increases productivity: When we are fully present in our work, we are better able to focus and be productive. We are not distracted by other thoughts or tasks, which can help us accomplish more in less time.
Enhances creativity: Being present can help us tap into our creativity and intuition. When we are not distracted by other thoughts or worries, we are more open to new ideas and inspiration.
Improves overall well-being: Being present can help us feel more grounded and centered. It can also help us appreciate the small moments in life and find joy in the present moment.
Overall, being present can help us live more fulfilling and meaningful lives. It can help us connect more deeply with ourselves and others, and find greater peace and happiness in the present moment.
Here are some quotes on presence:
“The present moment is the only moment available to us, and it is the door to all moments.” – Thich Nhat Hanh
“Realize deeply that the present moment is all you ever have.” – Eckhart Tolle
“The power for creating a better future is contained in the present moment: You create a good future by creating a good present.” – Eckhart Tolle
“Be present in all things and thankful for all things.” – Maya Angelou
“The art of being present is the art of being free.” – Eckhart Tolle
“The present moment is a powerful goddess.” – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
“The present moment is the only time that exists.” – Marty Rubin
“The present moment is a gift. That’s why they call it the present.” – Unknown
“The present moment is where we need to be, not lost in the past or dreaming of the future.” – Unknown
“Presence is more than just being there.” – Malcolm Forbes
Learning through struggle is a process of acquiring knowledge and skills by willingly facing challenges, obstacles, or difficulties. It is a natural part of the learning process, and it is a powerful tool for personal growth and development.
Step out of the history that is holding you back. Step into the new story you are willing to create.”
~ Oprah Winfrey
When we struggle to learn something, we are forced to engage with the material in a deeper way. We have to think critically, problem-solve, and persevere through setbacks. This process can be frustrating and uncomfortable, but it is the only way to create the version of ourselves that is more skill full and confident.
Strength and growth come only through continuous effort and struggle.
-Napoleon Hill
Research has shown that willingness to learn can actually improve our memory and retention of information. When we have to work hard to understand something, our brains create stronger connections between neurons, which can help us remember the information better in the long run.
The struggle of life is one of our greatest blessings. It makes us patient, sensitive, and Godlike. It teaches us that although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it.“
Helen Keller
Additionally, learning through struggle can help us develop important life skills, such as resilience, perseverance, and grit. These skills can be valuable in all areas of our lives, from our careers to our personal relationships.
Of course, it’s important to note that not all struggle is productive. If we are constantly overwhelmed or frustrated, we may need to seek additional support or resources to help us learn more effectively. However, when we approach learning with a growth mindset and embrace the challenges that come with it, we can experience significant personal growth and development.
Here are some quotes on struggle.
“When life knocks you down, try to land on your back. Because if you can look up, you can get up.” – Les Brown
“We must embrace pain and burn it as fuel for our journey.” – Kenji Miyazawa
“I am not afraid of storms, for I am learning how to sail my ship.” – Louisa May Alcott
“The triumph can’t be had without the struggle.” – Wilma Rudolph
“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.” – Albert Einstein
“Life is a circle of happiness, sadness, hard times, and good times. If you are going through hard times, have faith that good times are on the way.” – Unknown
“Everyone has inside them a piece of good news. The good news is you don’t know how great you can be! How much you can love! What you can accomplish! And what your potential is.” – Anne Frank
“Talent is cheaper than table salt. What separates the talented individual from the successful one is a lot of hard work.” – Stephen King
“It’s funny how, when things seem the darkest, moments of beauty present themselves in the most unexpected places.” – Karen Marie Moning
“Hard times always lead to something great.” – Betsey Johnson
“It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer.” – Albert Einstein
“Life keeps throwing me stones. And I keep finding the diamonds…” – Ana Claudia Antunes
“When hardships keep coming back, do not take it personal. It’s just life.” – Naide P Obiang
“Hard times don’t create heroes. It is during the hard times when the ‘hero’ within us is revealed.” – Bob Riley
“The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe. If you try it, you will be lonely often, and sometimes frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
“If you are going through hell, keep going.” – Winston Churchill
“If someone is strong enough to bring you down, show them you are strong enough to get back up.” – A. Josland
“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.
“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” – Winston Churchill
“In the middle of every difficulty lies opportunity.” – Albert Einstein
“The greatest glory in living lies not in never failing, but in rising every time we fail.” – Nelson Mandela
“Press on – nothing can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Perseverance and determination alone are omnipotent.” – Calvin Coolidge
“I’ll tell you something about tough times. They just about kill you, but if you decide to keep working at them, you’ll find your way through.” – Joan Bauer
“New beginnings are often disguised as painful endings.” – Lao Tzu
“Why should you continue going after your dreams? Because seeing the look on the faces of the people who said you couldn’t… will be priceless.” – Kevin Ngo
“Never regret something that once made you smile.” – Amber Deckers
“Let perseverance be your engine and hope your fuel.” – H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
“The first step to greatness is believing that greatness exists within you.” – Channique Nathan
“When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” – Joseph Kennedy
“A problem is a chance for you to do your best.” – Duke Ellington
“I have no regrets in my life. I think that everything happens to you for a reason. The hard times that you go through build character, making you a much stronger person.” – Rita Mero
“Life is at its best when everything has fallen out of place, and you decide that you’re going to fight to get them right, not when everything is going your way and everyone is praising you.” – Thisuri Wanniarachchi
“Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable… Every step toward the goal of justice requires sacrifice, suffering, and struggle; the tireless exertions and passionate concern of dedicated individuals.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.
“Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.” – Dale Carnegie
“I decided, very early on, just to accept life unconditionally; I never expected it to do anything special for me, yet I seemed to accomplish far more than I had ever hoped. Most of the time it just happened to me without my ever seeking it.” – Audrey Hepburn
“Difficult times will come. It’s a fact of life, isn’t it? There are good times and bad times in everybody’s life.” – Raj Kosaraju
“This too shall pass.” – Persian Sufi Poets
“Never give up on something that you can’t go a day without thinking about.” – Sir Winston Churchill
“When you come to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on.” – Franklin D Roosevelt
“It is a blessing to experience hardship. Not because we suffer, but because we learn to endure.” – Saim .A. Cheeda
“Thankfully, persistence is a great substitute for talent.” – Steve Martin
“Seeds of faith are always within us; sometimes it takes a crisis to nourish and encourage their growth.” – Susan Taylor
“Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.” – Hellen Keller
“Struggle happens when you do something which you don’t love.” – Kubra Sait
“Accept responsibility for your life. Know that it is you who will get you where you want to go, no one else.” – Les Brown
“Hard times lifts the seeking souls to higher spiritual realms.” – Lailah Gifty Akita
“I think that little by little I’ll be able to solve my problems and survive.” – Frida Kahlo
“To be tested is good. The challenged life may be the best therapist.” – Gail Sheehy
“It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare; it is because we do not dare that they are difficult.” – Seneca
“You need to spend time crawling alone through shadows to truly appreciate what it is to stand in the sun.” – Shaun Hick
“Life’s challenges are not supposed to paralyze you, they’re supposed to help you discover who you are.” – Bernice Johnson Reagon
“All of life is a test and we all have our challenges to meet.” – Marjory Sheba
“Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.” – Thomas Edison
“Do not pray for an easy life, pray for the strength to endure a difficult one.” – Bruce Lee
“Never give up. Things may be hard, but if you quit trying they’ll never get better. Stop worrying and start trusting God. It will be worth it.” – Germany Kent
“Somehow I can’t believe that there are any heights that can’t be scaled by a man who knows the secrets of making dreams come true. This special secret, it seems to me, can be summarized in four C s. They are curiosity, confidence, courage, and constancy, and the greatest of all is confidence. When you believe in a thing, believe in it all the way, implicitly and unquestionable.” – Walt Disney
“Hard times are like thunder. They make a lot of noise but do little harm. Don’t fear hard times.” – Debasish Mridha
“Our biggest struggle as human beings is to project ourselves as something that society has deemed admirable or likable instead of being honest.” – Matthew Shultz
“Tough times never last, but tough people do.” – Robert H. Schuller
“No matter how bad things are, you can always make things worse.” – Randy Pausch
Making the right choices and being more decisive can be challenging, but here are some tips to help:
Clarify your values: Knowing your values can help you make decisions that align with your beliefs and priorities. Take some time to reflect on what is most important to you.
Set clear goals: Having clear goals can help you make decisions that move you closer to what you want to achieve. Write down your goals and break them down into smaller, actionable steps.
Gather information: Before making a decision, gather as much information as possible. This can help you make an informed choice and reduce feelings of uncertainty.
Consider the pros and cons: Make a list of the pros and cons of each option. This can help you weigh the potential benefits and drawbacks of each choice.
Trust your intuition: Sometimes, our gut instinct can guide us towards the right decision. Trust your intuition and listen to your inner voice.
Practice decision-making: The more you practice making decisions, the easier it becomes. Start with small decisions and work your way up to bigger ones.
Embrace uncertainty: Sometimes, there is no clear right or wrong choice. Embrace uncertainty and trust that you will make the best decision you can with the information you have.
Remember, making the right choices and being more decisive takes time and practice. By incorporating these tips into your decision-making process, you can become more confident in your ability to make choices that align with your values and goals.
Awareness, Reflection, and Presence are the three core components of a mindful life. Awareness is the ability to be aware of your thoughts and emotions in a non-judgmental way. Reflection is the process of introspection and self-examination that allows us to gain insight into our thought patterns and behaviors. Presence is the ability to remain centered, patient, and focused in any situation. Together, these three qualities can help us create an internal environment of peace and balance that leads to greater clarity, creativity, and joy in our lives.
How to Cultivate Awareness & Reflection Through Mindful Practices
Mindful practices can help us cultivate awareness and reflection in our lives. Through mindful practices such as mindfulness meditation techniques, reflective meditation practice, and breath-based meditation practice, we can become more aware of our thoughts, feelings and emotions. We can also become more aware of the present moment and be able to reflect on our experiences in a deeper way. By engaging in mindful practices regularly, we can learn to pay attention to ourselves in a more conscious way and gain insight into our innermost selves.
The Benefits of Practicing Presence & Centeredness in Everyday Life
Practicing presence and centeredness in our daily lives can have a profound effect on our overall well-being. It helps us to be more patient with ourselves and others, and to find inner peace and harmony in the midst of life’s challenges. By focusing on being present in the moment, we can become better equipped to handle whatever life throws at us. With practice, we can learn how to stay focused on what matters most and make decisions based upon our values rather than our emotions. Through cultivating presence and centeredness, we can create a life of balance and joy.
Tips to Instill a Lasting Sense of Awareness & Introspection
Self-awareness and introspection are essential skills for personal growth. They help us to understand our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors in order to make better decisions. However, it can be difficult to instill a lasting sense of awareness and introspection in ourselves. We need to regularly practice self-reflection activities and self-awareness exercises in order to stay focused on our goals. In this article, we will discuss some tips that can help you instill a lasting sense of awareness and introspection. We will look at different self-reflection activities and self-awareness exercises that you can use to gain insight into yourself and your life. By following these tips, you will be able to cultivate a deeper understanding of yourself so that you can make better decisions in the future.
Using Awareness and Reflection as Tools for Positive Change in Our Lives
In today’s world, it is important to take time to pause and reflect on our lives in order to make positive changes. Awareness and reflection are two powerful tools that can help us gain insight into our inner selves, and make positive changes in our lives. Through awareness, we can become conscious of the thoughts and feelings that drive us, while reflection allows us to step back from these thoughts and feelings, enabling us to find harmony within ourselves. With awareness and reflection, we can identify areas of our lives where we need improvement, allowing us to make meaningful changes that will bring about greater peace and inner fulfillment.
It has been said many times that it is not the “thing” but how we see them. But why do we always fall victim to the mind’s fearful stories that make us anxious? You might be surprised by the simplicity of the answers and practices that will create clarity and bring skillful discernment of things around us. It is enough quality sleep, balanced nutrition, human connection and movement.
Paul Check also simplified this approach with his four doctors you’ll ever need, Dr. Diet, Dr. Quiet, Dr. Happiness & Dr. movement. These are your foundation for having a balanced we’ll being and not fall into the trap of the ego. Imagine your days as a game you play. You need preparation and conditioning before showing up daily much like participating in a sporting match. Prepare by having proper sleep, eating healthy foods, having human connection and strenuous exercise. Having this done early in the morning, you are now able to apply these mind tools that will help you become more positive any time of the day you sense that you are being attacked by anxiety, fear or worry.
Recenter by saying: Now I am………
As you go about your day your mind might ruminate on a thing that is about to happen or a thing that it thinks should happen. When you sense that your world is getting limited, rigid and constraint bring yourself to center by saying “Now I am……. “ Followed by the thing you are doing at the moment. It might be brushing your teeth, walking down the street or washing dishes. This phrase powerfuly brings all of the attention to the present liberation you from the entangling complexities that the mind presents. We realize that now you are just a person being this, nothing more, nothing to be afraid of, nothing to fix, just this, folding the clothes, no more added opinions.
Make this an hourly habit, Now I am this….. Maybe just a human being at peace with all things. From this space we can redirect our attention to something positive. Just to experience life, the infinite intelligence happening as you. That is enough to be joyful of. Start here, and always make it a point to comeback here if you entangled yourself far from your center.
“I am an old man and have known a great many troubles, but most of them never happened. ”
– Mark Twain
Slow down
Our brains run on an average of 2100 thoughts per second if we try to analyze, deal and tend to each one of them, this will be the cause of unnecessary stress and anxiety. Imagine our brains as receptors of signals, it is so majestic that it receives a variety of ideas and insights but our awareness need not to ride each train that passes by. It is just impossible. You can slow the pace of your thought receiving brain by simply observing and being non attached to them. The cycles of your brain will lower if you sit still and let things be, entertaining your thoughts produces more thoughts leading to never ending questions and complexity. Take a deep breath, watch the mind, observe, don’t react. This is how you slow down.
Here are the brain wave states. We mostly function on beta throughout the day, but we can slow things down and get to theta for balance & ease.
Watch where you spend your time. We often get caught getting pulled in different directions. We are spread thin with multiple goals and impulses. Let go of the activities that don’t bring you closer to your goal. Lessen the time thinking of things that bother you. It is often our misguided opinions, judgements and criticisms that drains us of our precious energy. If a negative impulse or thought arises and is moose’s itself unto you, be bothered for 1 minute and let it go. Stay undistracted by internalizing your ideal self. Envision yourself being loving, tranquil, joyful and accepting. Deliberately choose to not be distracted. Be committed to where your aim is at. What ever you aim at, the world configures itself according to that specific aim. What you notice expands. Notice the good, meditate on your primary aim, be undistracted.
“We can cope with uncomfortable internal triggers by reflecting on, rather than reacting to, our discomfort. We can reimagine the task we’re trying to accomplish by looking for the fun in it and focusing on it more intensely. Finally, and most important, we can change the way we see ourselves to get rid of self-limiting beliefs.”
– Nir Eyal
See good in everything
There is always the other side of the story. We see things not for what they are but for what we are. It depends on through what lens we see the situation. In this practice we can totally let go of how you perceive a situation and see it from a place of equanimity. You might think you are being harmed or offended, but nothing can really harm but our own minds untrained to see other sides of the story. This skill of seeing things from the birds eye view will save you a lot of unnecessary pain. In seeing the good in everything, you draw in more good things to your hemisphere, your domain, your frequency. Remember that what you focus on expands? Make a choice of expanding what is good in your situation right now. Reach for the next best feeling thought and watch it grow and blossom to fruits of goodness that you and others will enjoy. If you can breathe right now, you doin pretty good.
“When you focus on being the best person you can be, you draw the best possible life, love, and opportunities to you.”
– Germany Kent
Bless your blessings
Make gratitude your default attitude. Bless your triumphs, your adversities and setbacks. Acknowledge the person you became up to this point in time. Make use of the gifts and inspirations that you embody. Know that you have all that you ever need to take that next step in your journey. You are blessed with all of the things you’ll ever need. You can read, you can breathe, you can move your limbs, you can light someone up, you can put things together. Through openness and a little courage, we open ourselves up to more blessings. Honor the higher power, the intelligence greater than you, the one true source of all, surrender all of your fears and questions and watch your blessings grow. In priming our minds with gratitude, the brain acts as if it already has, as a result the subconscious directs more of the things you are blessed with your way.
“This is a wonderful day. I have never seen this one before.”
– Maya Angelou
Prioritize calmness
We often take for granted the importance of calmness. Let go of the addiction to thinking and busyness. The real deal in life reveal themselves after the storms of the mind have settled. In prioritizing calmness, we establish space from anything that can throw you off balance. Build your foundation of calm first before engaging in any outward activity. Making a commitment to calmness despite changes. When we are in a sustained calm state, we are open to see more beauty around us.
Start by having a quiet time alone, often times we start the day rushing to do things. This is voluntarily running towards imbalance. Establish your calm first, maybe some affirmations like “I’m eternal, immortal, universal & infinite” or “This is my day, I accept complete responsibility for my life for I know that I am power” or “Out of this day only good will come, All is well & I am safe”. Carry on these feelings as you go through each task of the day making calm your priority and the center of your being.
“Silence is the element in which great things fashion themselves together.”
– Thomas Carlyle
You are not your story
Create your ideal self by regularly shedding bits and pieces of yourself that don’t help you get to the future self you desire. Your story keeps on changing as you change and learn daily. You are not your story means there is no need to attach to or repeat habits and actions you did yesterday. Reflect each morning on where you want to go within the short term & long term. Study your actions and keep other people’s input from a distance. Create your story daily, open to new things and course correcting. You are not your story, thoughts and actions. Know truth by sitting still and observing. Know the bigness of your being, you are all things, in this knowingness you return to balance and ease. Let go of stories, narratives and expectation remember; nothing is what it seems. Give it space….. then let it be.
“People often say that this or that person has not yet found himself. But the self is not something one finds. It is something one creates.”
– Thomas Szasz
Question everything
If something bothersome arises, be quick in noticing so you can nip it in the bud. Awareness is key, through questioning; pausing before reacting, we create space where in we get to fully understand before imposing any action that may worsen the scenario. Reflect on what things that I do everyday that are making things worse? Change the simple daily things you do to always redirect your movement towards your ideal.
Sometimes just stopping and accepting returns our emotions back to balance and ease. See as the bird would, from above. See the whole picture with many participants and preferences involved. Remember that we are functioning most of our days on the intellectual part of the brain which is very limited. It just keeps on dissecting, cutting, asking, avoiding and imposing. Peace and balance is found when we do not engage in these characteristics of the intellect. Just know that the mind is naturally hard wired this way and there is no need for you to act on it and fix it immediately.
Ask; is it true? Is it absolutely true? Who would I be without this thought?
“Life is simple. Everything happens for you, not to you. Everything happens at exactly the right moment, neither too soon nor too late. You don’t have to like it… it’s just easier if you do.”
– Byron Katie
Go back to your why
Whenever feeling lost in the complexities of your day. Go back to your why. What is the bigger purpose of why you are engaged in your present task. An example would be, “Im in the grocery store and this is such an annoying task”. If you go back to the bigger “why” of the reason behind you are there is “Im in the grocery store because I’m taking charge of the nourishment of my family and myself”. This thought will immediately bring you to center and will get the job done with purpose. Doing things backed with an honorable mission is easier than going through a task hurriedly and gruntingly.
Another thing I like doing is appreciating the transitions, from the grocery to the car, loading and unloading the items, our lives are made up of these moments that are not any different from special events we look forward to like an extravagant vacation or a holiday.
Keep your mission vision intact and close to heart and mind. Your work is important and needed in the world although it may not appear so.
Going back to your why reveals to you a big vision resulting to more energy to accomplish.
“The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson
Notice Nature
Make time to look up to the sky. Let yourself be absorbed by the vastness of it. Notice the patterns on the rocks, the sidewalk, the graffiti. Notice the unnoticeable, the spaces between the leaves, the dirt beneath you, the orb like sparkles on the water. Nature is our greatest teacher. We are of it. Feel this connection through grounding and maybe surrender your questions to the trees. Shinrin yoku is the Japanese term for forest bathing. Take a walk along the trail and breathe in clean fresh rejuvenating air. This is guaranteed to bring you back to center and balance.
“The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.”
– Alexandra Domelle
Conclusion
Balance and ease can be achieved anytime of day. It is best to prime ourselves in the morning. Make calmness a priority, make our dedication to our highest good unwavering. Notice nature to remind us that all is well and there is infinite well of good from within. How will you be handling your day to day?
It is the simple things that we do consistently and persistently that bring us compounding effects. Why not make these simple commitments on a daily basis and chart your progress. We can grow in areas of our lives that we choose to focus on, committing and continuous evaluation and course correction is really powerful.
Take an honest look at where you are
Each day we can get closer to the version of ourselves that we intend. But we must know where we are going and where we are at. Sometimes we get distracted by unimportant tasks because being busy feels good and taking an honest look at where we are and where we sincerely want to go makes us uncomfortable. Be strategic and try to see things for the next 10 years vs for the next 10 days. Be comfortable in listening to your true desires. Forget about what other people think or even your own expectations. Sit still and really ask this important question; what do I ultimately desire in my life? Create the necessary tweaks and simple practices that change the trajectory of your life, leading you to your truer goal. Optimize for your future self 10 years from now. Progress may not be evident in the short run but keep your daily check ins and log your small wins and see where you can go in a month, quarter, year and 10 years.
Muster up the courage to really look at where you are, are you aligned with your long term goal? What actions are you going to do today that leads to your long term goal? Stay open and flexible, clear and determined, never indifferent. Remember that there is a version of yourself you have yet to meet. A wiser, richer, more loving, stronger and better in whatever aspect you choose to be. What does truly matter to you? Maybe it is simple, maybe it is audacious, one thing is for sure, you have to get on it.
“The bigger the vision, the better the decisions”
– Dan Sullivan
See it in your mind, hold it in your hand
If you can desire it, you are bound to have it. But what is stopping most of us? It is our unconscious bias. We might believe that we are capable of amazing things and get excited about it but our unconscious bias kicks in. We might have been programmed when we were young that some things are impossible or we are incapable. We can counter this programming by affirmations, repeated statements of the truth what we want to become. We continuously create our lives day to day through what we believe ourselves to be. Henry ford said; whether you think you can or you can’t, you are right. Emerson also said; “There’s nothing capricious in nature, and the implanting of a desire indicates that its gratification is in the constitution of the creature that feels it.” So strengthen your positive inner self talk. Be your own motivational coach and accountability buddy. Be not afraid or intimidated by your own capability. Own it, embody it and claim it.
“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.”
– Maria Robinson
Exclude all nonsense
This is raising your floor, raising your standards. Let go of activities and thoughts that take up real estate in your head. In mindfulness meditation, ask what are thoughts that are taking up your time that yields no benefit and takes you farther from your goal? Let go of non essentials. From time to time stop for 60 seconds and be aware of where you are hanging out mentally, are you intentionally distracting yourself? Maybe take a deep breath and return to center and redirect the focus on what really matters in this moment. Batch for flow, avoid switching tasks often. It is tempting to do everything all at once but it in reality it slows us down rather than what we think on the surface level. Bypassing the immediate urge to act on an impulse helps a lot too. Stay focused on what you decided upon, get pulled by your future self rather than being pulled back by your past self. Do less but with better quality. Through the power of stillness and intention, we can rise above the chaos and will be able to decide which things can be let go.
“Only as high as I reach can I grow; only as far as I seek can I go; only as deep as I look can I see; only as much as I dream can I be.” –
– Karen Ravin
The actor’s technique
Act as if you are the person of your ideal. As within so without, as above so below. Stanislavsky’s modern acting technique involves asking one’s self these questions to prepare for a role. Who am I?, Where am I?, When is it?, What do I want?, Why do I want it?, How will I get it?, What do I need to overcome? Each day we have the opportunity to create and recreate ourselves. We are the stars of our own motion picture so make time to prepare for your role each day by asking these questions.
In stillness you can mentally rehearse, rile up yourself to feel about your ideal self. This creates your being. Sustain this feeling of being your ideal. Listen to the voice of your ideal. Change your internal, and observe your external. Make it a discipline to not leave your meditative state until you feel your best.
“The unexamined life is not worth living.”
– Socrates
Feel the fear and do it anyway
This phrase is a book title by Susan Jeffers. One of the many insights from the book is to not put any type of power outside of one’s self. To be always centered. The moment we put power outside ourselves is the start of imbalance. Take charge of everything that happens to us. Accountability, responsibility and foresight will save us a lot of pain and repeated mistakes.
Fear is false evidence appearing real, if something is hindering you from your goals, take a deep breath, feel the fear and do it anyway. We will fail for sure, but we will fail in the right direction and coming back wiser and more capable. Everything we desire and what we could be is on the other side of fear. We know this and hear this all the time but when do we really intentionally face fear head on? Make it a deliberate practice to face something that you fear daily and you’ll find that it really is not as big of a deal as the mind puts it out to be. The mind tends to inflate and exaggerate everything leaving us paralyzed in indecision, shake it up by jumping in, getting in the flow and engaging rather than ruminating. Clarity comes in engagement.
Through inquiries like; what are my unconscious thoughts that are making me fearful? We get to control and choose our behavior either to give up or worrier up. That up is up to you!
“Taking responsibility means never blaming anyone else for anything you are being, doing, having, or feeling.”
– Susan Jeffers
Act. Observe. Course correct.
As we stay focused and centered, commuted to the version of our selves we ought to be. We are going to be dynamic, moving through our days with confidence. As we deploy actions and plans make sure we observe and evaluate our results each day and take note of new discoveries and knowings that we may apply next. Always remember, everything is in motion and subject to change, so find that sweet spot between flexibility and being focused. Think of the Inertial navigation systems by aircrafts, it works by using accelerometers and gyroscopes to calculate position, velocity, and other elements of movement. As the aircraft continues to travel along its path, the INS device will continuously calculate and update all the motion elements via information received from motion sensors. Your sensors are how you feel about your progress and your destination, and how you feel about them can be maneuvered through intentional thinking, affirmations, reflection and commitment.
“When a heart has set a course, let it navigate the laughter in failure and generosity in overcoming crisis. Love weaves lives and distills.”
– James Emlund
Strengthen positivity bias
The mind is wired to see what’s lacking. Our ego’s never run out of demands. Through simple awareness and intention, we can shift the mind’s negative tendencies. Give everything spaciousness. Before reacting, make time to turn things around towards a much more positive response. As we do this more often, we can train ourselves to become more positive. Aside from spaciousness another obvious tool for positivity is gratitude. Make time to affirm what you are grateful for, make it specific. You can do it anytime, name three things that you are grateful for, it can be as simple as clean water, a bed and a home. Make this habit multiple times a day, maybe set a timer that each and every three hours you practice gratitude. It is easy when our vibe and emotions are in neutral or equanimity. Let us not wait when we are in an anxious situation before doing something about it. Stack your positivity, pray and increase faith so that no external variable can penetrate your peace. Nothing is good or bad. Thinking makes it so. Think on good, blessed, amazing things.
“This is the essence of the Rebbe’s Positivity Bias: To believe in God’s ultimate goodness, to know that blessings await us beneath the surface of our experience, no matter how bleak, to actively seek those blessings out, and to spread their light to the world beyond.”
– Mendel Kalmelson
Savor for 30 seconds
Spaciousness, moments of gratitude, mindful awareness, these are your tools for equanimity and returning to your center. Savoring for 30 seconds is one of my favorites. Appreciate where, who and what you are for 30 seconds and bring ease to the heart. Ungrip the tension in the muscles and shoulders, get back in flow rejuvenated and engage in relaxed, effortless effort. Understand impermanence, our pain comes from resisting change. Be in flow with the ever changing world inside and outside of you. Our cells rejuvenates at a rate of millions per second. You are changing as you read this. Let’s open to this impermanence, be ok with it and grow and flow with it. It is the whole essence of life isn’t it? Savor the breaths, savor the change, savor your freedom.
“When we hygger, we frame the moment, give it our full attention, savour and hold it, in an awareness that the moment will pass. We feel how one moment becomes layered on to the next; past and present mingled together – everything falling into place, into one accord.”
Simple practices yield compounding results. Be clear and dedicated to these blueprints that we have discussed. Pick ones that resonate, these are simple concepts of mindfulness, gratitude and commitment. What is your favorite tool? What and how are you going to integrate it to your day to day? Any bold actions? Any new curiosities? Any morning practices? Feel free to share.
We all trip over and fall down every once in a while. It happens to us unexpectedly and after a certain time we come back stronger and smarter. If we look back on the causes of these trials, most often than not it is because of our choices. Things that happen externally that might appear unrelated to our way of being reveal their connection and oneness through lessons. All that happens to us is because of our way of being, perception of ourselves and the world. These prompts and insights are here to help you own your life, learn the lessons and avoid repeating them by understanding the basic principles of mind.
The intellect you cling to is limited
From the moment we wake up, most of us automatically jump into the role of who we were yesterday and prepared to repeat the same story. Joe Dispenza calls this the trap of the familiar past and the predictable future. The mind is comfortable with what it knows so it sticks to those two certain things. But your real freedom lies in the generous now. Now is where the birth of new ideas are, where the creation of your future self is, imagine a caterpillar birthing into a moth and Phoenix from ash. Empower your SELF over the mind by sitting still. Know the truth of your being and let the mind’s chatter be. Your mind is your intellect but it’s not intelligence. Intelligence is the one that moves and runs the universe, your intellect tries to understand how it works and is never satisfied with answers. Know the place of intellect, it is good with some things like planning and checking the bank balance and tuning the car up but that’s not the whole of what you are. You are awareness and divine intelligence, an expression of the divine, unique and never incorrect. We all just are in the process of life be lifing. So when presented with complexities by the mind; say thank you mind for your contributions but I’m sitting here for now, breathing and looking at the sky.
“Can you accept the notion that once you change your internal state, you don’t need the external world to provide you with a reason to feel joy, gratitude, appreciation, or any other elevated emotion?”
-Joe Dispenza
Get an alternate perspective
If the mind hooks you in with attractive demands such as; “you should do this and be like that or else it won’t be a good thing for me and others and you will fail”. Take a step back and observe this conversation of the mind and SELF. Sit still and be grounded, once again, thank your mind for its opinion but the real you, the SELF is complete in and of itself and do not need to fall prey to the minds demands. Try getting an alternate perspective, the one that feels gentler and kinder. The choice that promotes growth and nurturing. Lean in to what feels right not what the mind thinks is best. Feeling transcends understanding and is more powerful and creative. It is the Buddha and Christ in you. It is conscious awareness. In an alternate perspective you get to access “omniperception”. You get to understand what is best for the ocean, not just what’s good for a single drop. From time to time, take a step back and get an alternate perspective. Learn this habit and bring ease and harmony to your day to day.
“If the doors of perception were cleansed everything would appear to man as it is, infinite.”
– William Blake
Quit certainty cold turkey
Let go of always needing to know. The mind is never at ease even though all information is out there, there is always something it needs to know. Curiosity opens up new worlds and is the doorway to creativity but there is a difference between open inquiry and wanting things a certain way. If we always impose our preferences and beliefs into everything we encounter there will be no room for miracles. Try being comfortable with uncertainty. Try this mantra “I may have preferences but I really don’t mind what happens next”. Either it will or not won’t. This is neither a fortune nor a misfortune, it is just is. Try to quit our attachment to certainty and observe a lightness in the heart and your whole being.
“You want to know my secret? You see, I don’t mind what happens.”
– Jiddu Krishnamurti
Figure it out by observing not thinking
Sit still and be quite for a certain amount of time and there will be nothing that you can not know. Everything is divinely simple, there’s a spiritual answer and solution to everything. When bothered by complexity and indecision, take a moment to observe. Observe yourself being bothered, observe your physical self sitting and thinking of the problem. In this practice we get off our mental loops and get to see things for what they really are. You are awareness, not circumstances. Circumstances change and can not be controlled and it doesn’t have any power to disturb your peace unless you allow it. Always remember, things are mostly fine if we stop fiddling with it. Let most things be, let your loved ones be, let your natural well being be in balance, harmony, life affirming and giving. Brilliant insights come in observing and not judging, be sensitive to whispers from eternity.. They are subtle so quieten the intellect and be a mindful observer.
“Mother Nature is always speaking. She speaks in a language understood within the peaceful mind of the sincere observer. Leopards, cobras, monkeys, rivers and trees; they all served as my teachers when I lived as a wanderer in the Himalayan foothills.”
– Radhanath Swami
Be truly happy knowing that happiness is fleeting
The secret location of happiness is found in the abandonment for the need for it. Stop looking for happiness outside of you, what you have been looking for is what you already are. How many more shiny objects and promotions do you think you need? What ever you are looking for, let me stop you right there. You are already that. Yearn for inner joy, calm and tranquility than happiness that is instantly followed by despair. Be not attached nor afraid of anything…. Loss, change and disrepute. Stay in your equanimity and be above all the crash of breaking worlds. Here you are, sitting, smiling taking this journey gently, with ease and gratitude.
“You only want to be happy. All of your aspirations, no matter what they are, are a yearning for happiness. Basically, you wish yourself well…desire isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It’s life itself, the desire to expand one’s horizons of knowledge and experience. It is your decisions that are incorrect. To believe that something as insignificant as food, sex, power, or fame can make you happy is to deceive oneself. Only anything as big and profound as your true self can completely and permanently bring you joy.”
– Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj
Truth comes when you stop grappling with it
Imagine a pond of water, if you disturb it by swishing the water all around using a stick the water will turn muddy, unclear and unsettled. But leave it alone for a couple of hours and the sediments settle at the bottom and the water becomes sparkly and clear once again. The stick is our intellect trying to run hither and tither asking all sorts of nonsense, demanding this and that leaving us with a muddy perception of the truth. Stop disturbing the waters and we shall find truth. Truth of peace, love, clarity and abundance.
“All you need is a calm mind. Once your mind is tranquil, everything else will fall into place. Self-awareness affects mental changes in the same way as the rising light affects the environment. Inner energies awaken in the light of calm and steady self-awareness and create miracles without any effort on your behalf.”
– Nisargadatta Maharaj
The purpose of life is life itself
The million dollar question of the purpose of life. What is the purpose of life? It is life itself. It is all the courage and battles of your ancestors summed up in your DNA. You, being a divine spark of light from the cosmos entering your mums womb, hung out for 9 months and cried for air and has never stopped breathing. Your mission to lighten up the load of mankind and be a light to those in the dark. To leave things better than you find them. To become awake to everyday miracles. You digest sunlight and turn it to energy. You are constantly putting together pieces of your masterpiece. No matter how hard you search, you will be brought back to yourself. Be ok with life. It is pretty astounding to be here.
“Be a lamp unto yourself, make of yourself a light’ were the last words of the Buddha. no teacher or outside authority can give us the truth or take it away. in the end, we will find that our heart holds the simple wisdom and unshakable compassion that we have sought all along.”
– Jack Kornfield; After the Ecstasy, the Laundry: How the Heart Grows Wise on the Spiritual Path
Afterthoughts
You are done running around looking for answers and asking questions. Let go of the need to know. Practice silence and prayer. Nothing can bother you but your own mind untrained so become a master in letting a story go and shifting perspectives. Not immediately reacting is a beneficial tool to. Just smile, be at ease and know all is well.
Do you think you stay the way you are all through out your life? Do you believe that your capabilities are predetermined and dependent on genetics? If so, you have a fixed mindset missing out on a lot of possibilities and potential manifestations laying dormant in your system.
It doesn’t need to be this way, the fact that you are reading this is a sign that you are curious in breaking free from having a fixed mindset. Let’s know more about these mindsets and get on towards actionable tips to apply in our day to day.
You are perfect the way you are … and could use a little improvement
This insight is from Shunryu Suzuki (Beginners Mind). This one has stuck with me for a long time now and comes quite handy in staying in the middle of being and becoming. Your improvement is what you are. Deepak Copra said to view life as a verb for we are always changing moment to moment through breath, thoughts, emotions and food. The thing to keep in mind is to how we are changing, is it towards the higher Good of ourselves and others? or to degradation, atrophy and indifference. Lean in to what inspires, it might be little and simple, but know that it is important.
We often catch ourselves saying “this thing is not for me, I’m not the type of person who does this, I could never accomplish that” these are fixed mindsets and can easily be shifted to “this is not the thing for me right now but I can give it a try and see how it feels, I’m not the type of person who does this but let me give it a try and see how it feels, I could never accomplish that but I can start with this simple small step right now.” Adding yet to a “not” statement is handy too.
Watch your thoughts all through out the day and catch your mind if you have an unconscious fixed habit that hinders you from trying something new.
“Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed no hope at all.”
– Dale Carnegie
Becoming is your being
This insight is inspired by Carol Dweck (Mindset). She said, becoming is better than being but we can also view it as one and the same thing. You are gradually becoming even if no effort is applied. The life within us expresses its majesty even if you are just sitting doing nothing. We often get wrapped up in what is needed to be done and finished but as Alan Watts said, the music is enjoyed not per note and not just the final bang. Be gentle in your gradual becoming, take on the pace of nature. Gentle, secure, grounded & correct in all aspects. Enjoy your moment to moment arrival always at an interesting place. That’s all there is, we just are always in an interesting place and the next small step is up to you. Make that step one of effortless effort.
“The Universe contains three things that cannot be destroyed; Being, Awareness and LOVE”
– Deepak Chopra
Do you embrace challenges?
Make a habit of seeking challenge, in seeking challenge, we grow and widen our domain of familiarity. We create new neural connections, we create paths of opportunities. I always keep in mind and have practiced that if I deliberately challenge myself first thing in the morning, the rest of the day is easy. It can be something physical or something mentally challenging like creating something. Befriend challenges and discover a better version of yourself.
“Challenges make you discover things about yourself that you never really knew.”
– Cicely Tyson
Do you accept and learn from criticism?
This might seem simplistic but this time let’s be more intentional about this. Accepting criticism is hard because the ego only listens to praise and self aggrandizement. In our self actualization journey, knowing the difference between your ego and your real self is key to mastery. Nurture the part of you that is open to listen and change; that is your real self. The one that can’t accept criticisms is your ego, and in refusing to change, learn and grow it inflicts pain. We have discussed in earlier posts that when we believe the separateness of ego, it only hurts us. So from time to time, ask yourself (What is this situation trying to teaching me?)
“The trouble with most of us is that we would rather be ruined by praise than saved by criticism.”
– Norman Vincent Peale
Are you more clever than bewildered?
We were all once a kid, remember your curiosities when you were 7? We must not lose this sense of bewilderment. In mindful noticing of things around, you will find yourself flabbergasted with awe only if you take the time to look closely with curious appreciation. Look at a leaf, a rock and a tree, watch cars and trains pass by, breathe and observe the sparkles of the sun on the water. Imagine outer space, imagine time before and after you are here, isn’t it too amazing? Here’s a fact to be bewildered upon; “There are more patterns of connections between neurons in your brain than there are sub atomic particles in the universe” look up the work of Gerald Edelman. We often times get clever and assume that our way of thinking is the only way and we end up taking for granted possibilities.
So the next time you feel the urge to dismiss a certain situation or event. Approach it with new eyes. Everything can be experienced anew, even brushing your teeth.
“That’s the ruling story on this planet. We live suspended between Love & Ego”
– Richard Powers
Observe your attitude towards learning
Do you ever find yourself saying, “Oh he’s just a natural when it comes to basketball, I’m not”. Swap it with “He put a ton of time practicing to achieve that, I’m able to achieve that skill level if I put my time and effort on it. Consume inspiring media and connect with people who encourage a growth mindset. Be mindful of your unconscious biases, once you identify them it will be the start of unstoppable growth.
“Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude.”
– Zig Ziglar
Learn about neuro plasticity
Learn about the the most amazing thing between your ears and what it is capable of. Click here if you wanna deep dive on this topic. Our brains, like our muscles are capable of changing to where your desires take you. If you want a brain with an immense capability for playing music, start practicing 1 song. You are moldable and ever changing. Just thinking of this brings a feeling of liberation. I used to not be able to touch my toes but now my padahastasana (yoga pose) rocks. So imagine what you could be, write out a simple plan and act on it daily for 66 days. It’s fun and you’ll discover parts of yourself you never knew existed.
“I was suitably impressed with the eighty-six billion neurons that glittered like stars in the skull but was a little overwhelmed by the idea that the constellations could be moved, shaped, and changed negatively and positively.”
– Jennifer Fraser
Practice makes permanent
What we practice gets easier and soon enough becomes automatic. Grow into the person who does the type of thing you desire through deliberate practice. Make walking around the block a permanent practice by doing it daily no matter the weather conditions may be. It is not enough to learn something; daily application is where compounding growth is. When the mind hints you to “skip it”, do a 5 second countdown and just do it anyway. You’ll thank yourself later. It is always best to track your progress and do a daily assessment in the evening on how you did that day.
“We don’t rise to the level of our expectations; we fall to the level of our training.”
– Archilochus
“ There are no shortcuts. It will take you at least a decade to achieve expertise, and you will need to invest that time wisely, by engaging in “deliberate” practice—practice that focuses on tasks beyond your current level of competence and comfort.”
Afterthoughts
Knowing the difference between having a growth mindset and a fixed mindset; where do you think you stand? In what ways are you having a fixed mindset and in what ways are you having a growth mindset? What possibilities do you imagine for yourself if you cultivate more growth mindedness?
Know what the cause of what makes you feel incomplete. Liberate yourself from what’s hindering you by knowing and practicing simple principles. Apply and sustain these 8 ways of li ing in your day to day and become more at peace with life.
Right View
“And what is right view? Knowing about suffering, the origin of suffering, the cessation of suffering, and the practice that leads to the cessation of suffering. This is called right view.”
Pali Canon
To practice right view, we need to let go of the concept of the world as fixed. View the world as constantly changing, imagine the seasons and the circle of life. In practicing right view, we won’t be attached to relative concepts that will inevitably change. Practicing right view also implies that everything is interconnected and a part of the whole. Make it a habit to check in moment to moment on how are you thinking right this moment. Are you perceiving a certain thing from a narrow lens? Can you widen your understanding regarding this situation? What am I resisting? What is preventing me from having a right view?
“If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.”
– Wayne Dyer
Right Intention
Apply the power of your mind to intend renunciation and surrender. Right intention means selfless detachment, putting your higher self first before the ego. We often times get caught up by the demands of the ego because it is louder, it is what we see on the external and it keeps on bugging us with its endless chatter. Let go of attachment to possessions and beliefs. Often times because of habit, we become addicted to the egos story. It doesn’t need to be this way. Disrupt this pattern by internally replying to the ego; “no thanks”. From time to time, ask; what are my intentions behind pushing forward with this specific thing? Why am I deliberately pouring energy towards it? Is it self serving? Am I aimed at the highest possible good besides my own? Are my intentions for the whole or for just a small part? Is this harming others?
“All that we are is the result of what we have thought: it is founded on our thoughts, it is made up of our thoughts. If a man speaks or acts with an evil thought, pain follows him, as the wheel follows the foot of the ox that draws the carriage. “All that we are is the result of what we have thought: it is founded on our thoughts, it is made up of our thoughts. If a man speaks or acts with a pure thought, happiness follows him, like a shadow that never leaves him.”
– Dhammapada
Right Speech
Yogic tradition has it that speech must pass before three barriers prior to being uttered aloud. These barriers come in the form of three questions: Is it kind? Is it true? Is it necessary?
Your word is your wand, your word is law. Be mindful with our speech. If urging to speak but not one of benevolence, beauty, praise and usefulness it is best to practice “noble silence”. Abstain from lies and gossip and only speak of truth, noble and God like matters. Our speech is the next level of manifestation of our thought, it is more real in wave form as compared to thought. So we must be watchful of our speech.
“Be a light in the darkness. Speak healing ”
– Alex Kakuyo
Right Action
Make every action one of honorability, peacefulness and morality. In practicing the right view, intention, and speech, it will lead us to right action. Train ourselves in protecting and sustaining life around us. In treating everything around us as sacred, we will become more mindful in each act that we do. Maybe we consider segregating and recycling more thoroughly. Stop using plastic, these little things have a huge impact that we tend to underestimate.
“The practice of Right Action is a practice of faith, a faith that says what we do matters. We matter. And whether we’re refilling the coffee pot at work or speaking in front of a crowd of thousands, we have the power to change the world one small act at a time.”
– Alex Kakuyo
Right Livelihood
Integrate your talents that it may support the wellbeing of yourself, others and the planet. Maybe take a deeper look into the organization you are working for, is it ethically and morally aligned to your values? Is the organization harming animals and the planet? If so you might wanna shift to one that is working on positive change. There’s a lot of conscious companies out there that offer lots of opportunities.
“…Think of it as ‘Right Livelihood 2.0’… In addition to not causing harm to yourself or another, this is livelihood that is an expression of your Core Intention, work that you can fall in love with and that no longer feels like “work”: work that matters.”
– Maia Duerr
Right Effort
There are four aspects to right effort.
The effort to prevent unwholesome qualities from arising.
The effort to extinguish unwholesome qualities that already have risen.
The effort to cultivate skillful and wholesome qualities.
The effort to strengthen wholesome qualities that have already arisen.
In everything we do, keep in mind these four efforts. It is a very good tool to really look at how we are performing or serving our duty. Keeping our efforts wholesome with moment to moment check ins. As you go about the day and your work, keep an unwavering rectitude, unlimited forgiveness & unselfish performance of duty.
“By your own efforts waken yourself, watch yourself. And live joyfully.”
– Gautama Buddha
Right Mindfulness
Develop an accurate and precise awareness of the present moment with no opinions & judgements laid upon. Pay no attention to the filtered perceptions of the mind but it n the impermanence and interconnectedness of all things. That everything is subject to change, and a change in one thing causes others to change. See everything as an ever changing expression of the universe. Today may you have right mindfulness in thoughts, emotions and actions. We often get bummed by how others treat us, saying “they treat me this way causing me pain”; in right mindfulness ; “they treat me this way because that is how they are and it is ok”
“When right mindfulness is developed and made much of, one realizes what one should do and should not do. Whether one should speak or not speak. When one speaks, what should be spoken and not spoken. Right mindfulness is the basis for the development of the right path that culminates in knowledge, wisdom, contentment and the highest happiness.”
– Mithra Mettimury
Right Meditation
Right meditation or concentration means detaching from your sense perceptions. Have the mastery of not giving in to the immediate urges and impulses of the senses. With sustained and applied way of thinking, a certain joy will arise. A joy not coming from sensual pleasures, it comes from knowing, accepting and appreciating the way things are. Even this joy will subside and one enters equanimity, a state above pain and pleasure, sorrow and joy. In simply giving up our preferences, attachments and yearnings we liberate our selves from what we think we need to complete us. Sit still, give it time, and practice right meditation.
“You are not limited to this body, to this mind, or to this reality—you are a limitless ocean of Consciousness, imbued with infinite potential. You are existence itself.”
– Joseph Kauffman
Conclusion
We often feel constrained and being enslaved by our desired. Understand that there are many layers to your consciousness, you can easily rise above your torments simply by knowing that you are not your ego and its demands. You aren’t even your body or your persona, you are the whole of life and you can just watch from a safe place and appreciate it’s magnificence. Liberation can be attained where you are with these 8 practices. Make this your way of life and watch things around you change.
We are not our names, jobs and societal roles. These are merely constructs, concepts and stories. We are much bigger than we think we are. We are not our thoughts, actions & emotions. We are the awareness of the existence of all of these perceptions. Try thinking of a time before you existed and then towards a time that you don’t exist anymore, you can even bring your attention way towards outer space and see the earth as a blue marble. Who and what notices all of these experiences? Know the difference between your expanded consciousness and your egoic consciousness and knowing where to focus our attention will save us a lot of unnecessary misery.
Establish that you are not your identity/self image
Start the day by affirming this “I am eternal, immortal universal and infinite”. Much of our suffering comes from protecting the correctness, avoiding to learn, or running away from things that aren’t in congruent with our ego’s beliefs. Our ego’s beliefs are narrow, based on some teaching we picked up somewhere and why we believe them we can’t truly understand. In mindfulness, we can watch the ego’s biased choices, and opinions. Do not immediately entangle yourself or invest a whole lot of energy in protecting the ego’s position. Try to see things from a bird’s eye view and watch your ego’s murmurs diminish. If you entangle yourself with the ego’s demands, you will burn out and will never be at peace.
Suffering stems from your Self-Image. That you should be this and that and you can only be at peace when such and such has occurred. Sounds familiar? Here’s an essential truth, you can never control how others may react or think of you and you can never find peace outside of you. Be bigger than your identity, don’t take anything personally and too seriously. Make space to expand your being and to become part of all things. Treat everything with reverence and understanding. Imagine it’s the first day of school everyday, remember those days? We were so open and connected.
“We end up putting so much attention onto our image that we remain in a continuous state of protecting or improving our image in order to control how others see us.”
– Adyashanti
Let go of control
As much as we are invested in our self image, we are also addicted to control. Accept that control is an illusion and you immediately break free from the rigid requirements of your ego’s make beliefs. The trick here is to find balance and to know the extent of what you can control. You can devote yourself and try your best to plan a perfect picnic, but don’t get bummed if it unexpectedly rains. Show up with the best efforts you have and expect the higher power on how it will paint the picture. Mostly what we plan is very different from what the higher power has done laid for us. Be keen on picking up signs, be quick on learning the lesson, diligent in reading the messages, flexible in ways to progress and head on out with relentless yet gentle persistence.
“Incredible change happens in your life when you decide to take control of what you do have power over instead of craving control over what you don’t.”
– Steve Maraboli
Be flexible on your beliefs
The small part of you is attached to what it knows. It will do everything to protect and defend its correctness, comfort and pleasure. We will open ourselves up to new heights and become truly aligned with our purpose if we are not bound by should and shouldn’ts of our beliefs. Establish a bright line that keeps you aligned with your truest values and principles but keep the door open to new ways of thinking and going about things and how other people are. In practicing this openness, collaborations happen and births of new things become possible.
“That which yields is not always weak.”
– Jacqueline Carey
Stop thinking that everything outside of you is a threat
Have in inclusive mindset. Include yourself by listening, smiling and understanding. Nothing is a threat unless you make it so. Even in front of a wild animal, embody oneness. Tune in to the feeling of all life creating more life. In diversity there is evolution, are you growing with it or afraid of it? You were not afraid jumping into this human experience so why should anything be a threat to you? Listen to your inner knowing more than your ego. If a hunch is telling you to try something new, go for it before the ego pushes you back to comfort. So get used to a lot of unexpected stuff, unknown places & unusual people and accept them as part of one beating beautiful life. We just intersect and interact once in a while to push each other up to greater awareness. No big deal, we will all return to the one eternal consciousness anyways so appreciate all the variety you can while you are here.
You are not separate from everything you perceive outside of you. The sooner you understand and practice this the sooner you will find peace and eliminate suffering. Much of your suffering is in the mind only, learn the habit of constantly dropping stories you latch onto and you set yourself free.
“We are like islands in the sea, separate on the surface but connected in the deep.”
– William James
Stop believing the thoughts that make you suffer
We have learned to practice STOP in our previous entry. Stop, Take a deep breath, Observe & Proceed. Create space between your awareness and your thoughts. Our thoughts happen of themselves but our investment in them is where we trip. We get wrapped up and it puts us in a constrained limited world where the only reality is the world that makes us suffer.
It doesn’t have to be this way. Doing the work by Byron Katie really comes in handy in these challenging times. Ask these 4 questions in times when you are entangled in thoughts of suffering.
Is it true?
Is it absolutely true?
Who would you be without this thought?
What would it be like if I turn this around?
Conclusion
In studying the difference between our ego and awareness, we learn where our suffering comes from and know how to manage them through simple shifting of attention and some inquiry.
Our inner world and outer world are not separate. Transcend the illusion of separateness and you shall find peace. Go above the judgement of good & bad and you have accessed the space of non duality. Always be centered where all is in balance and equanimity. Here in lies your piece.
Although letting go of your beliefs might feel like dying, you are dying to give birth to a more peaceful version of yourself, one that is free from suffering, Christ like and carries joy every where you may roam.
Sharing is caring. Let’s raise the consciousness of humanity one small act at a time.
