Tuning into YOU - Committing to YOU!

How aware are you of your inner Self? Who really is this person you refer to as “I” or “ME”?

Who is the YOU that rests behind the story of who you “think” you are?
You are not your body nor are you your mind although both are tools that are absolutely necessary for you to live and thrive in your human existence.

Our mind is our ego's tool and it likes to believe that it is in charge! It is the computer that comes up with all the stories we consciously and subconsciously create for ourselves and for the people and events in our lives. Our brain’s job is to make sense of everything so it constantly analyzes and groups and categorizes information and creates systems of how everything works and operates.

In your first few years of life your brain is like a sponge, soaking up all the information that comes its way, trusting that this information is true and authentic, working non-stop on grouping and categorizing the information so it can create a system that ensures your survival in the world. When we were children our minds did not really question what adults said and did, we simply received the information, analyzed it and judged where it belonged and speedily placed it into the “right” group and category. “OK, to stay out of trouble - do NOT do ‘this’”, “To get approval – Do ‘that’” etc.

The variable is that not all of us are raised in the same environment and not all are raised in a truly positive and nurturing environment. Some are raised in a more ‘negative’ environment than others and receive less unconditional love, and affection, freedom and encouragement so the lens from which we view the world gets skewed or “dirty” and we view the world as if we are looking through grey colored and spotted lenses. The world may even appear to be quite dark and scary and it does not feel like a safe and happy place in any way.

When we let our often poorly programmed minds run the show we tend to be strictly reactive in our responses to whatever stimuli we receive. We come only from what we know, and use our past as a sure predictor of the future. We see and we hear, and feel we can completely trust our perception for nothing has ever proved to us that what we see and hear is not what really is… so it must be true! Our facts are THE facts!

People look at us funny and we assume they must be thinking something negative about us so our reactive mode kicks in, thinking, “Oh, I know ‘this’ look!”… “I’ve seen it before somewhere (or at least one similar to it) so it goes into ‘that’ category, it means ‘this’ to me”. And, our mood goes down, perhaps for the rest of the day or even for the rest of the week, and we feel completely out of balance, angry or belittled or embarrassed or anxious or something. While the fact of the matter could be that the person looking at us was having indigestion issues and just happened to look your way at the same time as their intestines cramped and they frowned and gave an impression of dislike. What do we know?! That might just as well be the case for we simply assumed we knew exactly what was going on, and our mind created a story based on past events of having been judged in some way. It can actually be quite funny to catch your mind in the act of judging and reacting. It does it so quickly that you often do not catch it until it’s already far ahead in the process.

We all have a tendency to judge, but we also have a choice on whether or not to believe or even react to those often automatic judgments.
To become less reactive in our lives we have to train ourselves to ‘catch our mind in the act’ and we can choose to retrain our minds to be more open, loving and thankful or in other words more positive and optimistic and hence much happier!

“It used to be that ‘positive thinking motivators’ of the past like Norman Vincent Peale, Napoleon Hill and Emmet Fox were ridiculed by intellectuals as being secular evangelists who purveyed false hope to hopeless followers. The only thing they couldn’t explain was that their recommended thinking practices actually WORKED and made people successful. They couldn’t explain that. But now! Now that biology has caught up with people who motivate people (and people who motivate themselves) it is proven that the brain actually physically changes and adds capacities it didn’t have when you practice self-disciplined learning and new thinking. (Like learning to think like an owner and not a victim. Like creating rather than reacting.)" –Stephen Chandler, 2009.

Our way of thinking is not permanent or fixed, nor is your personality determined by your DNA.

At any given moment you can choose to modify or even completely change your habitual ways of thinking and your habitual ways of viewing the world and instead create something you actually WANT in your life. You can create the YOU that you want to be! There is no truth in thinking, “I am who I am and there is nothing I can do about it!” for too many people have already proved that hypothesis wrong by doing a 180 in their lives and changing themselves completely and have become more authentic and expressive of who they REALLY are… and are now much happier and more joyous and peaceful. Today’s neuroscience discoveries are backing this human ability up 100%. (For more on that research a wonderful book to read is “The Brain that Changes Itself”).

So why are some people so much more open, loving and thankful than others? And, why are they so darn happy all the time? Why can some people see the best in every situation while others see the worst?

Yes, some had a great head start by being raised in a positive and upbeat environment, learning early on to use their minds in a positive manner while others had to learn the hard-er way and perhaps noticed much later on that what they had been told was true was not the absolute truth at all! Those people began looking around and started wondering; “Is this really all there is to this? Could there be something more? Could there be another way of being?”… and… then they simply declared to themselves that they would seek that out and start doing things differently! They decided to change and in essence CHOSE to be positive and optimistic, and they chose to embark upon personal growth journeys so they would make sure they’d get there and they chose to see the best in every situation, and by making all these courageous choices they went ahead and even changed their brains! It seems that all we have to do is make a choice of who we want to be and how we want to live. If something is not serving us anymore… we go ahead and do what it takes to change it. We commit to figuring it out and commit to putting ourselves first.

By committing to yourself and to your personal growth and creating time to reflect and be with your Self in solitude every now and again, you can start to truly create your dream life into existence and not just be a reactive being on autopilot mode. By asking your spirit questions such as “What do I want?” “Who am I really?” “What is truly important to me?” “What truly matters in life?” “What do I want to create?” “What do I have to change to live the life I want to live?” “Who do I have to be to get everything I want out of life?”… Not only will you be able to find the answers to life’s big questions but you will be tuning into the REAL YOU and find that you are able to create what you want into existence.

So to truly hit the START button towards a courageous, creative and HAPPY life we have to work on some positive programming and do that on a regular basis, by creating the discipline to do the following;

1. Journaling on whatever is resting in your mind… challenges, accomplishments, breakthroughs…

2. Placing ourselves in a positive and creative mindset by writing out words of gratitude for what already is wonderful in our lives and writing out words of affirmations for what it is that we want to achieve and can see ourselves achieving….

3. Placing ourselves in a positive and happy mindset by seeking out positive and uplifting people, reading positive and uplifting books, watching positive, funny and uplifting movies, listening to upbeat and inspiring music, playing and goofing off with friends, and our spouses and children and doing the activities we love doing.

4. And, last but not least, find a mentor with a clear perspective who can serve as our motivator, challenger and accountability partner to keep us working towards our goals and helping us create new launching pads from which to jump even further forwards than we ever dreamed we could!

We often get caught up in the trap of “thinking” that if only the outside world would change then we would be so much happier and everything would be better but the truth is that the only thing you can change is YOU! Positive change that comes from within radiates out into the world like a bright beacon of light and affects everyone around you in a positive way. By changing ourselves for the better we change everything for the better, and we change the dynamics in your relationships with other people, and hence create even more joy and happiness in our lives. For the world to change; we have to change! So commit to YOU!

Why not start tuning into YOU today?!