Conversation with the Inner Self by Sheba Sharrow
Thursday, June 29, 2006
Your Inner Self
“You are led through your lifetime by the inner learning creature, the playful spiritual being that is your real self. Don't turn away from possible futures before you're certain you don't have anything to learn from them.” - Richard Bach (author of 'Jonathan Livingston Seagull)
All of us have this inner self that we listen to and argue with. Yes, you can have an argument with yourself. It is your inner attempt to reconcile or deal with information. One may think that we are of a single mind so therefore no conflict should exist. Yet it does and some may call this self actualization. This is the process of understanding oneself more completely and being aware of issues affecting one's life.
From The Conscious and Unconscious Mind by Kendra Van Wagner, according to Sigmund Freud, the mind can be divided into two main parts:
1. The conscious mind includes everything that we are aware of. This is the aspect of our mental processing that we can think and talk about rationally. A part of this includes our memory, which is not always part of consciousness but can be retrieved easily at any time and brought into our awareness. Freud called this ordinary memory the preconscious.
2. The unconscious mind is a reservoir of feelings, thoughts, urges, and memories that outside of our conscious awareness. Most of the contents of the unconscious are unacceptable or unpleasant, such as feelings of pain, anxiety, or conflict. According to Freud, the unconscious continues to influence our behavior and experience, even though we are unaware of these underlying influences.
Two parts of us at conflict with each other. It is this inner-self that you must attempt to deal with in order to better handle what life sets before you. I'm not certain any of us fully reach a point in which we completely understand our inner self. But we all need to reconcile ourselves to that inner voice. Once you have done this, it releases you to move forward in life to go after your dreams.
"Believe in your vision, act upon your vision and realize your vision." - Joseph Primm
All of us have this inner self that we listen to and argue with. Yes, you can have an argument with yourself. It is your inner attempt to reconcile or deal with information. One may think that we are of a single mind so therefore no conflict should exist. Yet it does and some may call this self actualization. This is the process of understanding oneself more completely and being aware of issues affecting one's life.
From The Conscious and Unconscious Mind by Kendra Van Wagner, according to Sigmund Freud, the mind can be divided into two main parts:
1. The conscious mind includes everything that we are aware of. This is the aspect of our mental processing that we can think and talk about rationally. A part of this includes our memory, which is not always part of consciousness but can be retrieved easily at any time and brought into our awareness. Freud called this ordinary memory the preconscious.
2. The unconscious mind is a reservoir of feelings, thoughts, urges, and memories that outside of our conscious awareness. Most of the contents of the unconscious are unacceptable or unpleasant, such as feelings of pain, anxiety, or conflict. According to Freud, the unconscious continues to influence our behavior and experience, even though we are unaware of these underlying influences.
Two parts of us at conflict with each other. It is this inner-self that you must attempt to deal with in order to better handle what life sets before you. I'm not certain any of us fully reach a point in which we completely understand our inner self. But we all need to reconcile ourselves to that inner voice. Once you have done this, it releases you to move forward in life to go after your dreams.
"Believe in your vision, act upon your vision and realize your vision." - Joseph Primm
Monday, June 26, 2006
Open Heart for a Great Life
The idea of trying to make a change based upon things one does not understand can be difficult. Stepping into the unknown without a full clue as to the outcome is a daunting transition. Yet making change is never done in a completely blind manner. All of us do a certain amount of research and soul searching on anything we do.
Some will talk to others for advice, some dive into books, while others pour over internet web pages to seek information. This is done in an attempt to fill our physical mind with an understanding of the situation. Attention is then turned to what some call that 'gut feeling'. This is an attempt to satisfy the heart. It is also referred to as turning to the spirit that lives within us. Whatever it is you call it, your heart drives this part of the decision making process.
The sad part is that there are many people who do not make change because they allow the mind to dominate the process. They do not allow their heart to have an equal chance. Why do we do this to ourselves?
It is because what you can not understand or control, you reject it. If you can not grasp it, human nature (the natural part of us) wants to understand it completely. If this part of us can not do so, we discard and turn from it. This is where the heart comes into use.
There are going to be things in this life beyond your control. Certainly humans are constantly in search of the 'answers' to everything presented before us. Everything must be rationalized and categorized and completely analyzed. This is a good and natural thing for us to do. But at certain points in our individual lives, there will be things beyond your control or understanding. At this point you turn to your heart and simply have to accept it on faith.
Your heart will tell you if it is right for you or not. It is not meant to say that because your heart accepts it on faith that others are wrong. It does not mean that you are wrong for accepting it because others didn't. It only means that you are right in your own heart in combination with the natural process as it relates to you.
Change takes us to the unknown sometimes. To a place that the natural thought process can not fully provide answers to. Let your heart help you accept change on faith that making a move to better your life is the correct decision.
"Human nature is designed to limit ourselves to all of the possibilities life has for us", as related to me by Dean Sweetman. What he wants, what I want, what all of us want is to allow our hearts to open us up to those possibilities for a greater life. Each person deserves a great life and most importantly, you deserve that great life.
Some will talk to others for advice, some dive into books, while others pour over internet web pages to seek information. This is done in an attempt to fill our physical mind with an understanding of the situation. Attention is then turned to what some call that 'gut feeling'. This is an attempt to satisfy the heart. It is also referred to as turning to the spirit that lives within us. Whatever it is you call it, your heart drives this part of the decision making process.
The sad part is that there are many people who do not make change because they allow the mind to dominate the process. They do not allow their heart to have an equal chance. Why do we do this to ourselves?
It is because what you can not understand or control, you reject it. If you can not grasp it, human nature (the natural part of us) wants to understand it completely. If this part of us can not do so, we discard and turn from it. This is where the heart comes into use.
There are going to be things in this life beyond your control. Certainly humans are constantly in search of the 'answers' to everything presented before us. Everything must be rationalized and categorized and completely analyzed. This is a good and natural thing for us to do. But at certain points in our individual lives, there will be things beyond your control or understanding. At this point you turn to your heart and simply have to accept it on faith.
Your heart will tell you if it is right for you or not. It is not meant to say that because your heart accepts it on faith that others are wrong. It does not mean that you are wrong for accepting it because others didn't. It only means that you are right in your own heart in combination with the natural process as it relates to you.
Change takes us to the unknown sometimes. To a place that the natural thought process can not fully provide answers to. Let your heart help you accept change on faith that making a move to better your life is the correct decision.
"Human nature is designed to limit ourselves to all of the possibilities life has for us", as related to me by Dean Sweetman. What he wants, what I want, what all of us want is to allow our hearts to open us up to those possibilities for a greater life. Each person deserves a great life and most importantly, you deserve that great life.
Sunday, June 25, 2006
Focus Your Attitude
A long week of car troubles repeatedly and minor issues occurring. Certainly a good test of ones ability to stay positive. There are weeks like this and I for one am not immune from them. It is these things that put my belief in the power of being positive, of having a great attitude to test.
It can be frustrating when these things occur and there are multiple things that come into play. How do you deal with it then? A couple basic things to know;
In my particular case, I took time to recognize and be irritated by the issues occurring. Then I turned my focus to solutions, to working on a plan to sort out what was happening. In essence, I turned my focus to the anwers. Looking ahead two and three steps on what can be done to redirect the course of events.
This isn't instantaneous change in most cases, but directing your focus to the end results, by 'seeing' the answer, will remove you from stagnation. It will move you past the problem and towards resolution. By staying within the problem, you are bound and restricted by the weight of the issue. Your attitude will become mired in the despair and you won't be able to think clearly.
By refocusing on the answers, you take control of the situation and free yourself to move forward. You free yourself to release the problem and concentrate on finding solutions and then acting upon those solutions. Your mind and heart will feel a lifting sensation of the burden. Your attitude will improve which will make you more approachable. You will see others more willing to come to your assistance. Things will get better.
“Don't dwell on what went wrong. Instead, focus on what to do next. Spend your energies on moving forward toward finding the answer.” - Denis Waitley
It can be frustrating when these things occur and there are multiple things that come into play. How do you deal with it then? A couple basic things to know;
- Accept it since life happens, release it so you can move on.
- Accept it with a cheerful heart since anything else will keep you from moving on.
- Accept it for yourself, do not place it upon others; seek advice, but do not unload your problems upon others.
- Accept it as a problem, but see the answer.
In my particular case, I took time to recognize and be irritated by the issues occurring. Then I turned my focus to solutions, to working on a plan to sort out what was happening. In essence, I turned my focus to the anwers. Looking ahead two and three steps on what can be done to redirect the course of events.
This isn't instantaneous change in most cases, but directing your focus to the end results, by 'seeing' the answer, will remove you from stagnation. It will move you past the problem and towards resolution. By staying within the problem, you are bound and restricted by the weight of the issue. Your attitude will become mired in the despair and you won't be able to think clearly.
By refocusing on the answers, you take control of the situation and free yourself to move forward. You free yourself to release the problem and concentrate on finding solutions and then acting upon those solutions. Your mind and heart will feel a lifting sensation of the burden. Your attitude will improve which will make you more approachable. You will see others more willing to come to your assistance. Things will get better.
“Don't dwell on what went wrong. Instead, focus on what to do next. Spend your energies on moving forward toward finding the answer.” - Denis Waitley
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