Know Thyself

Are you aware that you have voices in your head? If you thought “what voice?” that’s the voice I’m talking about. Talking to yourself is nothing to be ashamed of, the fact is people do it all the time. However: In terms of peace of mind, freedom from stress and living the best life possible, you need to be aware of what the voice in your head is telling you.

When you aren’t aware you have no choice. You follow and do and feel and react accordingly to the voice. We’ve lived with the voice in the head for so long we more or less follow what it says.

It’s one result when you go with the voice that says “I’m hungry”, completely another path when you believe the voice that states “I can’t”. Perhaps even more insidious is the voice that goes “I should”.

In awareness you have choice.

In knowing the voice you can create a space of freedom and exploration of what happens when you don’t automatically go with it. The next step stops being a reactive, “what you have always done” movement and starts becoming creative - the consciously living of your life. You can be aware of restrictive or limiting patterns and habits and make other choices.

Choice is the key word, always.

Even just for a couple of minutes, stop and observe your thoughts. In watching you can see what there is in your own head. Let them come, and let them go. If it helps, maybe count them. Assign each one a number as simply as if you were counting clouds in the sky as they pass by.

For each thought there doesn’t have to be a reaction. Every thought can just arise and then fall away to where ever it came from.

Equally, just because you think it, it doesn’t mean it is true. A thought can simply be an idea, a label, an interpretation or an option. Does that make sense?

For example, there doesn’t need to be a link between a “bad” thought and feeling bad - it can simply be an option to choose to feel bad that you don’t take, you just observe and let go.

Just because you have thoughts it doesn’t mean that you are the thoughts. Because you can be aware of the contents of your mind, it means you must be more than those contents. Your thoughts need not define or be the limit of you.

If this is so, if you aren’t your mind, if you aren’t your beliefs, if you have choice, then what are you? Be aware and find out. Know thyself.

It’s worth doing because the most important question to me is always “how do you want to live?”

However that is, don’t live blindly. There is always more beyond the voices. There is always choice. Always.

How your mind will try and talk you out of just about anything - and what to do about it

Not feeling so motivated? A little tired? Didn’t sleep so well last night? Whatever you got, just start it. Only do it for 5 minutes, and see what happens.

It gives me a great indicator of either no, it really isn’t going to happen today, or actually yes, and those 5 minutes become much more than that.

Sometimes in life the hardest thing is getting down to business (whatever that may be). The business at hand isn’t an issue, it’s the thought about it causes the most drag.

I remember a yoga teacher I used to go to who always used to say that the hardest part of yoga was rolling out the mat and stepping on it.

He was right, I used to be able to do anything but actually get on the mat. I could spend hours procrastinating before actually sitting down at my computer.

But when I did - and didn’t allow myself to be distracted by facebook or selecting the right playlist for my exercise session or vacuuming the floor because it’s way too dirty - then things moved along nicely.

Now I know that tendency of the mind - to delay, to distract, to declare that the conditions aren’t quite right - it’s simple. I just get on my mat or sit down and get started before I can think about it.

If I still feel not quite right then I give it at least 5 minutes before quitting.

When you know what obstacles your mind will throw up it’s a simple step to ignore them.

Knowing your own mind, its ways and reactions is crucial to living the life you want to live - and all it requires is for you to be aware.

Awareness is simple, and the only time you can be aware is now.

Who's the boss?

Do you feel like you are wrestling with a constantly active mind? Do you feel like you have been given to your mind, as opposed to your mind being given to you?

Your mind never rests, it is never content. It is always active - that's what it does. You find a bit of happiness and calm, and then your mind is gone, searching for the next thing. Your mind can never be content because its always on the hunt, but that's its job.

We have a problem with over-thinking because through habit we have let the mind become the boss. We've let it into the driving seat and its gotten away, going for it, predicting, guessing, checking, comparing, the whole works. Its not relaxing because the mind is constantly busy doubting and worrying. Its inefficient too. Because the mind is never present, we rarely can meet the true need of this moment. We rarely show up for life.

In all ways, for the fullest life possible we have to learn to again be the boss of the mind.

Being the boss of the mind doesn't mean closing it down or shutting it up. It means realising what the mind is, and having a different perspective, a bigger perspective.

We are awareness. We are what we notice. For the longest time all we have noticed is the same old loops of thought that are floating around inside our skulls. We're so involved in the detail we don't see anything else. We notice the content but rarely the context. We notice the fish swimming, but rarely the water. We notice the words, but rarely who is reading. The universe is a big place, a wondrous place, but we just don't notice much of it.

Being clear, calm and content does not require force. It involves relaxing, taking a step back. When you stop and become presence, even just for a moment, everything changes. By becoming aware of the bigger picture the mind becomes smaller, quieter in comparison. You become content. Not that you weren't contentment already, its just that you were distracted, listening to your mind trying to be helpful by telling you everything that was wrong.

You also become ready. Ready for anything. All possibilities. You can meet the need of this moment because you're not absorbed in the mind talk about the last moment or the next one. You can direct your considerable attention to anything you wish, not just what your mind believes is important.

If you become the boss of your mind, you are free. Free to put your attention on anything you wish. Free to follow what is most important to you, your highest desire. Free to finally show up for life, to participate fully in it. Yet most importantly, you are free to realise who you really are.