You know I am big on the consciousness thing.
You also know I am big on the EVOLUTION thing.
YOUR EVOLUTION.
I want us all to evolve into our fullest potential.
Plus to experience the most JOYFUL and BLISSFUL life experience (day-to-day).
I also believe at my core the human potential we have to date witnessed is still WAY short of our possibility.
There are a whole bunch of genes not expressed in our DNA, which are just waiting to be unlocked.
So, let’s help this evolutionary process.
And let’s do it in an super practical way.
That is, with a little help from Dr David Hawkins and his Map of Consciousness work.
And yes, I have talked about this before, but because it is SO important, I want to really zero in on one particular aspect that holds back almost all my clients.
Background: Dr David Hawkins and Levels of Consciousness
Sir David R. Hawkins, M.D., Ph.D. was a nationally renowned psychiatrist, physician, researcher, spiritual teacher and lecturer.
But one of the things that made him so unique, was he not only studied consciousness deeply (from a medical and scientific perspective), but he was considered to have personally reached a stage of enlightenment or real-realisation / self-actualisation.
The classical hallmarks of this state are a pristine awareness of ultimate reality (i.e. the ‘reality’ the quantum physicists talk about), compassion for all beings, tireless dedication to alleviate suffering, radiant joy, and humor.
He also wrote numerous books on consciousness, enlightenment and two of my favourites are: Power Versus Force, and Letting Go.
What I love most about his work is the concise Map of Consciousness he created, which allows a greater understanding about progression of the levels of consciousness, from the lowest (shame) all the way to Peace and Enlightenment.
He also suggested there was a point of consciousness where we move from a state where ‘Force‘ is our major driver, to ‘Power‘ being our primary driver or fuel.
Again, I have talked about this before.
The point where consciousness and our fuel for life, goes from needing to force things to happen, to a place where power propels us along, or draws us forward, is the level of COURAGE.
Again, I have spoken about this before.
I call COURAGE the DOORWAY to higher levels of consciousness and (personal) power.
However in this conversation, I am most interested in the level of consciousness that immediately precedes Courage.
It is PRIDE.
Here is how Pride holds us back
Let me first share what I think Pride actually holds us back from experiencing:
- A high level of coherent vitality (bubbling with joyful and playful energy).
- A deep inner calmness in the face of life’s challenges.
- Greater levels of true self-awareness (inner).
- True awareness of our relationship with everything (outer).
- Potent and limitless creative expression.
- A greater love for life.
- Peace, joy and acceptance in our intimate relationships.
That is a pretty good Hit List if you ask me. More than enough reasons to read on, and give this concept a shot.
Next part…
The biggest thing, in my humble opinion, on how Pride holds us back is – in a nutshell – caring too much about what other people think.
And the social media thing, with the ability to socially compare yourself with millions of other people, based on digital content and stories that could easily be fabricated, and which only represents a fraction of someone’s life and what is going on inside their head (mentally and emotionally); has made this quagmire about 4,327 times worse!
Caring too much about what other people think, is VERY closely associated with the EGO.
The EGO loves to protect who it thinks it is (or who it thinks you are, based on an identity created over the course of your life experiences – most of which is no longer useful or relevant).
I believe that one of the criteria for ascending the evolutionary path or consciousness path is FULLY EXPRESSING OUR UNIQUE SELF without reservations, seeking permission, or in order to keep other people happy.
Obviously this doesn’t mean being a selfish, nasty piece of work. 😉
That way is EGO-generated.
The opposite is LOVE-generated.
It is about uniquely expressing yourself in a way that serves others, respects others, and respects this gorgeous planet of ours.
It requires deep soul level creativity.
It requires open-heartedness.
It requires willingness to make mistakes or upset people.
It requires a willingness to be seen without your make-up on (literally and metaphorically).
It requires caring less about what people think of you.
(Note: So much of what “we think someone thinks of us” is a figment of our imagination, and often crafted by a part of us which I am calling the EGO, in hyper-drive protection and super-sensitivity mode)
Putting it all together
If you care TOO much about what people think of you, and what you do, it will hold you back from your full potential.
Stop comparing yourself on social media to someone else (and their incomplete, heavily curated snapshot of their life).
Choose LOVE as the gauge rather than other peoples approval.
Creativity from within (at a unique soul and heart level) greatly accelerates the process of evolution.
Let go of a need for approval from your parents (especially is you are over 18 years of age, which is a common obstacle on the evolutionary path.
Pride is virtue that only takes us so far, but holds us back from the doorway to power and higher consciousness.
My parting words
A key element I focus on with all my clients on is MORE Courage, and LESScare about what other people think.
I still want them to be kind, caring and awesome human beings, but more authentically from and aligned with themselves.
As opposed to a projection they think is more socially appealing or acceptable.
I love to see more of that “BE YOU” stuff.
The world needs more of you being you.
Have a wonderful carefree day, and a distinctly, uniquely-you kinda week.
Take care,
Carl
