Being The Ideal You

"To the question of your life, you are the answer.
To the problems of your life, you are the solution."  Joe Cardare

Isn't that wonderful? It IS all about you! It's all about who you are and what you know, value and believe in. Everything you need to know to be the person you want to be is right there within you.

Socrates said: 

"True insight comes from within"

When you know more of who you really are, you have all the answers.

Unfortunately, human beings are really good at giving away their power. We can often look externally for the answers, looking for approval from others in one shape or another.  It is amazing the lengths we will go to, to avoid taking personal responsibility (we may not consciously realise this is what we are doing, but it often is).  We look to our friends, family, counselors, a book, an expert, or even a ‘psychic’. Now that is not to say whether or not these are good resources. A friend or family member can be an excellent sounding board as you work through your process of finding answers. A book may offer a perspective you had never considered before. By all means, use these resources and others if you feel they are helpful to gaining clarity. However remember, YOU have all the answers. This starts with really listening to and trusting yourself.

We live in a fast-paced world, where we are so busy with work, relationships, families and all the other commitments of life. Many are moving through their days like a rocket. All this fussing can keep our attention focused outward, and divided amongst many things, so we struggle to hear the quiet inner messages ‘speaking’ to us.

First, you need to identify the inner voice. There are many names for it; your intuition, inner guidance, God speaking to you, etc. Whatever you call it, find it! Make friends with it and know what it feels like. Take 10 minutes each day, morning or evening, (both is good), and sit quietly in a natural place. Take longer if you want but this is a good place to start if you are new to this. 

Sit quietly and breathe. Focus on your breath and calm your mind. Focus on your breathing until everything else fades. Go within and feel what you feel in the moment. Spend this time centering yourself and consolidating your energies. In doing this, your energies will centre and you'll be more allowing of your inner voice to be heard.

It is important to connect more with who you are, your gifts, truth, worth, purpose and compassion so you will have less interference in the delivery of the answers. Do more things that keep you centered and calm like being in nature, exercising and doing something creative (eg. gardening, cooking, etc)

When you have a question, need direction, want to know the outcome of a situation or seek clarity, ask yourself first. Sit quietly and ask. Let go of all attachment to the outcome and you'll ‘hear’/feel the answer. You may feel it in your heart or you may just know. As you keep your energies more centered and less externalised, you'll receive the answers more clearly and can even know them instantly. If an answer isn’t clear or doesn’t come to you, it could be that:

• You are attached to the answer and not open to exploring other options that could serve you.
• That it isn't time for clarity yet. When you don't have clarity, you might do well to consider doing nothing. Consider waiting until the clarity comes  (although be careful not to confuse this with procrastination!)

The two most important things to keep in mind with finding the answers within:

1)   Be true to yourself

"In the final analysis, we count for something only because of the essential we embody, and if we do not embody that, life is wasted."

- C.G. Jung

Explore where you are not being true to yourself.

When we are trying to be something that we are not, we will feel it within, we will not be able to fully enjoy it as there is some form of discomfort (a signal of incoherence).  It is important to make sure that we are always authentic and don’t spend energy fooling ourselves.

When our thoughts, feelings and actions align with our purpose, we express the qualities of our ‘soul’ (as it is referred to in spirituality, ‘consciousness’ or ‘unconscious’ in psychology, and numerous other names). Always trust that your ‘soul’ knows what is best for you.

It is time to look at what areas of your life you are not being true to yourself in and give yourself permission to do what you want with your life.  Take the first leap to set meaningful goals for yourself and start moving further into the future that is best for you.

2)  Feed your intuition and act on what most serves you.

"If doubt is challenging you and you do not act, doubts will grow. Challenge the doubts with action and you will grow. Doubt and action are incompatible."

- John Kanary

Intuition (or our inner voice) will grow as we take action.  Live by the philosophy that putting action into motion will propel you into your future. If you act like your expectations have already happened then you will start to achieve your hearts wants (this is largely due to how you will be feeling, as feeling has a direct impact on action).

Place yourself in front of more opportunities and people. Let go of any blocks or attachments. Create mental space and physical space. Plan your work and work your plan.

Miracles rarely happen by doing nothing. Most miracles happen through others offering opportunity.  We must be in it to win it.

What actions can you take that will move you towards what you want/need?

"Never forget that life can only be nobly inspired and rightly lived if you take it bravely and gallantly, as a splendid adventure in which you are setting out into an unknown country, to meet many a joy, to find many a comrade, to win and lose many a battle."

- Annie Besant

Give this a try. The more you do, the louder and clearer your inner voice will be and the more you will trust yourself. The next time you want to gain perspective on a relationship, what job to take, where to live, what gym to join or what school to send your kids to, ask yourself (introspection). Use your resources when needed while remembering that, ultimately, no one knows what's right for you any more than you do. Believe me, you know. You just may not yet realise how to hear the answers. All insight is within you. It really is all about you!