Self-Awareness for Everyone

The world needs more genuine, non-toxic positivity to combat the fear Whether we like it or not, we live in a fear-based society. All around us are messages aimed to keep us afraid. Why? This might come across as cynical, but I can’t disprove it: Because capitalism demands sales. One of the best ways to get people to buy goods and services is via fear. The best way to combat a fear-based society i...

Recognize and acknowledge what you do and don’t (can and can’t) control The world is at your fingertips. On the one hand, this is incredible. Only in the last two or three decades have we had the power to learn and know anything at all about any topic whatsoever. On the other hand, this is terrible. There is so much information available that it can be incredibly overwhelming. What’s more, finding...

The whole body is impacted by active conscious awareness Everything begins with thought. Thought happens on three levels – unconscious, subconscious, and conscious. The unconscious is how you breathe automatically, digest, blink, and the like. The subconscious mind is where beliefs, values, habits, and memories live. You can access them, but doing so requires a conscious act. The conscious mind is...

“Just be yourself” is all well and good, but… Two of the most distressing things that dominate our society are the expectations of others and the “shoulds.” Early in our lives, before we’re even scientifically capable of self-awareness, our parents and other family members guide us. Eventually, it moves from guidance to direction. We accept that the expectations of others, personal or impersonal,...

No matter what it is – food, media, entertainment, drugs – you have ultimate control Consumption isn’t only about food and drink. It’s also about what you watch, read, listen to, see, and take in. Ours is the ultimate consumer society. Overall, people can connect, communicate, learn, and consume vast amounts of anything you can conceive of, tangible or intangible. Despite all the news and informat...

Undesirable, annoying, upsetting, and disappointing things happen to everyone I recently had to deal with such a situation with the publishing of my latest book. My initial, visceral reaction to what went wrong was anger, and a desire to curse, scream, lash out, and rail against the Universe. But that was only the immediate, visceral reaction I had. What good would any of that do me? Pause, reflec...

Empathy can better the world around us The holiday season has begun. This can be extremely difficult for many, stirring up a host of wildly different emotions. How we feel the emotions we feel differs. Feelings have both a how and why to them. Depth, sensation, the actual way in which we feel things varies from person to person. This boils down to every single emotion because we’re all individuals...

Mindset gives choices direction and intent When it comes to choices you do or don’t make, your mindset will set up your outcome, at least to a degree. It’s imperfect, but that’s the nature of the Universe. When you go into a situation expecting a negative outcome, you’re very likely to get it. Shouldn’t that mean if you go into a situation expecting a positive outcome, you’re very likely to get it...

Does everyone experience overwhelm from time to time? Absolutely, yes. But not everyone chooses to actively reduce and separate themselves from overwhelm. Human beings were not designed to have overwhelm be our default. But here we are. Everywhere you turn, someone is trying to sell you something. Then, we’re being pulled every which way by friends, family, so-called leaders, influencers, and tota...

Gratitude empowers – given and received I have an amazing life. And for that, I have tremendous gratitude. Gratitude is something we easily take for granted. That’s not anyone’s fault, per se. But when you live in a mass-consumption, consumer-driven, fear-based society, gratitude is easy to shunt away and take for granted. By having gratitude for what you already have, you can get what you desire....

What if it’s staring us all right in the face? The quest to find the meaning of life has occupied the human mind for most of recorded history. Why are we here? What are we doing? What’s the answer to the question of life, the Universe, and Everything? (That one we know – it’s 42). It’s easy to argue that philosophy, religion, and science are all on the exact same quest – to discover the meaning of...

You are the only you there is Do you like yourself? Be honest. Let’s take this a step further. Do you love yourself? This might bring up questions of conceit, arrogance, narcissism, and so on. But self-love is not any of these things. It’s about treating yourself how you would prefer that others treat you. Many of us put ourselves last. The journey of a thousand miles… Your health, wellness, and w...

Action to change your life is only as difficult as you make it When it comes to finding the best ways to complicate my life, I’m an expert. This tends to come from overthinking things, overanalyzing, self-doubt, uncertainty, fear, and similar factors. However, no matter what the factor is – it all comes down to me. Nobody but me is in my head, heart, or soul. Thus, nobody but me can determine what...

Who are you? This is a massively loaded question. Who you are can vary depending on the time of day, the company you’re keeping, your mood, and numerous other factors. The short answer is that you are you. No matter what happens, the only one in your head, heart, and soul is you. Yet being yourself can be challenging because of the need to be accepted. The truth is that you are always yourself. An...

Do You Think You’re the Only One Feeling Uncertain? Though we tend not to talk about it in this way – COVID-19 changed the world. Here we are - a few years after the pinnacle of the crisis - and find ourselves left with tons of paradoxes. For every good thing learned in the pandemic, a bad thing was learned, too. Rather than address these things and use this as a growth opportunity, more often tha...

Perfection, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder. Nobody’s life is perfect. That’s not the truth, though. The truth is that everyone’s life is perfectly imperfect. Everyone makes mistakes. You, me, everyone. We all get it wrong, choose poorly, and hurt ourselves physically, mentally, emotionally, and/or spiritually. On the other hand, everyone succeeds. You, me, everyone. We all get it right...

They love you but they don’t get you My family largely doesn’t get me. They love me, I know that. But they don’t get me. What does that mean? I do things, take approaches to matters, and live in ways that cause them to scratch their heads, wonder how I can possibly be content or happy this way, and probably question my sanity. To thine own self be true I’ve spent a lot of time getting to know myse...

Nobody lives a perfect life You’ve had both good days and bad days in your life. Like it or not, life has had its ups and downs. Nobody ever experiences just one emotion or feeling. And that’s a good thing. Why? Because you need to experience it all. That’s part of living life. Life is made up of many a paradox and uncountable extremes. But most of life occurs somewhere between any given extremes....

Thinky-thoughts and brain weasels defined Thinky-thoughts originate in the subconscious, usually attached to memory. Another form of thinky-thoughts is not based in subconscious memory, but on your beliefs, values, and habits. Brain weasels, squirrels in the brain, and the like are chittering voices that will tell you how much you suck, what you’re not good at, and all sorts of similar things that...

Am I the only one who struggles with things? Some of the things of this nature that I struggle with are tangibles. The biggest is my health. But for many reasons, the primary reasons behind my weight issues, thus, are intangible. This stems from the underlying struggles ranging from philosophical – who, what, where, how, and why am I; to societal and personal – am I good enough, will this make the...

What if rather than pursuing happiness we’re seeking conscious awareness? The pursuit of happiness is a notion often repeated in stories both fictional and nonfictional, inspirational quotes, and from lots of sources you encounter frequently. All advertising aims to sell you and me happiness. Buy these shoes, get that car, drink that soda, and happiness is yours for the low low price of your consc...

Change is inevitable, and impermanence is reality The one and only constant in the Universe is change. Change can, will, and does occur all the time. No two moments are the same. Alike, maybe, but the same? No. That’s how frequently change occurs. You might not believe it. But because people tend to resist, combat, and overall won’t accept change and the reality of it – tons of conflict on many le...

Focus on what you can’t control, you cede your power I’m not saying it’s not good to have a general idea of what is happening in the world at large – but when that’s your primary focus, you shouldn’t be surprised when it has all your time and attention. Then you find you have less control over your life than you desire, and/or you feel like you’ve little to no control. The primary issue is this –...

Choosing to change begins with recognition and acknowledgment The other day, I came to a stark realization. I needed to actively change. As always, it’s a choice of approach and direction for you to make. I am no longer aligned with the reality of my life when it comes to certain habits and beliefs. Passive recognition and acceptance My story. On a personal level, I had become so comfortable in my...

Your mental health should not be neglected Where do you find the good in yourself? The good in yourself is abundant. And that’s a reflection of the truth that you and I live in an abundant Universe. There is more than enough good to go around. Everyone deserves care, kindness, compassion, empathy, and love. Your true desire is along that line. Mental health (emotional health and spiritual health,...