What do you want?
Do you believe you can have it?
Are you willing to do what it takes to get it?
What would you do to have it?
Climb the tallest mountain, scour the seven seas, work out till you drop, dig a deep trench with a teaspoon? What if I told you that you don’t have to whip yourself into a frenzy of…well anything, in order to fulfill every desire of your heart? And what if I told you that beneath every desire lies the urge to expand and be happy.
1. Ask yourself why
Why do you want to be successful?
Why do you want to know the greatest love you’ve ever dreamed of, why would you like that flashy sports car, why do you want the big corner office, oodles of money in the bank, to look like a super model, win the lottery? Be a super successful being?
Why do you want anything?
We might be looking for less tangible goodies like peace of mind, respect or to be valued, appreciated, validated…heck we might even want to be famous. But it all boils down to the same thing.
We want all these things because we believe they’ll feel good…we’ll feel happy. Everybody wants to be happy. Everyone wants to live that contented, all’s well with the world, life. Everyone wants to feel so great that, frankly my dear, they don’t give a damn.
The Dalai Lama said that the purpose of life is to be happy and that we experience this state of being through our inner development. So it isn’t something we get, or something we seek…it’s something we develop, which takes practice. A spiritual practice.
2. How it works in real life
We are the centre of our own web of personal reality and as we are, so our life is.
We think that our feelings are caused by the outer events and circumstances of our world. Which, of course, is why we believe we have to have that new car, or better job, or more validation to be happy. All the while, our outer reality is just a reflection of all our inner feelings.
Success, whatever your definition, has to begin within. There are no outer things we can do to experience and retain success, without living in the consciousness of it.
Whatever we do in our outer physical world can only last as long as we have the mindset, the conscious awareness that goes along with it.
And that’s something we need to set up in a persistent and determined way, in order for it to stick around.
Think about all the lottery winners, who a year or a few years later are flat broke. Consciousness.
Think about all those who’ve at long last found their true love, or reached their ideal weight, and before you can say Jack Robinson, everything’s back to where it was. Consciousness.
Ultimately, everything is determined by our consciousness. Consciousness being an accumulation of our feelings and ideas, our imagination and the beliefs we have, that we rarely give a second thought to.
Think of consciousness as a river flowing between the spiritual and physical realm turning the invisible inner reality into the visible physical world we occupy.
What is the concept you have of yourself?
It’s a really important question to answer, because this is arranging your consciousness into a picture which is being mirrored by your world.
Being rich or poor, being sick or healthy, being loved or unloved, the consciousness is the same.
Being ‘successful whatever that might mean to you, or determining yourself as a failure, it’s the same consciousness. There’s only one consciousness. What’s different is the way it’s arranged or directed if you like.
Arrange it one way, we get a certain picture which is then reflected as our outer reality. Arrange it a different way, up pops a new picture, and we get a new reality. Not too shabby a system wouldn’t you say? Ah but, here comes the blooming but; we then have to deliberately work the system. We have to learn to live on purpose.
3. Spirit and desire
Spirit, God, The Universe, Source Energy, The Creator…whatever term suits you best…is all about expansion and greater expression. Hence we desire to experience the next thing, whatever that might be.
Desire is the machinery that leads us to grow, it’s a blessing. Neville puts it this way:
Desire exists to be gratified in the activity of imagination.
Through imagination man escapes from the limitation of the senses and the bondage of reason.
There is no stopping the man who can think from the end. Nothing can stop him.
He creates the means and grows his way out of limitation into ever greater and greater mansions of the Lord.
It does not matter what he has been or what he is. All that matters is “what does he want?”
Life is a controllable thing. You can experience what you please once you realize that you are His Son, and that you are what you are by virtue of the state of consciousness from which you think and view the world.
4. What gets in my way?
For starters try doubt? Sometimes, great big humongous doubt. Who doesn’t experience it. I know I do…it’s less than before…but still raises it’s sweet little head every now and then. Except, now I have the releasing technique to deal with this little devil.
Then we’ve all got those self images…some of which, we are soooo not aware, of that it defies all logic.
They show up all the time in our outer world and still we don’t see them.
Maybe there’ve been times when you felt like a fraud, go on, you can admit it here, no-one’s judging.
Unworthiness is another fun image we have of ourselves.
Feeling frustration and regret can put a big damper on all the good stuff showing up.
Judgement…now that’ll slow everything down…including and especially judging others. You’ve probably got a few more you could add to the list, but who wants to spend a lot of time thinking about what’s not working. Not me.
Whatever gets in our way, doubt, fear, worry, wanting approval, you name it, they’re all low vibrational, negative feelings. And that’s part of living life, the contrast between a great feeling place and one that’s sort of sucky.
What we want to do is feel the feelings, and use them as a course corrector. It’s all useful to us, even the things we deem negative, because they can be used as colossal spiritual ahas, leading to greater awakening of consciousness, giving us a sort of spiritual jump start.
So don’t be so quick to knock those days of ‘blah’.
View those challenging times as an opportunity to step into a new state of mind, an opportunity to rearrange consciousness and grow your way out of any current limitations and straight into the arms of stupendous success.
If you’re waiting for success to arrive or something to happen so you can be happy, stop it right now.
Make the most out of your life as it is today, safe in the knowledge that you’re using the gift of creation that you’ve been given and all will be manifested in the perfect time.
Let us know in the comments below what your tips and techniques are for rearranging consciousness to reflect the magnificent you. What you have to say could make all the difference to someone in our lovely community.
Encourage one another.
Love Elle
xox
20 Comments
Hi Ellie, if only we realised that within us we have everything we need to feel and experience success and happiness. I believe we have a reservoir of well being within and we can tap into it anytime. The only thing that stops us is believing are our thoughts to the contrary.
In the three principles they mention MIND-CONSCIOUS-THOUGHT. Mind being the source, conscious, the creative energy and thought, what you make of it.
Our passion, our purpose all come from that reservoir, – its great!!
You hit the nail on the head Karen…it is fantabulouslyflipping great. Those who have control over the ideas they entertain are the ones in control of their destiny. And speaking for myself, knowing it is the easy bit…it’s that blooming consistent doing it that gets in my way. Whatsupwiththat? 🙂
Great post Elle,
Thoughts are thoughts…..until they become reality. Best to be aware of our thoughts and beliefs so that we decide which become reality. Deep Awareness.
Dan
Zen Presence – Ideas for Meaningful Living
Oooh I like that Dan…just seeing the words deep awareness gave me goosebumps, or Godbumps as my friend likes to call them. 🙂
I have wanted to create the life that I wanted recently. I started this path when I lost my job in the corporate where I was running on that treadmill for a long time. Once I got off, things started to click. Since then I have been sure of what I want but also filled with more doubt than ever. The key for me was to surround myself with people that support me and fill me with positivity. It is hard cutting off what I found to be toxic but once I let go my cloud of doubt was lifted. No completely still. I lead a creative life and I still don’t know that I can make lots of money doing it but the measure of success is no longer measured by that , but by how happy my heart is.
One thing that has worked for me is be unplugged from social media for a awhile to find my balance and then return renewed.
Great post! Found you through the amazing Vanita 🙂
Welcome Alama and thanks to amazing Vanita. You’ve made a wonderful contribution to this discussion…love your measure of success…a happy heart. The amazing thing about that is the paradox that a happy heart brings more things to be happy for and that means all things…material,emotional,mental,physical. It’s a really cool system and all we have to do is operate it in the best way we can. Thanks for taking the time to join in Alma…always love to hear the perspective of others. 🙂
Elle –
How true, how true! It has taken me decades to not only understand but believe and KNOW that material things are not the road to take -for me- in making meaning out of my life. The never ending spiritual path is the only journey worth taking. xxoo-Fran
How cool Fran…to be so clear on what’s right for you. Funnily enough it seems that the spiritual path actually is the way to experiencing a greater material reality also. 🙂
Elle,
I’ve been in Michigan for nearly a week and doubt always creeps in when I’m not “connected.” I know this is my ego and only have to choose to feel good and know that all is well. No doubting for me today;) Only appreciating and celebrating.
Funny Tess, how we perceive being away feels like a disconnect…and yet, you and I know the truth that the connection is an inner one anyway, where time and space have no reality. Kudos to you for simply choosing to feel good anyway. You’re one bold dudette. 🙂
Love your metaphor of consciousness being a river running between the spiritual and material realms, ferrying your desires from the thought to the manifestation. Rather like Charon in Greek mythology!
When I get stuck in a “state” I don’t want to inhabit, I imagine myself walking from the room of my current state into the room of my desire. “In my father’s house are many rooms” (states of mind).
Thanks Dore, what a great way to view it, as moving from a room that contains what you don’t want into the room that contains your desire. 🙂
Another nourishing post, Elle, thanks.
Me, I think happiness is overrated LOL! Maybe I’m happy enough but the greatest buzz I’m getting out of my journey is, as Abraham says, to be able to prove to myself that I can be, do or have anything I want. I’m reaching the finest connection these days and seen many partings of the Red Sea in my life and it’s intoxicating! This is the power I want to feel and who knows, maybe that will lead fo intense feelings of peace. Ha ha, can peace be intense?!
Keep up the great work on the posts, they’re always a great ‘rebalancer’ for me 🙂
Nice to see you back Alba, and as always, with a fascinating perspective. 🙂 Love the idea of feeling intoxicating.
I agree those days of blah are so often just a pause on the journey to freedom for me. They can also be times for reflection if we look with fresh eyes.
Thanks for your insight
Now that’s a truth for me too Suzie..a time for reflection is a wonderful perspective. 🙂
Hi Elle – I think spending some time each day communing with the divine helps me live the most out of each day. Also, reminding myself of the divine presence in my life helps eliminate fear, doubt, and worry. If God is there and for us, what can be against us? There are times in my life when I float away from my divine practices – that’s when things begin to go a little haywire:)
*Love* the way you put it as spending time communing with the divine Vishnu. What a great awareness you have that when your practices are put on hold, things don’t work out with such ease and grace. I totally get that. 🙂
Elle,
What a wonderful post! I love the Neville quote!!!! It is of the non-physical, universal principles, for I have been so conditioned into thinking that I am what I am evaluated to be by others and the truth is that this is simply not the case. The burning bush does indeed burn inside of us and no matter who we are we can follow that. That is the most powerful thing! You follow that and you cannot go wrong!
Like Vishnu mentioned above, I, too find that when I stray from God my world turns upside down and I find myself in the depths of despair. When I feel that pit in my stomach, I must turn to one of these lovely blogs to be reminded of the divine or I do a guided meditation to shut up my babbling brain that judges me and everything around it.
Hi A…I think you must be a poet, your comment is so lyrical. 🙂 Life truly is an inside job as you say…and having found a way to quiet that ‘babbling’ mind we’re almost there. 🙂