The full collection of explorations.
Do NOT underestimate the power of:
One of the primary ways our deepest self communicates with our conscious self is via symbolism/ abstraction/ art.
What I’ve been taking for granted for most of my life, I’m slowly learning, are key insights encoded as symbolic messages from deep within.
It’s in recognizing that I am imperfect that the foundation of my practice is formed.
What fuels my daily practice isn’t some special force. It’s precisely the knowing that I’m not special—that I am no more immune to the temptations of the world than others—that fuels me.
I know for a fact that if I don’t make time for the things I listed above… I’ll undoubtedly choose what’s most appealing to my lazy/ ignorant/ unclear/ tired/ fearful self.
I know this because I’ve lived it. And because I’ve lived it and have felt deeply the long-term consequences of my many imperfect decisions… I am able to see more clearly in the now and iterate towards better.
Never perfect is the goal. Always improving is the path. Not as imperfect as before is the winning metric.
…And that’s the foundation that I know I can keep building on.
P.s. If you like that I choose writing… you can support my future work by grabbing me a coffee here. :)
Our roots entrench themselves deeper through inner work.
Our branches extend themselves out further through outer engagement.
If you find yourself uneasy, ridden with anxiety, like your standing on unstable ground…
It’s root work that’s needed.
Don’t fool yourself into thinking that something more is needed from the outer (money, status, travel, etc). It’ll only end up making you feel more unstable by further extending out your branches without having any effect on the depth of your roots.
Proportional is what makes the tree stand firm.
We move up by going down. And the more we go down… the higher up we can go. Go too high without enough down… and we’ll tip and crash. Find the balance in up and down and stable, calm, secure, is where we’ll be found.
P.s. Know someone who may enjoy reading these? This is me kindly asking if you’d forward it to them :)
Our self-worth increases proportionally to the amount of time spent doing inner work.
If we never prioritize our SELF… how can we expect to realize all that we are?
Like modern media, what garners the most attention proportionally holds the most worth.
Make YOU the channel you spend the most time on.
P.s. In case you missed it, you can read the best of what I posted to MoveMe Quotes last week, here.
No such thing as a problem-free life.
Only a life with problems that we enjoy solving more than others.
Those who understand this stop trying to curate a utopian lifestyle and start doing the important work of exchanging/ upgrading problems for a custom-fit lifestyle instead.
P.s. This was inspired by a Mark Manson quote you’ll find on this list.
The inner work we choose to avoid becomes the outer suffering we can’t seem to escape.
As hard as it might seem upfront, it’s the easiest it’ll ever be to confront right then and there.
The things we carry with us only get heavier the longer we carry them.
P.s. How Heavy Is This Glass Of Water? A Short Story About Stress and Compartmentalizing.
Good questions.
…Not good question. My answer is: with good questions. Although it is a good question.
Okay moving on.
Here’s a great starting formula:
A good question + a good block of uninterrupted time + honest attempts at answering = excellent inner work.
It doesn’t have to be any more complicated than that.
Going on meditation retreats, taking intense treks through nature, doing intensive therapy sessions are undoubtedly powerful and worth every ounce of effort that you invest into them.
But, the barrier to actually doing those things is quite high. And anything that’s hard to do will get avoided and confronted with a proportional amount of resistance.
This is why we need to simplify our process. We need to meet ourselves where we are. We need to invest in little steps, start with small inquisitions, and explore our inner caves one piece of tunnel at a time.
Step by step, question by question, day by day is the way forward that fits into the busy person’s life. You just have to decide and commit.
Questions you might consider starting with:
P.s. Each question above was pulled from my guide: The Art of Forward (Direction > Speed). More info here.