What does that mean exactly? For many people living deliberately is as esoteric as contemplating the universe. And so is happiness.

Fascinating yes? Is the Universe a place, a concept, or an illusion?

Does it matter?

We still experience life as body, mind, and spirit while we’re here don’t we?

Picture yourself encapsulated within an oscillating circle that moves slowly forward through time. This oscillating circle you are riding within rolls forward and backward all the while traveling along the path of time, which in our plane of existence is experienced as a straight line.

Every time you think of your past, your circle rotates backwards. Every time you envision your future, your circle rotates forward. Meanwhile your pathway through time oscillates between bumpy and smooth, as you glide along the time line.

How smoothly you ride depends on how well you incorporate three things into your life:

1. You recognize your ego, and that you have one
2. You accept what is in any given moment
3. You make decisions based on your core beliefs, not on the will of others

The Keys To Happiness

Recognize Your Ego

I was fascinated last week while watching the Republican debate. The various personalities there — from the hosts who were asking questions, to the candidates themselves, to the audience were a so very similar in their display — except for one man.

And that was Donald Trump! He was the only person there who recognizes that he indeed has an ego.

It doesn’t matter whether you admire him or despise him — his ego is evident — and he knows it. It is what makes him different, and he uses that awareness with awareness!

Trump sparks a seed of doubt or implants an idea he wants others to accept by playing to their egos. All you have to do is listen to his little asides and his choice of words and you will see what I mean.

When you are unaware of the ego in yourself, like so very many politicians, you function and respond with righteousness, or with anger and resentment, or in desperation. And, you become a victim of your own ego and of those who understand how the ego works.

So how do you recognize your ego within? Or even the ego of others?

The key is emotion.

The ego loves emotion, especially negative emotion, and loves to wallow in it. How much time have you spent on lamenting past events that caused you pain or heartache ’caused by others’. Have you even contemplated how you can get back at them? Do you get riled up by politics or frenzy at a news report? That’s your ego at work.

Our egos love injustice, love to be right, love to feel superior. Do any of these emotions actually bring you happiness?

Unfortunately, our egos thrive on identification and separation. We identify ourselves as separate from others, and them from us. We label everything as basically either good or bad — including ourselves and others.

Want to recognize your ego? The next time you start to judge someone or something, stop and recognize it for what it is. Criticism and condemnation are the way of the ego.

Laugh it off.

What does the Bible say? Be in the world but not of it. When you feel that the I in you is taking over your thoughts. Step back and become the observer. That is your true self. And our true selves are peaceful selves.

Accept What Is In Any Given Moment

Why go through life fighting what is? Acceptance is key to internal peace. That doesn’t mean you should settle — far from it. Acceptance means recognizing circumstances and relationships for what they are, knowing which ones you can influence or change, and letting the rest go.

Make the necessary changes that will bring you and the people you love happiness. The first step is to eliminate all judgement from your awareness.

According to the wisdom of the masters:

What you resist persists — what you focus on expands.

• Do you resist what is, complain and condemn? Consistently judging others or circumstances keeps judgement and criticism present in your life.
• Do you focus on the negatives of your past? The past is meant to be a teacher — learn from it. When you drag your past into the present you only assure that your future will be more of the same.

Eliminate judgement — even of those things and circumstances that appear as intolerable. Accept what is, change what you can, and move on. It’s the surest path to happiness.

Make Decisions Based On Your Core Beliefs Not On The Will Of Others

Many people make decisions based not on their own belief systems but on the belief systems of others — things they were taught as children, or things they learned as adults, or things others pressured them to do or think. We become conditioned by our experiences.

When you are faced with making a decision — make your decision consciously. Awareness is key.

Explore the desired outcome in your mind. See the end result and live backwards from there. Make it easy for the Universe to help you accomplish your goals.

For every outcome, for every tangible conclusion, there is a cause. It is your thought that is the cause. Where do thoughts come from? From your belief systems.

But are your beliefs and therefore your thoughts, your own? Or were they implanted there by others? I’ll give you a very tangible for-instance.

This is an election year and inaccuracies abound. Why do news programs and politicians convey partial or inaccurate truths? They want their belief systems to become your own.

They use emotion to convey injustices and righteousness and being that they are frequently in ‘powerful positions’ as educated or leaders in our society, we believe them — and our egos triumph!

The ego doesn’t care about accuracy or impartiality. It wants to be on the winning side at any cost.

One of the most important ideologies I ever learned in grad school is this:

Always question why someone is trying to convince you to believe something or to do something.

What is their gain by you accepting their truth?

Our egos are a part of who we are. There is no getting around it.

It is in knowing that we are an ego-driven species that is key to our happiness.

What makes us happy? In my opinion peace. How to we attain peace? By setting our ego aside. See it for what it is — the misapprehension that superiority can bring happiness.

It can’t!

You will be amazed every time you recognize the ego in yourself, as well as in others. It is such a release, and it makes me chuckle every time I send mine to time-out.

Additionally, there is understanding in recognizing that when others are behaving badly, it is not they who are bad, but merely their egos at work. Do them and yourself a favor, and step back or away and avoid an ego conflict.

All of our past experiences merge into who we are as we tumble about in our individual oscillating circles rolling though time. Let’s minimize the bumps by recognizing our egos for what they are.

As Gandhi advises us all, “Be the change you wish to see in others.”.

Remember, seeing the world through the eyes of the ego is nothing more than illusion clouded by emotion.

Live Deliberately! 

Check back soon for Intend Your Life, a summary of what some of my favorite authors have to say about the power of intention.

 

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