Discover “Little Winks” from the Universe
Sometimes the Universe just sends you a message you cannot ignore. I call these little “winks,” and I got a big one recently.
Hanging on one of the walls at a coffee shop was an actual door with the words “Doors will open. Follow your bliss.” And this message was also mentioned by one of the speakers in one of the Seminars at the Hay House Health and Wellness Summit 2017.
The quote on the door is a paraphrase of one of my favorite Joseph Campbell quotes:
“Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors where there were only walls.”
This notion of following your bliss is a bit misunderstood. It doesn’t meen just total pleasure floating from one fun thing to another. It means more like utilizing all your talents, skills, resources, and passion to bring your full heart into your greatest work. Bliss appears with your most unique and ultimate expression of your best self.
You need to identify your best habits with the continual improvement, passion and energy derived from performing that activity. (Dan Sullivan’s team created an excellent new book entitled Unique Ability 2.0: Discovery, co-written by Catherine Nomura, Julia Waller, and Shannon Waller.)
Unique Ability is not only about something that is a strength for you but something you love and that gives you more energy when you do it. This is a big difference! You could have a strength, but you might not necessarily want to keep doing that activity. And therefore, the ultimate evolution is not being attached to the outcome.
Wow! This has been one of the biggest realizations I’ve added to my worldview!
There’s another outstanding book that taught me a great message The Great Work of Your Life, by Stephen Cope. The author covers the concept of dharma, a Buddhist concept essentially meaning your path or truth. Cope provides numerous examples of exceptional individuals who found their dharma.
The book is based on the two-thousand-year-old spiritual tome, the Bhagavad-Gita, and how it applies today. One of the prime lessons is “Let go of the fruits.” The exact quote from the Gita is:
“You are only entitled to the action, never to its fruits. Do not let the fruits of action be your motive, but do not attach yourself to non action.”
In other words, what this means is “give yourself entirely to your work, but let go of the attachment of the results.” For me, this has been an “Aha Moment..” By putting your full heart and 100% effort into something, you win. Putting in the work (if it’s from a true place of meaning) is enough reward.
It’s only the attachment to results that creates disappointment, frustration, depression, etc. Just think about this for a minute — when you have expectations about something you are doing and they are not met, you’re upset, right? And if we’re waiting on outside praise or recognition, we’re always beholden to it.
By simply having no attachment, you are free. One should not be attached to the fruit or result but on putting all your full effort in as your return. In other words, not being attached to any outcomes.
The real essence behind is that it’s more important to have freedom to work on what you want, with whom you please, and on what gets you excited! It’s important to have the essence of what you want. It gives you the flexibility of not being attached to how you think something will appear. You will then be in awe of the surprising new paths that will open up or meeting the right person or being handed the right book that will allow your “goals” to unfold in extraordinary and wonderful ways.
Switching Our Goals
The requests most of us make are for things (better car, bigger house, closing the deal, getting a job, etc.) and are not at the same level as requests that come from your heart and a deeper place.
Related: The Outrageously Simple Visual Guide to Goal Setting
“Learning to receive is learning to ask for the essence of what you want, rather than the form.” ~Sanaya Roman
This is like driving a car. The things that keep us stuck in first gear are our own stories, habits, beliefs, actions, etc. and your own growth and evolution is the clutch to get you moving forward. Pushing in the clutch is the only way to make the car really move forward from a standstill. Plus, to continue driving smoothly, you will also need to push in the clutch, shifting from one gear to the next. In other words, by exploring and experimenting, you will find that balance of stopping your backwards momentum and shifting into gear — all without stalling. There’s a dance of active action and receiving…doing and being.
So, if you can truly awaken from the autopilot nature of where you are, you can start to stir a deeper sense of direction. And that inner guide has the key to what you can be doing to reinvent or rework your life.