It really comes down to a question of why do we believe that we are here. Why do we wake up in the morning just to go to bed to then get up again? What is the purpose?

This is where the question of a spiritual life vs a simply physical life arises. Are we here to experience great things? Or are we just to be born, fulfill tasks, “get through the days” and then die?

The greatest human temptation is to settle for too little

Thomas Merton

The Solely Physical Path

When we believe that we are simply our physical lives, we end up doing what Thomas Merton says — we settle for too little.

Maybe we are in a relationship that is “okay” or “fine” or even really terrible — we believe that this is our lot. This is all we can have and that on some level, we have no choice in the matter.

If we are in a job that we aren’t excited about or that we even hate, on some level, we believe that we must stay there — there are bills to pay, mortgage to pay, car payments. We assume that all of these are unchangeable and therefore we are slaves to our work — and so nothing else is possible.

If we wake up every morning sad, depressed, or stressed out, we very likely are focusing on our circumstances, our past, and the belief that we have no choice in our life… all we can do is just survive.

Be humble for you are made of earth. Be noble for you are made of the stars.

Serbian proverb

Human beings have been described as having two aspects blended together — limited physicality and infinite energy. The ancient Chinese symbol for “human” is literally the two characters “heaven” and “earth” combined. Einstein’s famous equation: e=mc² shows us that ‘energy=matter times the speed of light squared’.

We are both infinite energy and physical matter — even according to Einstein.

The important thing to consider is that energy is infinite. The energetic aspect of who we are is part of an infinite field of energy that we are always drawing from and giving back to. This is the same unified field that both quantum physicists and ancient yogis have been fascinated by and playing with for centuries.

How Does This Change My Life?

Let’s imagine that our physical lives are like a car. It has a particular look, size, and capacity. It is limited as to what it can be and what it can do. This is the same as the incarnation that we are living out right now. We were born in a particular family, country, gender, time, and with particular purpose to play out, etc.

If we are to believe that we are truly limited beings in all senses, then we would believe that we can only drive our car down certain roads… that where it can go is predetermined which causes it to be practically self-driving most of the time.

But this isn’t true. We have infinite choice. This is what makes all of the difference.

Being spiritual doesn’t mean having some esoteric belief system that is “out there” and doesn’t apply to our lives. Being spiritual means that right here in our lives we believe in infinite possibilities and that we are here to make choices within that infinite space.

How Do You Choose in Infinity?

This is one of the challenges. Limitations give us a strange kind of comfort. This comfort doesn’t always even feel good or is good for us. But it is often easier to make a choice that we are familiar with than reach into infinity and choose from the vast unknown.

So, we must listen within for the one next choice. We explore our own consciousness to find the voice that speaks our deepest truth. Which choice fills me with hope and happiness? And which choice fills me with dread?

The limitation training that we have received will tell us that we cannot make the choice that fills us with light and love. It will tell us that we are bound to this one option… and we are meant to just survive it. But this is the training of a purely physical world perspective. There is no expansiveness here.

Instead, what if the point of being alive is stretching into that unknown? What if that little voice inside is truly our highest wisdom and is guiding us out of the forest? We know what it feels like to be lost in the forest… to be bound by the “only one choice” perspective. What would it feel like to stretch beyond that and trust the voice within and take a new path?

This is the excitement of our true spiritual journey. It is when we begin to trust something within more than we trust the training we receive from society that everything changes. Our navigation centre shifts from one that just avoids pain, shame, and our fears to listening within and trusting that we are finding our own true path.

This is where the idea of settling for too little becomes a very foreign idea. “Settling” only happens when we believe that have no choices — when we must make the best of what we have.

When we believe in infinite choice, we are always on an adventure. This adventure could show up in our lives by making radically different choices and seeing where we end up. Or the adventure can simply be making different choices as to how we respond to each experience that comes our way.

We are alive today. We are not robots. We are human beings. We have infinite possibilities. We are here to explore those infinite spaces.

What new adventures are possible today?

Do you think you are an introvert or an over-thinker or a perfectionist? Or maybe all these three? Even having just one of these qualities makes it that much harder to get out there and show the world the real you. And if you’re not putting yourself out there, no one will know who you are, what you’re doing and what you are capable of achieving.

I hear often from people who burst with ideas but decline to share them because they dislike the spotlight. Maybe you fear others judging you and your work. Or you’re uncomfortable with self-promotion. Or perhaps you’re afraid of failure, or of success.

So many fears, so many ideas worth sharing. What to do? Here are some ideas to help you power through these disabling emotions.

1. Know that you’re in good company. People have always had to put themselves out there. We tend to think that in the good old days, no one had to self-promote the way we do today. True—but if they wanted to share, or lead, or create, they had to go public with their thoughts too. And this has always been scary. Darwin waited 34 years to publish his idea that humans evolved from monkeys. Scholars call this “Darwin’s Delay,” and many believe it was due to his fear that others would judge his heretical for the times theory.

2. When it comes to social media, think self-expression, not self-promotion. Blogging and tweeting, if practiced properly, feel more like a creative project than an exercise in self-disclosure even though, of course, they are both. They also don’t require the in-person social multi-tasking that many people find so exhausting.

3. Think of it as connecting, not promoting. Self-promotion has a bad wrap. When done wrong, it feels slimy and pushy. First, remind yourself that you’re connecting to other people and building relationships. Let go of the attachment to what’s in it for you. Instead, talk about your work and your projects as a jumping off point for getting to know others and allowing them to get to know you, whether in person or on social media. Share from a place of passion and enthusiasm; it will be contagious!

4. Decide what you’ll share. The internet is a big place. So it’s easy to feel vulnerable — like you could potentially share too much or say things that you regret down the road. It’s important to think about what you are and aren’t comfortable sharing in advance, and set boundaries around the topics that are off limits.

5. Start small. Practice sharing bits and pieces of your story with people in person, and see what people respond to the most. You can also experiment by writing an email to your list or publishing a blog post and sharing it with people you trust. The more you practice putting yourself out there, the easier it will be.

6. Call on your support system. If you’re about to do something really bold, tell your friends about it. Ask them to be there for the event itself (if you’re trying to go live on Instagram, for example). Or ask them to be there for you when it’s all over — either to celebrate your big win or to pick up your spirits if it didn’t go as planned. Knowing you have people in your corner can give you that extra boost of confidence.

And, when the time comes, to be there for them too.

7. Strengthen your backbone and, therefore, your confidence in small steps. Get in the habit of asking yourself where you stand on various questions. When you have firm opinions or a strong sense of right or wrong on a given question, savor the feeling.

The point is to get used to the feeling of having a center and operating from it. Then, produce more consequential ideas from this same place. You’ll still have doubts, of course: “Does it make sense? Will people agree?” That’s normal. But you need to have confidence about the underlying purpose of your undertaking.

What are your tips for putting yourself out there fearlessly? I would love to hear from you!