To be awake is to be conscious control of your life, doing things because they suit your purpose and wellbeing. It is not lounging on a beanbag hoping that food turns up. We all have chores that need doing, it is avoiding the societal pull to be more, do more without knowing what or how you will ever achieve IT all that us awake folk seek to challenge. You may be surprised to realise quite how conditioned your life is. Your upbringing will have an impact but even more it is the media, governments and advertising that seek to control us. To get us to buy more, do more, be more with no end in sight or idea of what enough is. Let’s look at personal choice and how that is working for you.
Just how in control are you
How much choice do you have over how you spend your time? 100% you might say, I choose what work I do, I choose where I live and I choose how I spend my free time. Is that actually true though? Do you actually make conscious decisions in all of these areas: Work, home, leisure, based on what is best for you? Can you wake up in the morning and decide exactly how you spend your time? Are you surrounded by things you love and value? In this article we will be exploring all of these questions and why your choice may not be as free as you think it is. If that troubles you we have some suggestions on how to regain control over your own choices.
How much of your time do you actually consciously choose how to use? Have a think about the last 24 hours or choose to journal the forthcoming 24 hours to find out. How much time did you do what you want in? That could be having a sleep pattern that suits you rather than your duties, choosing who to see or spend time with as opposed to feeling as though you should be with them – whether that is because they are your family, partner or whoever. When did you sit and just be? When did you spend time in nature looking around you using all five senses without distraction? You may think that you choose how you spend time but do you really have.
Work choices
What is the reason that you work, whether that is as an employee or as an entrepreneur. Is it because you enjoy it, you want to help others or because you need to earn money to pay for things? Or is it because you or your family believe that you will be happy and successful if you have a good career?
Have you chosen your workplace for convenience in terms of proximity to home or is it to achieve the best salary even if that involves a long commute which eats into your family and free time? Many people feel a pressure to work harder or achieve promotions, you might be one of them. It could be a good idea to take a moment to ask yourself why. Why am I doing this. Will I actually be happier or do I just think that I should be. Taking stock of how you actually feel is a very powerful thing to do. Be ready for some revelations that may shock you to your core.
Why is the working week the length it is? If all the work could be achieved in less time by reducing bottlenecks and improving systems are you able to spend that saved time as you wish? Is there a rational reason why the hours are as they are?
Keeping up with the Neighbours
When you upgraded your mobile last time, why did you do it? Was the new phone better or more economical or did you really do it for some esoteric reason like – it looked nice or my friend has one and says it’s great? Think about the purchases that you made in the last week or month and ask what benefit you got from them. Advertising is very clever and plays on all your emotional heart strings to get you to part with your money. If you feel as though adverts are all too hyped up and devoid of soul then you are on our wave length. Why do you need to keep up with the neighbours or your family? Your world will not crumble around your ears if you don’t have the latest Peloton or car or watch. It might if you carry on down this path though. Peer pressure is huge, from work, family or just your neighbourhood.
Awakening – great or otherwise
More and more people are finding that they feel hollow, without feeling, struggling to feel the happiness that they deserve. As a reward for the compliance, striving and keeping up that they have done over the years. People are waking up – this is different to the Woke moment, thinking that there must be more to life than working 40 hours, commuting 10 more and barely seeing your friends, family or partner, too exhausted to truly enjoy a weekend or holiday and something has to change. This is the Great Awakening. It goes beyond the typical mid life crisis of asking what else and sinks its roots right into your very soul. To encourage you to explore who you really are and how you can learn and develop to nurture yourself and others and find real fulfillment and contentment. Sometimes we have emotional baggage to ditch, outdated beliefs to shift and some boundaries to set. It’s all achievable, you don’t need money or hard work. You take the steps that are right for you and in the time frame that is right for you.
Changes
If you answered the first questions saying that of course you choose your workplace for your own best interest perhaps you would like to take a moment to just sit and be. Tune into yourself, feel how your body feels, listen to what your heart and soul is telling you and ask those questions again. If you feel invigorated and alive and are really loving the materialistic technological life at present, go for it. The Great Reset and the Metaverse will be great for those that resonate with it. If you feel lacking, in any way then you may want to awaken more. Explore some options, try working or living a little different to how you do now. In another article I will share how I went from a £4,000 a month income struggling to pay the bills and with little spare time to being mortgage free, working when I want to, able to do hobbies when I choose and all on a much lower income. No clever sales pitches or winning the lottery, just some creative thinking and commitment to change.
How do you feel
Our minds and bodies are tired and stressed. It is no wonder that obesity, drug use and auto immune diseases are increasing prevalent. This includes IBS, MS, Rheumatoid Arthritis and Type 1 Diabetes which all have a significant impact on the wellbeing of people. By learning to listen to your body you can reduce symptoms of all of these. To do that you need to remove the trigger causes, the major cause is stress. Stress from all sides, all the I shoulds:
I should spend more time with family
I should earn more money
I should be happy with what I have got
I should be able to cook a healthy meal
I should be able to get a good nights sleep
I should have time to go to the gym or exercise.
So many more could be added to the list. It is time to wake up to the fact that modern society and the pressure it puts on you is causing harm. Start to make changes and little by little you will feel better. This is what we call The Great Awakening. An awakening to the amount of control that you could have over your life. An awakening to the amount of time you spend pleasing others. An awakening that money does not buy happiness. An awakening that you are part of this whole beautiful universe, rather than precariously balanced on the edge.
If any of this resonates with you we invite you to explore the community of Elemental Tribe. Ask us anything, share your successes and challenges. If you are struggling with anything we are here to help. Life should be about living and personal choice. To explore all the world has to offer whether that involves travelling or observing from your window.
Take back control, choose to live life as you want to. Its all a journey but each little change allows the next. After all if you change 1% of things 100 times you have transformed entirely.
