Success And Happiness: The Meaning Of Awareness

I receive these strange comments to some of my articles. I recently wrote an article on the importance of paying attention to the here and now, which made the point that it’s the only time and place that you can be – and if you couldn’t be bothered to turn up to the reality of the moment, how can you possibly expect to get anything decent out of life. One of the comments – from someone who signed themselves as a “personal development expert” said that, OK, the here and now is all very well – but really personal development is about awareness and choice.

So, here’s the key question: What is Awareness? Let’s make it even easier – what can you be aware of at any particular point in time? For starters, you could be aware of what you’re thinking – most people aren’t because, as decades of research prove, most people are aware of pretty much nothing at all. You could be aware that you’re feeling annoyed or stressed – but these so-called emotions are merely the product of the thoughts that you’re not aware of in the first place. You could be aware of how you feel about yourself – your own self-image – but that’s not awareness, that’s getting involved in the ongoing internal power struggle between you and your personality (remember, personality derives from the Latin word, “persona”, meaning a mask and your personality is nothing more than the amalgamation of all the personal “snapshots” you took as a child).

Real awareness is being aware of the present. To paraphrase the Buddha, when I am walking, I am aware that I am putting one foot in front of the other. Only in the present moment is reality to be found. In fact – scientific fact as explored by quantum physics – only in the present moment does anything exist and all that exists is changing from one moment to the next.

And what of the choice we must make? We have a stark choice that has a fundamental impact on our lives – we can choose to be aware or we can (and this is the automatic choice made by the average person) choose to live in a make-believe world created by our own, predominantly negative, thoughts. This is a choice that we must make time and again, in each moment because nobody becomes aware and stays aware – it is an ongoing process in exactly the same way that the reality of our world is an ongoing process.

The life you are living is how it is as a result of your action, reaction or inaction in the present moment. The normal person reacts to their own thoughts and perceptions. The extraordinarily successful person acts on the basis of the current moment facts and, thereby, creates a life that is exciting, spontaneous, adventurous, fulfilled and successful. Now, how about that for a choice?

Personal Development And The Extraordinary Power Of Now

If you’re keen on personal development or self improvement, you’ll have some understanding of the importance placed by many experts on being focused in the present moment. Ekhart Tolle’s ‘The Power of Now’ emphasizes the virtues of what might be described as presence of mind. However, Tolle, together with other personal development ‘gurus’, doesn’t either adequately explain why ‘Now’ is just so important or, indeed, give practical advice on being more present.

First off, now is the only place and time that actually exists – the past is what you learn from (although psychology proves that most of us don’t learn but subconsciously live there) and the future is something that will only transpire the way you want if you’re prepared to be focused and effective in the here and now. Also, quantum physics tells us that the universe only exists now – and it confirms that universal energy responds to our energy – now. In simple terms, it is vital to be present. Being present gives you ‘presence’ – the hallmark of all successful people.

The big problem is that we’re not present. Our subconscious is focused in our so-called formative years, whilst our conscious mind is plagued by useless thought – thoughts tending towards negative self-doubt and worry. As a result it’s little surprise that research suggests that the normal mind is only one percent present. If that’s true you’re extremely unlikely to elicit much response from an otherwise responsive universe.

In short, it’s vital that you become more present. But how? Being present means being focused on what you’re doing and where you are now. The majority of, according to many surveys, are not focused on what they’re doing, preferring instead to do what they’re doing whilst thinking that they don’t like what they’re doing! Also, most of us haven’t understood the simplicity of what focus actually is. Focus means paying attention – nothing else. It means tuning into the reality of the moment, using the only mechanism that’s available to you to do this – your five senses. These are your sole interface with the world. Yet we pay little attention to what our senses are telling us, we prefer to let our subconscious put its own interpretation on reality. We all use our preconceived notions to make sense of now and, as a result, make utter nonsense of it.

You’ve got to relearn how to pay attention. We were all expert at this when we were young children. The simplest way to start re-learning is to set some time aside to re-focus one sense at a time. I suggest that you find somewhere quiet to sit tomorrow morning. Close your eyes and notice how all the sounds around you become more pronounced. They’re not, of course, you’re just paying more attention. Notice your body’s sensations – feelings that you wouldn’t notice when you’re normally inattentive. Next morning you might spend a few minutes noticing how your body reacts when you breathe. Five minutes each morning will vastly affect your ability to pay attention for the rest of the day – you’ll be more present, more focused, more tuned into what’s going on and the opportunities the moment offers.

Then you can start measuring your improved focus by reference to your results. You’ll be more responsive to situations and people that they might otherwise fail to see or avoid completely, you’ll be more open to doing things that you wouldn’t otherwise do. And, on the basis that the one thing that has your life stuck in a rut is the fact that you rarely do anything different, bold or courageous, this can only be a good thing. Through your presence you will not just be open to new opportunity – you’ll actually create your own opportunities. The net result is that, at least, your life will move forward – for the better. At most, your life will never be the same – you will achieve effortless and measurable, success and happiness.

Personal Development: Awareness

I get these strange comments to some of my articles. I recently posted a piece on the importance of paying attention to the present moment, pointing out that it’s the only time and place that you can be – and if you don’t bother to turn up to the reality of the here and now, how can you possibly expect to get anything decent out of life. I received a comment – from someone who signed themselves as a “personal development expert” said that, OK, the here and now is all very well – but really personal development is about choice and awareness.

So, here’s the big question: What is Awareness? Let’s make it simpler – what can you be aware of at any particular point in time? Of course, you could be aware of what you’re thinking – most people aren’t because, as decades of research prove, most people aren’t aware of anything much at all. You could be aware that you’re feeling anxious or fearful – but these so-called emotions are merely the product of the thoughts that you’re not aware of in the first place. You could be aware of how you feel about yourself – your own self-image – but that’s not awareness, that’s getting involved in the continuous internal power struggle between you and your personality (remember, personality is dervided from the Latin word, “persona”, meaning a mask and your personality is nothing more than the amalgamation of all the personal “snapshots” you took as a child).

True awareness is being aware of the here and now. To paraphrase the Buddha, when I am walking, I am aware that I am putting one foot in front of the other. Only in the present moment is reality to be found. In fact – scientific fact as researched by quantum physics – only in the present moment does anything exist and all that exists is changing from one moment to the next.

And what of the choice we must make? We have a stark choice that has a fundamental impact on our lives – we can choose to be aware or we can (and this is the unaware choice made by normal people) choose to live in a make-believe world created by our own, predominantly negative, thoughts. This is a choice that we must make again and again, in each moment because nobody becomes aware and stays aware – it is a continual in exactly the same way that the reality of the universe in which we live is an ongoing process.

Your life is the way it is as a result of your action, reaction or inaction right here, right now. The normal person reacts to their own thoughts and perceptions. The extraordinarily successful person acts on the basis of the facts in the moment and, thereby, creates a life that is exciting, spontaneous, adventurous, fulfilled and successful. Now, do you think that might be a choice worth making?