It is a poor idea to lie to yourself

Taken from dontpaniconline.com

We all lie to ourselves at one point or another. This is usually because the truth isn’t so attractive. We don’t want to face what is right in front of us so we lie to ourselves through subconscious rationalisations such as “If I’m five minutes late they won’t notice” or “If I have one cigarette, I won’t become addicted”. The list of internal lies is endless and can often be harmful.

It is important that we be true to ourselves, because one internal lie could lead to a whole series of unfortunate consequences that may grow into a vicious circle. For example a small rationalisation such as “they won’t know the difference if I just plagiarise this one paragraph” could lead to a disciplinary hearing or other legal action and leave you in a huge mess which you never intended on.

I always say that you should follow your gut. This is your sense of instinct and it tells you whether something is right or wrong. If you can learn to listen to this feeling, 99% guaranteed, you will never go wrong in life. So the next time you rationalise something and lie to yourself, listen to your gut. If it is giving you a bad feeling then you will know that you are making a poor choice by lying to yourself! This could save you a lot of unnecessary problems.

The sound of one hand clapping

Another ancient Buddhist teaching, the Zen koan “The sound of one hand clapping” has been eluding people for years. No one can give a set meaning for this riddle. People generally  take it too literally and blab that “it is impossible to clap with one hand”. You know what, these literalists are actually correct but in a deeper sense of the meaning.  Let me explain…

One hand cannot clap on its own, it can produce no sound without the other hand. The one hand completes the other. Even though one hand can exist on its own, it is better with the other hand. What I derived from this Zen koan is that one person cannot appease their soul so easily without their other person. To me, “the sound of one hand clapping” represents love and finding peace with a soulmate in the most true sense of the word.  We all long for love and most of our lives is focussed on finding that one special person to spend our lives with. When you find that person, your “soulmate”,  you feel complete and life is suddenly filled with joy and hope. This is the power of love.

I believe that if you find true love you should hold on to it no matter what because it is the most valuable and joyful experience in life.  Your life will take on a bigger purpose and you will help each other to learn and grow as individuals.

Taken from synonymouslove.wordpress.com

Not all who wander are lost!

I’m young and I have no responsibilities. I also live in a society that puts me under constant pressure to keep up and survive. Things are not as simple as yesteryear. I value life and the simple things, not what society dictates I should value. I have been put on this earth to find happiness and that is what I intend to do. I hate to rush, to have constant stress and to be amongst people who are negative. My life is my life and I choose how I live it. I choose to wander.

I have a problem with the way years of societal conditioning has made people lose touch with what is really important in life. What is important is to enjoy every second of this fleeting life we have here on earth, not to work and stress our whole lives to achieve materialistic objects such as a big houses and nice cars. Those nice things that you spend the majority of your life trying to achieve through hard work and stress will eventually become irrelevant.  

I see it every day; people who are now old, have all they have worked for but are sick of it and want less to stress about. So they sell these nice objects and opt for retirement somewhere quiet and beautiful with the bare minimum, if they can. Or on the other side of the coin, old age hits and they are thrown into an old age home, thereby losing all they have worked their whole lives for anyway. Sad and not nice to think about, is it? Society is warped. They have murdered true joy and we find ourselves in a generation that is so completely lost it is ridiculous.

We are all told working hard for a career was important so that you can earn loads of money and be happy.  Yes, sure, I know we all have to earn money to survive as nothing is free but no wad of cash will buy you true, lasting joy. I refuse to waste my life in a job I hate so that I can buy nice things. I will always make sure that whatever I do in life makes me happy. I refuse to have regrets.  As I said, I am young and have no responsibilities, so it is easy for me to say this but for as long as I don’t have children to look after, I will wander through life. When we wander, we slow down and are able to find joy in the little things in life that we often overlook when we constantly look to money to make us happy. Something as simple as a butterfly should put a smile on your face.

My parents always give me grief about my laid back attitude but I am happy with the way I live. I wish they could understand that not all who wander are lost and that I will always have a successful life as long as I have joy.

I love this, it gives me inspiration. Taken from http://www.scoop.it/t/social-learning-group-coaching