As we go through life, we tend to relegate more and more of our every moment experience to patterns from the past. The more we do this, the more we feel like life is closing in on us and the more we are responding to life based on what was as opposed to what is.
Even when our life situation appears to be great, we can feel dissatisfied because we are approaching life from a limited -- and limiting -- point of view. In looking to find some security and certainty, we cling to old patterns, behaviors, and habits that are not working and keep us in a rut. We hang on to familiar ways to avoid the momentary discomfort that comes from doing things or experiencing life in a new way.
If you look, you can find this in all areas of your life, from the simplest task of brushing your teeth to the more vital aspects such as how you relate to your spouse, children, friends, and coworkers. We have put ourselves on automatic pilot to varying degrees.
Yet life only happens now. When you become just a little bit more attentive to what is actually here now, even doing the same old thing takes on a new energy and brings a new sense of clarity and ease. As you embrace this aliveness that is always here, you find that you love more, laugh more, and live life more fully.
Breaking the habitual patterns from the past is actually a lot easier and more satisfying than you may imagine. The rewards for challenging the old ways of being and doing are immediate and long lasting. And if you follow the instructions below, it can even be fun.
Let's explore two great ways to break the habits that keep us looking at what was instead of embracing what is.
Start With the Simplest Things
We usually do all repetitive tasks the same way. Yet if you mix it up even a little, you will find your mind switches back on, allowing you to find new and creative ways to do anything.
Part of the reason we stay with old ways of doing things is that it brings up some momentary discomfort when we stretch past our comfort zone. Use this four-step process to go beyond discomfort when changing the way you do something.
Step One
Pick a simple task, activity, or behavior to change. For example, use the opposite hand you normally would to eat or brush your teeth. Or, if you usually go to work a particular way make a small variation in your route.
Step Two
Stay conscious of how it feels inside when you do things differently and welcome the sensations, thoughts, and feelings this brings up inside you. As you welcome what you are experiencing, you will notice that any momentary discomfort will pass, and you will find it easier to do the task differently.
Step Three
Go back to doing the task or behavior the way you did before. Notice how this feels, and welcome the thoughts, feelings, and sensations it brings up inside of you.
Step Four
Repeat the steps two and three several times until there is less discomfort in doing this particular activity differently. Then allow yourself to go back to the old pattern if you would like, adopt the new pattern, or find an entirely new way.
As you do this with the simple things in life, you will find you are seeing your world with new eyes, feeling life with greater sensitivity and pleasure, and hearing everything around you with greater clarity -- even the silence.
Go Beyond the Obvious
Most of the time, we live life on the surface and without even realizing it. However, just below the surface is a whole other world of beauty, light, and peace. This other world is, in my experience, the true world that gives support and nourishes our lives.
To access this realm all we need do is stop and look, feel and listen, to what is right below the surface. You can do this by simply asking yourself questions such as: "What is the source of this?" "What is deeper than this?" "What is beyond this?" Ask these questions with you your heart as opposed to your head as best you can.
As you do, notice how you feel. When you ask these questions with your heart instead of your head, you will discover that the surface gently gives way to a much wider and deeper point of view -- a view that opens new vistas and dissolves old patterns.
These questions will help you to become more aware and more comfortable with your authentic self. As you become more aware of the truth of who or what you are the old patterns naturally dissolve, allowing for a newfound freedom to simply be so you can approach each moment with a new sense of openness, innocence, and delight.
I highly encourage you to explore this perspective and these techniques in your own life to liberate yourself and fill our world with joy.
Please comment below to let me know how you are applying this in your life and what insights you have received from reading this post.
This post is based on the principles explored in his book The Sedona Method; Your Key to Lasting Happiness, Success and Emotional Wellbeing. It is based on over three decades of experience with a simple, powerful, elegant and easy-to-learn technique that shows you how to tap your natural ability to let go instantaneously of any uncomfortable or unwanted feeling, thought or belief. For more information, visit www.Sedona.com.
For more by Hale Dwoskin, click here.
For more on emotional wellness, click here.