“To thine own self be true.”
- William Shakespeare
"This whole thing that's happened to me, you see, this whole success thing, er, it hasn't yet really compromised the position that I took a long time ago in Texas, that was to be true to myself, to be the person that I f ... that was on inside of me and not play games.”
- Janis Joplin (unedited from an interview)
“A huge lesson for me was that if I was gonna be successful, I had to be successful as myself - I couldn't be successful doing what other people were doing. I had to do what I believed in and what felt real to me and felt true to me, because the worst thing to be is successful as someone else.”
- Jay-Z
Welcome to my new blog, Daily Dharma. I am making it available to my life coaching clients, other friends and contacts and anyone else who might get something out of it. As the name suggests, it’s all about the spiritual side of life and how we can each realize our own unique divine purpose. It’s not specific to any one faith, and in my opinion you don’t even need to have a faith to find insight here. And since I’ve started this blog at the request of several clients, I will cover a lot of topics that come up in my coaching practice, such as relationships, career development and health. Occasionally I will also put in my two cents about the state of the world, but without going into partisan politics. I’ll even answer your own questions if you wish!
Anyway, today’s piece is all about being true to ourselves. It’s simple in concept but often difficult in practice. I believe each one of us has our own purpose here – our own dharma, as they say it in Hinduism, Buddhism and other religions from India. If you want to get really New Age-y, some people believe we had a plan before we even began our lives, a calling ordained by God, our own karma and some would say even our own souls. There are many who say God has a plan for each one of us, a unique plan that no one else can fulfill. How we get there of course… well that’s where our free will comes in.
I believe all these things, and I believe them because many times I’ve been lucky enough to have experiences where I’m just in The Zone, as many people say now. Where I just feel intuitively – and on all levels – that I’m exactly where I need to be at this moment, doing exactly what I’m supposed to be doing. We just know we’re giving energy to ourselves AND those around us. It’s a powerful, pleasurable, yet meditative and serene feeling. And I know you’ve all felt it at least once, especially if you’re deliberately on a spiritual path of any kind. And part of the reason it feels so good is that we know, at least for the moment, that we’ve overcome all the pressure on the outside to be what others – however well-meaning – want us to be.
This is the part where it’s easier said than done. Usually people on the outside mean well and they just haven’t figuratively stepped into your shoes long enough to feel what it is YOU need and truly know who YOU are. Others are just flat-out threatened because they made so many compromises along the way and to see someone else living in a way that so authentically… that’s just too much. Don’t worry… If they love you they’ll eventually understand and maybe even tell you they learned from you. That is the beauty of each one of us having our own divine calling. The whole world around us benefits. And that is a benefit that no one else can truly or fully replace.
Remember, no one gets there overnight. But we can all start today with one step, one change, one commitment, whatever it may be for you.
My recommendation: Ask yourself – What makes me feel the most alive and the most real?
And then ask – How can I make it more real in my life?
If you’re not sure, meditate or pray on it and the answer will come according to Divine Timing.
When you know, you’ll KNOW, and you’ll have a pretty good idea of where to go from there!