The Counterintuitive Self

”The best cure for a sluggish mind is to disturb its routine.” –William H. Danforth

Just like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, where she always had the ability to get back to Kansas, we also have everything we need within us right this moment and always have. We just need to discover the key to the treasure chest.

Everything we desire exists this moment; in fact we are surrounded by more opportunity than we can ever embrace. But are we able to perceive this opportunity? Read this sentence one time only while counting the number of f’s. Go ahead and do it now.

Finished furniture is the result of years of scientific study combined with the experience of years.

What’s your answer? Most people guess three because our minds tend to read “of” as “ov”. It requires us to override our mind by being counterintuitive to count all six.

We must learn to do things differently, and focusing on where we want to go, and not on our “perceived” obstacles. Henry David Thoreau put it well, “In the long run, men hit only what they aim at. Therefore…they better aim at something high.” It’s not enough to understand all this intellectually; you must actually know it.

Our True Place

We were all born with certain gifts and abilities unique to only ourselves. Our true place in life is an aspect of what we love to do. This is something we most likely suppressed as a result of all the well meaning authority figures in our lives.

Walt Disney put it very well, “That’s the real trouble with the world; too many people grow up. They forget. They don’t remember what it’s like to be twelve years old.” And Pablo Picasso added, “Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.”

This is not easy by any means, since our perceptions have been so conditioned. We really are our own worst enemies. We need to be diligent about learning to keep our focus and attention on what we really want to do, and not on what our minds tell us to do. We get distracted by all the perceived obstacles in our lives (bills, relationships, homework, job, age, health, retirement, unrealized dreams etc.).

Even if we are not clear about what we really love to do, we can start by realizing what we don’t love to do. This can actually help us find our True Place or what we love most to do. It’s necessary to be aware of our challenges and obstacles, while not focusing upon them.

Congratulations if you feel confused or stuck. This is a signal of greater things to come. This is an inner prompting to move forward to a higher level and to be more counterintuitive. For example, a child’s anger and frustration can be used to propel him or her forward to their true place or destiny. We are all here to make a positive difference and get something constructive done.

"To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.”—Oscar Wilde

It’s not about the challenges in our lives, but how we view them. It’s all about how we perceive things. We either use our challenges to progress, or allow them to hold us back and use us. By using our curiosity and intuition in a counterintuitive way, we are able to move forward and discover our True Place in life based on what we love to do. As a result many mental and emotional problems will fade away.

Empowerment Gems

By focusing on what we love to do, whatever that is, no matter how silly it may appear to be, we give it attention and then a number of coincidences, or what I like to call “empowerment gems” will unfold along our specific path.

Warren Buffet is very to the point with his encouragement, “The one piece of advice I can give you is, do what turns you on. Do something that if you had all the money in the world, you’d still be doing it. You have got to have a reason to jump out of bed in the morning.”

All of this takes a measure of understanding, practice and patience to discover your True Place. Every truly happy and successful person goes through an inner transformation. The only problem there is can be said to be a “thinking” problem. Money and stuff will not produce a happy existence without the inner change. Just check out a few past lottery winners to prove this point.

A counterintuitive life is about the inner determining the outer. It’s all about perception. For example, if another person took over your body and dealt with the same set of circumstances, he or she would create something entirely different because of a different way of perceiving the same things.

So it’s all about making small changes on a consistent basis. Vincent van Gogh said, “Great things are done by a series of small things brought together.” Results will come with your intention and motivation guiding your actions. For an effective method increase inner peace and emotional well being check out The ZPoint Process.

The sun is always shining; it is only our mental clouds that block the light. Changing your perception opens up new pathways in your brain, and leads to a self directed life. I will close with a quote from Joseph Campbell,

”The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek.”

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