Asserting Your Conscious Attention

To the dull mind all nature is leaden. To the illumined mind the whole world burns and sparkles with light. –Ralph Waldo Emerson

I know a man who sees himself as a real player — A-Team all the way. He talks and carries himself as if he were the embodiment of every great spiritual leader in history. The interesting thing is that neither his family nor his friends see him in this light: no one does except himself. Further, those who sought to gently disabuse him of his illusion and point out that leaders have people following them were quickly rejected and banned from the orbit of his greatness.

Then there is the woman who is so profoundly wise that people constantly seek her counsel. However, she is utterly blind to her gift and often refuses to say what she thinks, even when she is begged to do so.

Neither of these people have a clue as to who they really are nor what they presently have (or do not have!) to offer to those around them.

Have you ever known someone who saw himself as a real ladies man but never had a date? What about the Information Management guru who can’t hold a job longer than a year and just knows it is due to the jealousy of his peers rather than the fact that he doesn’t know what he is doing? Or what of the individual who complains of loneliness while having offended every person who ever sought to befriend him?

Progress in our Quest requires self-awareness. Who am I presently? Really. Is my behavior congruent with my stated beliefs? Are my values consistently reflected in my decision-making? Do those who are closest to me see me as I see myself? The fact is that I can say I am loyal to King Arthur and my fellow Knights all I want to, but if I run from every dragon, ignore every damsel in distress and refuse to come to the defense of my fellow Knights, the truth is that I am not loyal. The world around me will reflect the reality of my true beliefs and values.

It’s all too easy to go to sleep at the wheel and fail to be conscious of who I am being and what I am doing.

Nathaniel Brandon defines consciousness as:

"Living consciously is a state of being mentally active rather than passive. It is the ability to look at the world through fresh eyes. It is intelligence taking joy in its own function. Living consciously is seeking to be aware of everything that bears on our interests, actions, values, purposes, and goals. It is the willingness to confront facts, pleasant or unpleasant. It is the desire to discover our mistakes and correct them. Within the range of our interests and concerns, it is the quest to keep expanding our awareness and understanding, both of the world external to self and of the world within. It is respect for reality and respect for the distinction between the real and the unreal. It is the commitment to see what we see and know what we know. It is recognition that the act of dismissing reality is the root of all evil." (The Art of Living Consciously: The Power of Awareness to Transform Everyday Life, A Fireside Book: Simon & Schuster, 1997, p. 11)

Asserting your conscious attention is the commitment to seeing what you see--rather than ignoring it, denying it, or deflecting it.

Asserting your conscious attention is the commitment to knowing what you know--rather than avoiding what you know, for the sake of peace, getting along, or being liked.

Own what you see in yourself, others and the world around around you.

Own what you know of yourself, others and the world around you.

Nothing about you will ever change--nothing about your world will ever change--until you do this.

Copyright, Monte E Wilson, 2010