This past week I became very aware of how we typically go about solving problems backwards. I have seen this in my own actions and thoughts.
Whether it is emails, television, friends, or the radio we are constantly bombarded and reminded of how screwed up the world, or more accurately the people of the Earth, are. Most of us get sucked into the negative thoughts and instead of being an effective tool for transformation we just add more negativity to the collective of the problem. When we think of something as a problem we actually give the problem more power.
One of our first reactions is to fight against the negativity we see. To wage a war in order to prevail over what we consider an external enemy. Like the “war on drugs” or the “war on hunger”. These have not worked and never will.
The intent behind ones actions is more important than the action. I’m not saying to never act but focus before you act. It’s important to act because action is required for any change. But the force (intent) behind any action is the most important! When the intent comes from the right place and is sent in the right way less action is needed. Without setting the mind straight with intent any action we take is aimless.
As physically focused beings we want to jump into action before thinking. We have all gotten our selves into trouble doing just that. The truth is that the origin of any problem comes from the level of the mind/consciousness not physical reality. So the origin of any solution must be rooted in the mind before the physical can sprout the desired result, especially if we want a lasting result.
We tend to think and say: “What are we GOING TO DO about people going hungry”.
When we should be saying: “We INTEND for everyone to have enough food to eat.”
When we focus on doing first without the right mindset it is like running into a thick forest without a compass. We may waste days wandering around lost. But, if we use our compass (the focused mind) we are given very specific steps to take in order to reach or goal. As a result of using our compass we expend less time and energy and arrive at our goals much faster.
Taking medication is a great example of putting physical before mental. We can take Prozac for depression, but Prozac doesn’t cure anything. How we know it doesn’t cure anything is that when we stop taking the pill the depression comes back. So daily we take action but ultimately nothing has changed.
I am all for taking medication to improve one’s life, but it is easy to allow them to become mental crouches that we never get off of. We can use pills as tools of our mind though, by taking a moment to focus the mind on the desired result then taking the pill we getting closer to the root.
To me, that is what the “Being the change you wish to see” is all about. By changing our thoughts, emotions, and holding the visualization of what we wish to see in the world we are being the change we wish to see.
Here are some steps to take when you are presented with some negative aspect of human consciousness.
Jon