If you enjoy Intellectual consideration please read (if not then you should just scroll on)

Just a quick take from something I was reading and thought it was really powerful to share....

If you have read or listened to Aldous Huxley's works then you know he can certainly stretch your  mind. I was quite surprised to examine the contrast between a theory proffered by Huxley in his novel "Brave New World" from 1931 as contrasted to George Orwell's social science novel "Nineteen Eighty Four" or "1984" which was written in 1949. Orwell's novel was written to bring awareness to what he thought society might face as future challenges based upon his perspective of nationalism and growing big brother. 

Alduos Huxley expressed an alternative concern that the societal issues we might face which could capture and remove our ability for free thought might not be, forced upon us, as much as they may be desired by us. Read the following contrast proffered by Neil Postman in his novel "Amusing ourselves to Death" written in 1982 ..... regarding our Dystopian future and please consider social media/ technology at the close. All of these individuals were such incredible fore thinkers and prognosticators of our modern day issues.

Neil Postman on Orwell and Huxley

Contrary to popular belief. . . Huxley [Brave New World] and Orwell [1984] did not prophesy the same thing. Orwell warns that we will be overcome by an externally imposed oppression. But in Huxley’s vision, no Big Brother is required to deprive people of their autonomy, maturity and history. As he saw it, people will come to love oppression, to adore the technologies that undo their capacity to think.

What Orwell feared were those who would ban books. What Huxley fears was that there would be no reason to ban a book, for there would be no one who wanted to read one. 

Orwell feared those who would deprive us of information. Huxley feared those who would give us so much those that we would be reduced to passivity and egoism. Orwell feared that the truth would be concealed from us. Huxley feared the truth would be drowned in a sea of irrelevance. 

Orwell feared we would become a captive culture. Huxley feared we would become a trivial culture, preoccupied with some equivalent of feelies, the orgy porgy, and the centripetal bumblepuppy . . . . As Huxley remarked in Brave New World Revisited, the civil libertarians and rationalists, who are ever on the alert to oppose tyranny, “failed to take into account man’s almost infinite appetite for distractions.”

In 1984, people are controlled by inflicting pain. In Brave New World, they are controlled by inflicting pleasure. In short, Orwell feared that what we fear will ruin us. Huxley feared that our desire will ruin us.”

In 1984, Huxley added, people are controlled by inflicting pain. 

In Brave New World, they are controlled by inflicting pleasure. In short, Orwell feared that what we hate will ruin us. Huxley feared that what we desire will ruin us. This book is about the possibility that Huxley, not Orwell, was right. 

—Neil Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death 

            Facebook, Email, TikTok, Instagram, You Tube.... 

How do we choose to use technology with thought as opposed to being a part of a culture that surrenders its Intelligence Quotient to mind numbing activity? 

The question is always the same in life and in health, Do you find your best life by examining solutions form "Inside Out" or "Outside in"?

Our answer starts with discourse and continues with planning. Whats your plan? 

As we grow up do we learn to just settle for less or do you think we choose to become ignorant ?

 

I was listening to Joe Rogan comment yesterday on how he did not really follow sports other than martial arts. To my surprise, in spite of his celebrity experience, he said he had never been to a live football game. He said his friends are often amazed that he has only watched two Super Bowls on Tv in his life. When asked why? He said … because I have “stuff” to do. 

It hit me that we all have “stuff” to do but what are we choosing to invest time and energy into? 

I know from listening to Joe in the past he has spent thousands of hours watching, attending and participating in martial arts so he can obviously make time for what he enjoys and even become a master at it. This was the thought that stood out for me… “become a master” what does that take? 

A master podcaster? A master comedian? A master television actor? A master sports commentator? A master Tv series host? A master Hunter? 

That’s a lot of multiple directions to excel so I wonder why some people seem to get higher level of drives than others?

As children do you think that some say to themselves when I grow up…. I want to just settle for a solid average job with an average house in a stable neighborhood to raise my family and find myself?

What supports the potential of a child’s mind to be filled with dreams, without limitations, to have less fear of “messing up” and maintain an overall sense of wonder at the world?  What allows some people to remain so curious at the world that is unfolding around them? 

As every child comes face to face with the reality of expectations of our adult world they have to make choices.

It is obvious that some children are born into more difficult situations or challenging home settings which force them to recognize limitations in life way earlier than they should have to. Regardless of birth settings all children are eventually faced with a demand of letting go of life’s mysteries and told to accept responsibility. Responsibility as defined by the perception of those around them.  

Each culture tends to see these obligations very differently which makes me question how true they really are? Are our choices and beliefs to become productive beings really negotiable? The contrast between western culture values when compared with eastern cultures is often so stark it causes me to question what would my life’s beliefs be if I would have been born a Buddhist in India? A Muslim in the middle east? Our approach to life is based on what perspective we adopt as we grow up in our surroundings. Is it really that subjective and if so maybe I should look deeper at what I believe.

What choices we each make is a direct result of the expectations we place on ourselves and often the expectations others have for us that often pave the way to our actions and the eventual course of life those actions lead us towards. 

In situations of extreme poverty society often expects less “good” to happen due to many children’s limitations for education and experiences that can help develop them into productive members of society. Is mastery limited by socioeconomics?

When we see children who come from abusive homes we fear for the patterns that could set in which can create their self doubt, low self esteem or repeat patterns. Do the failings of the parents alone create a lack of mastery?

We often watch parents burdened by life’s obligations begin to accept their normal routine as they try to maneuver the weight of their lives and responsibilities. Do those parents begin to just not think anymore about dreams? About search? About mysteries? About mastery? 

Are children beginning to question if this is what life must be? Is this the indicator of children not searching for mastery as they simply conform to expectation?

How do we not just settle into the expectations of what everyone else does and how everyone else lives? How do we remain wondrous enough to keep chasing dreams? 

The excitement and amazement of what is around the next corner is the basis of our drive to learn and search for more, for bigger, for better, for mastery. When you remove these thoughts you relinquish the energy needed to continue that search.

As we watch so much of societies interactions turn to social media as a way of searching for life we start to see the syndrome of FOMO (fear of missing out) and I think you have to separate this concept from what I am discussing or what I am calling life’s search.

FOMO is an adverse effect of ego/image and our desire to be seen. Not wanting to miss out so that my life seems to me, and often others, to be fulfilled. “Look at me here I am” “ look at all the great photos I am sharing with you on how awesome my life is”

The stark comparison of FOMO to what I am discussing would be our search for wonderment  which goes way deeper than the surface level of our images.  Wonderment is based in our desire to know more about the world, our ability to stay committed to just finding self and not lose the excitement of learning new things regardless of life’s responsibilities. 

Can we remain that excited throughout life?

I recently got a new puppy and her name is Charlie. The most interesting thing to me while walking Charlie each day is watching her be amazed at the wind blowing through the trees or stopping and staring for long periods of time trying to understand things. You can see the wheels turning in her mind as she tries to compartmentalize all of the new things around her. I have noticed that many of the things that used to stop us in our tracks we no longer pause for at all. She is getting used to the world and less amazed by occurrences that just a few short months ago were so curious. It is my job to pause when she pauses so that she can keep taking it in instead of staying on track to just get the dog walked. This pause is needed for me as well but do I still have the time or am I too busy meeting expectation?

Can you think of any young being and imagine what I am talking about? A young child before they know all the rules? 

A high school student, not expressing self, and trying to fit in? 

A young adult processing the rules to see if they can be independent of them or just give in to the obvious job? 

When adulthood demands attention to responsibility is our spirit still excited? Can we still be filled with search for mystery while meeting our current obligations?

I think there are a lot of things that go into creating a mundane life that lacks mastery but I think the number one thing is when we stop creating the wonderment of a child, when we quit maintaining a list of things I wish to do and things I want to learn simply because I love growing.

Society and traditional education do not lead us to wonderment but rather they lead us to conformity. We are naturally being taught not to question authority and to all respond the same way to questions and problems. The only issue is that it does not work that well to dampen human spirit and as youthful rebellion sets in we start to separate and have free thought, big audacious dreams, excitement for exploration and willingness to think out of the box. 

As we grow into adulthood conformity is pushed harder and harder and the ability to stay in tune with our desire to be a free spirit and open to life’s mysteries often starts to fade away and with it’s fading go our opportunities at mastery.

I appreciate Joe Rogan’s search because I identify with his curiosity of life and his relentless pursuit of whatever crazy idea he came up with last week. I often agree with and disagree with his opinions, I often see him as intelligent and at the same time willing to disregard facts at times. My agreement or disagreement with Joe, doesn't really matter as much as my respect for his ability to not let aging kill his wonderment.

Mastery exists within your commitment to keep searching and to be amazed for your entire life. Either keep that energy turned on or turn that energy back on and you do not know what mastery may be around your next corner. 

We don’t need to settle for less, we don’t need to be ignorant of life’s mysteries but in order to remain free we do have to be seriously committed to taking actions which support our search. An exploration to study the mysteries or we will certainly leave a lot on the table in this life. I have never been more excited about a coming chapter in my life but I am seeing so many ways to open up my search and try new things and meet new people through the coming months, years and experiences. I am excited to travel more, build more, learn more, share more and explore more!

I hope that you can find that same excitement for yourself and be surrounded by people who see life the same because your mindset and those who support it is the key to mastery.

Choose Well, 

Brian

ps. send a comment if you see something you want to discuss further.

Does Elon Musk watch BlackMirror?

If you have not listened to Joe Rogan's podcast before you will certainly be engaged regardless of your belief system. I do not always agree with Joe’s opinions but I respect his right to believe anyway he chooses and I thank him for creating a platform so filled with free thought on the majority of his topics. This past week rogan hosted Elon Musk famous for PayPal, Tesla, Neuralink, Boring Company just to name a few of his accolades on the Joe Rogan experience #1169.

Elon is such an unusual talent so I am going to give you just a few of the topics they cover and quotes by Musk that certainly caught my attention…

Your opinion on Artificial Intelligence? … “ It’s really Scary”… “The percentage of Intelligence that is not human is increasing and eventual humans will represent the smaller collective percentage of Intelligence”

What do you think about Kicking a Robot… “Probably not wise…they have long memories"

Social Media growth? … “One of the issues is that people look like they have a much better life than they really do”… “Makes people feel quite sad by comparison”….”Happiness is reality minus expectations"

Looking at Human impact on environment do you think human nature is evil?  … “I really think people should give other people the benefit of the doubt” ... “there are more good than bad"

Being Elon Musk?… “I don’t Think most people would like it”

Whats it like having the mind of Elon Musk? … “Its like a never ending explosion going off”

Technology Bottlenecks that will impact society progression? … “I wish Politicians were better at science”

The interview was held in Joe Rogans California studio where during the process they tasted fine whiskey and smoked a blunt. All I heard about after the incredibly intriguing piece was the disbelief that a billionaire CEO smoked weed during an interview. (BTW ..Weed and Alcohol are both legal recreational drugs in California) The next day the Tesla stock was reported down due to Elon's "ever increasing" ERRATIC behavior according to one article on Bloomberg. Are you kidding me?? Stock prices float with perception but to be a CEO you must be hyper focused on a mission of purpose instead of peoples opinions or perceptions. The scoreboard will always reflect a win for those who stay focused on their mission as long as they live long enough for it to play out.

My question to Bloombergs article...When was Elon's behavior not Erratic??

Teslas are cars designed to eliminate fossil fuels! Who goes against gas and oil in America? An Erratic revolutionary. He has designed tile roofing which will allow homes to run on Solar energy. He is working on an attachment between human beings ability to think and feed your minds thoughts with your desired technology through a company called Neuralink whereby instead of using our thumbs and smartphones we can use our minds which could solve the data rate issue and access to technology. (pretty baffling concept that gives me pause but definitely Erratic)  20,000 Flame Throwers were sold through Elon’s Boring company, He is currently digging a traffic tunnel in Los Angeles one of the most difficult places to dig a tunnel in the world to explore solutions to traffic congestion. His original foray into the limelight was an app based to eliminate money regulations and trade by co founding PayPal.

                     

Elon Musk has always been an Erratic individual and I would like to thank him for it. We face incredible challenges in todays world and current environment. We need more individual thinkers, now more than ever before, and when we actually encounter someone as unique as Elon we get scared because he is so unique and that is the real problem. We do not need a more mindless process of thought and people all acting and looking the same. We need more creativity and that comes from building others up and allowing them to be who they are. We should be encouraging them to be different and do different things instead of being fake copies of some conceptual perfect citizen. Listening to Elon’s interview I hear the torture of possessing his mind which never stops turning out ideas and does not allow him much peace as he tries to navigate his daily life. I think of some great names in history like Edison, Tesla, Ford, Einstein, Oppenheimer, Da Vinci,  Lincoln, Franklin and many others… I am certain we would all consider them erratic if they could sit for a couple of hours and open up on Rogans podcast about all of their thoughts. 

The ability we have as humans to be so destructive towards each other is amazing but even when we are gifted with someone like Elon we do not seem to stop and recognize it. Someone who cannot turn off his never ending stream of thoughts so he turns his thoughts, energy and money towards creating answers we desperately need today…. and yet what do we as fellow humans do? We question, criticize and try to destroy that which is different from what we already know. We need to make changes in so many areas and we need to do so quickly.

We need more differences made on this planet by people like Elon Musk and I hope the next time he wants to sit down and smoke a blunt in a state where it is 100% legal I will do nothing but say thank you to him for trying to make this world better with his efforts and being so willing to examine the challenged process we call society. 

After listening to an interview between a billionaire inventor and a pop icon transcendentalist my mind was spinning but the quote of the day was simple. “The answer is love” - Elon Musk, When asked by Rogan what he thought the future should be about his answer was as simple and as profound as any I have heard… The answer is love” - Elon Musk

This guy has the world at his disposal with fame, fortune, brilliance and freedom to choose and see anything from any aspect he desires to embrace. After spending 47 years in his own head to create some incredible accomplishments he still learned and shares a simple truth. Love is the answer to all the issues we face. 

When we start to examine the problems we face at all levels (Politics, Climate Change, Sexuality pronouns, Vaccinations, Healthcare, Education, Poverty, Population, Artificial Intelligence) with the right energy we will start having the ability to create solutions. My reminder today is that our system of regulation (government) has evolved to a point that we are no longer seeking real answers to real issues. 

Our policy makers have been bought through campaign finance, lobbyists, lack of term limits and the desire to remain in the power zone. We are not using tax dollars to effectively research the answers to all of our major issues of todays environment. Our society is being fooled with corrupted data, research and marketing in all areas to get us to agree with the path that keeps churning money to special interests.  Our collective efforts are governed by politicians who need large money to get elected and therefore they have a compromised interest when making decisions on answering our major challenges today. (Politics, Climate Change, Sexuality pronouns, Vaccinations, Healthcare, Education, Poverty, Population, Artificial Intelligence) The answer to these real issues will take a few more Erratic people like Elon Musk willing to invest their time, their lives energy and their money into finding solutions. 

Are you one of those people? Are you willing to be Erratic?

Listening to this interview kept reminding me of the new hit Netflix series "BlackMirror" where technology keeps creating mind boggling change to the way human beings live and interact. The show can make you a little uncomfortable at times because it brings up the element of change in a drastic way but even if the concept of change makes you uncomfortable it does not stop the process of change nor it's impact. This is why I appreciate free thinkers like Elon and Joe and their willingness to embrace difficult and real topics in spite of all the antiquated opinions of grumbling investors who possess a fading mindset. Everyone has the right to disagree but I am going to focus on exploring my own mindset and being surrounded by others who will challenge image building, fake happiness and conformity for acceptance by being more Erratic. 

In the mean time I am going to focus on doing two things….. 

Saying thank you to people like Elon Musk for the efforts he is putting into finding real answers and remembering his takeaway which I wholeheartedly agree with.. “The answer is love” 

Now excuse me while I go watch Teslas stock price and see if I can jump into a great investment while people are debating if he should have smoked weed. ;-)

Enjoy the Search - Dugger

"Talk is Cheap, your Actions will tell the truth about your Character.”

I understand how much we all have to deal with EGO, with learning how to love self or with overcoming the battle of self image. Each and everyone of us may get lost in the forest of “Decisions” that really determine who we are. We all at times make mistakes and yet we also do some good each day so in the end its a scoreboard we are building that determines our character.

Why do we do it? ….because inside of almost every human there exists an innate desire to be “Correct” this is not about being “right” because being “right" is a self image issue, a napoleon complex issue, a struggle with self love. When we are secure in self we are more confident to make decisions based on our higher value system of being kind, loving, generous, tolerant and hardworking.

When we are less confident in our selves we often feel the need to be more important or be seen as “right" due to our weak egos. Choose instead to be Correct which means you will often have to battle yourself, because you will come face to face with your ego in many of life's circumstances and decisions while learning to do the correct things.

Why is doing the Correct thing or making the correct decision so hard? Because the world is really not about you or any other single person. It is instead about lots of people coming together in different circumstances to create energy which often brings with it friction. When that friction comes up we all want to be EGO maniacs and be “RIGHT” but as soon as we try to be right we are likely farther away from doing whats right. (If you want to be right then learn how to do right)

I have had the opportunity to work with a true sociopath before (a person with a personality disorder manifesting itself in extreme antisocial attitudes and behavior and a lack of conscience.) I called this an opportunity because I saw the battle of ego in a different way by watching him, I think for some people the battle of ego turns into a personal drive that they have to always be of importance and at the center of every decision. If our focus becomes too much about self eventually we train ourselves to not care very much about others and that creates sociopathic tendencies.  It is a very slow drip and we get thousands of chances to stop this process but if we do not stop, we will eventually become hardened to caring for others and solely focused on our self importance. I have only known one person I would consider a true sociopath who could no longer stop themselves from lying, manipulating and basing all decisions on his personal desires but I have seen many on this same road having theses tendencies repeatedly in their life. Stop the process before its too late because you, like the one I knew, will not know that everyone around you is aware of your character and whether or not they should trust you after you have lost sight of whats Correct.

I understand that these are tough issues (lacking empathy for others) that some of us may face but most of us do not lack the empathy to see the other persons point of view. One of my mentors has often said that obtaining our own irrelevance is the key to life because inside of your irrelevance you will find peace and that is all that will truly matter in the end. We very often fail at exercising the empathy to hear opposing views but we still have the ability if we choose to listen, to think and to do whats Correct instead of choosing to look like we are “right”.

Every day we live we are adding another day to our reputation, to what people know us to be because our actions are real and obvious even when we think we are covering it up. There are a lot of people who’s search for self importance causes them to use others which causes destruction of relationships and yet these same people have to keep creating new relationships to survive due to driving people off.

Why find new relationships? because as human beings we need to come together with other human beings to explore this course called life. If you are not able to check your ego then you will have to keep creating new relationships but eventually everyone sees you for who you really are by the actions you keep choosing to do... to either be Correct or be selfish and always need to be “right".

None of us wants to be known as users of others….. too selfish to examine where we may be wrong.. … as someone who struggles with truth over self interest.... or unable to find an answer that may not be all about self.

It will cause all of us challenges until we are more committed to being Correct instead of being right!
Today is a new day full  of interactions and opportunities to be correct. Good luck in making you next choices in who you really want to be.

Enjoy the Search,

Dugger

Turn the other cheek but don't be a wimp!

A friend of mine posted this message in a private group chat recently “Turning the other cheek is less about offering another target and more about looking beyond the situation to the bliss that awaits us”...this caused me some thoughts I wanted to share in addition to his which are listed below......

Really well said!!

This concept is so misunderstood about "turning the other cheek"..... It's not about allowing people to continue to be abusive or take advantage... its about knowing how to not get caught up in the hurt of being violated and remaining forgiving towards others regardless of their actions.  You can and SHOULD hold to your convictions as long as they are not based in your ego and they allow you room for forgiveness as others may cause transgressions against you. I personally have few issues saying the truth when I see wrongs that I have witnessed or wrongs that I have been hurt by.

My struggle has always been in learning to have forgiveness for negative actions by others and not holding resentment when I see them doing wrong things or even things that have hurt me personally.

It’s just my “basic response" to make a stand or to tackle the work of seeking out correctness or what I learn to be the truth in any situation. Its not that I have not made mistakes, I have made plenty but they have always been made in the course of trying to learn how to do what is right even when the "right" thing causes me to struggle.

While trying to stay true to my convictions and choosing to speak up when others remain silent it has often brought with it my having to learn to look for the peace and bliss of every situation. (Even when it does not seem so blissful) Finding the sliver lining is often hard as we face struggles or stand up against wrongdoings but that is the mandate of life if you want to have peace. I feel I am now at the best place in my life (so far) of not having to avoid situations but also not allowing the same situations to cause me to get angry or have resentment. The rules are simple as once told to me by a friend... Learn to be Honest, Kind, Generous, Hard Working and Tolerant and you will lead a great life that no one will be able to doubt but mostly you will find peace and true success. (Dr. James Chestnut coined that phrase and I suggest you read it at least 3 times)

I know there are others who face what I face when it comes to feeling obligated to speak up as they see wrongs being done but I think thee are way more people who tend to avoid confrontation and still it causes them to get angry or resentful when they bury their intuition. Intuition is a gift but it is also similar to a muscle and if you trust your instincts and use it regularly it will grow. On the other hand if you remain quiet and passive when your intuition is telling you to speak up it will shrink. Eventually recognizing the truth gets harder because you have lost the insight that comes by exercising your innate sense of right and wrong.

The key to speaking up and facing issues we all would like to avoid is finding the peace and joy in every situation. Yes every situation holds silver linings for all of our personalities by being truthful, making your stand, seeking your truth and letting those who come in contact with you to truly see your convictions/ your search for enlightenment. Do these things, speak the TRUTH (which is sometimes not your TRUTH) but maintain your peace and lose your ego. If we ahve spent too long operating in EGO or Fear of losing EGO then it is harder to know the truth because it may actually be different from the universal truth. The cool thing is if you are willing top speak up it will lead you somewhere, anywhere or nowhere but you will learn! When you wind up wherever you do find gratitude in the moment and be thankful for the lesson. Your intuition will be developing in that exact moment. That development is what helps you the next time you face similar challenges and then you will find that joy will come into your life much quicker the next time you are pressed.

For those of you who know me you know I do not shy away from seeking correctness and calling out the truth with anyone, anywhere and at anytime 😏 but I am learning and will continue to learn to do two things.... love everyone and tell the truth. Why not be comfortable enough to follow your truth wherever it leads you as long as you can do it in love. If you find yourself going somewhere without holding onto love then you will not be happy when you get there.

Speak up today for what you believe and what you know is right but be loving and not in your ego when you do it. This is what allows peace in everything without having to avoid conflict.

Enjoy the Search - Dugger

#goodluck #goodintentions #success #peace #loveeveryoneandtellthetruth#satsang #healthyrelationships #standup #beherenow #gratitude

Perennial Philosophy

I have been listening to Aldous Huxleys book “perennial philosophy” this past week and it is a mind stretcher 🤤 but in actuality a very simple thought once you get where he is coming from. (search perennial philosophy in Wikipedia) In the Wikipedia summation it sums it up pretty quickly but the central thought is that our search for PEACE , happiness, purpose ... and our spiritual paths are as one. I believe peace exists inside of UNITY which means we must find harmony within all of the efforts, beliefs, desires, loves and paths we choose for ourselves. It also means we can find peace by recognizing the UNITY we have with all others and their respective searches.

This is hard because we often do not agree with others or their searches.

Looking for and finding what we share as beliefs with those who challenge us will immediately bring us a sense of peace. Looking for differences within any situation or belief immediately brings anger or frustration through deliberate separation.

I would not encourage myself or anyone else to spend too much time around those who represent things that we do not wish to identify with but we can work harder to understand their challenges even if we must do it from safe distances. Lots of “denominations”, tribes, political parties, races, classes represented in our world today. All labels or separations exist because at some point we chose to focus on our differences instead of what we agree upon.

Look at the challenging spaces or people in your life and find one point of agreement within yourself and that challenge or that challenging person. This is the road to peace and it rings true in Huxleys perennial philosophy when examining spiritual beliefs through out the world. The world is made up of our individual choices so choose peace for yourself by finding what you can agree upon rather than focusing on separation.

Enjoy the search - Dugger

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perennial_philosophy

Stand up against Ego Maniacs or suffer with them..

One of Charlie Chaplin's greatest gifts from his career was this speech addressing ego maniacs and people who wish to be dictators and tyrants. Look around you identify the people like this in your life and unite with other good people to stop tyranny in all forms. There is no need for you to accept or allow this in your presence. In this speech Charlie Chaplin chose to stand up against the entire Nazi regime, the entire country of Germany and its horrible choice of presence. This was written in 1940 when the United States was still not even willing to make a stand against what we now see so clearly as horribly unimaginable. What are we allowing today that we could be changing for the better by simply being courageous and speaking up?


I'm sorry, but I don't want to be an emperor. That's not my business. I don't want to rule or conquer anyone. I should like to help everyone if possible; Jew, Gentile, black man, white. We all want to help one another. Human beings are like that. We want to live by each other's happiness, not by each other's misery. We don't want to hate and despise one another. In this world there is room for everyone, and the good earth is rich and can provide for everyone. The way of life can be free and beautiful, but we have lost the way. Greed has poisoned men's souls, has barricaded the world with hate, has goose-stepped us into misery and bloodshed. We have developed speed, but we have shut ourselves in. Machinery that gives abundance has left us in want. Our knowledge has made us cynical; our cleverness, hard and unkind. We think too much and feel too little. More than machinery, we need humanity. More than cleverness, we need kindness and gentleness. Without these qualities, life will be violent and all will be lost. The airplane and the radio have brought us closer together. The very nature of these inventions cries out for the goodness in men; cries out for universal brotherhood; for the unity of us all. Even now my voice is reaching millions throughout the world, millions of despairing men, women, and little children, victims of a system that makes men torture and imprison innocent people. To those who can hear me, I say, do not despair. The misery that is now upon us is but the passing of greed, the bitterness of men who fear the way of human progress. The hate of men will pass, and dictators die, and the power they took from the people will return to the people. And so long as men die, liberty will never perish. Soldiers! Don't give yourselves to brutes, men who despise you, enslave you; who regiment your lives, tell you what to do, what to think and what to feel! Who drill you, diet you, treat you like cattle, use you as cannon fodder. Don't give yourselves to these unnatural men - machine men with machine minds and machine hearts! You are not machines, you are not cattle, you are men! You have the love of humanity in your hearts! You don't hate! Only the unloved hate; the unloved and the unnatural. Soldiers! Don't fight for slavery! Fight for liberty! In the seventeenth chapter of St. Luke, it is written that the kingdom of God is within man, not one man nor a group of men, but in all men! In you! You, the people, have the power, the power to create machines, the power to create happiness! You, the people, have the power to make this life free and beautiful, to make this life a wonderful adventure. Then in the name of democracy, let us use that power. Let us all unite. Let us fight for a new world, a decent world that will give men a chance to work, that will give youth a future and old age a security. By the promise of these things, brutes have risen to power. But they lie! They do not fulfill that promise. They never will! Dictators free themselves but they enslave the people. Now let us fight to fulfill that promise. Let us fight to free the world! To do away with national barriers! To do away with greed, with hate and intolerance! Let us fight for a world of reason, a world where science and progress will lead to all men's happiness. Soldiers, in the name of democracy, let us all unite!

Relationships show lots of Truth if we are looking...

Relationships are great reveals in who we and others really are at a specific moment in time. In the early part of all relationships there is a euphoric attachment to the energy exchange and the closer you get the more exciting it becomes. When people begin to show appreciation and love for us then it makes it easier to love ourselves which is our real search. The challenges of relationships are the same ..... as we begin to know each other and see the cracks and flaws that we all carry then it is often hard to accept the reality of relationships. When someone begins to see those ugly parts we work so hard to hide they may reject us, Rejection is our fear because we want to be loved and know how to love ourselves so badly. The immaturity of relationships is in seeking perfection from another being, the perfection is in two peoples choice to love each other, not take from each other due to selfishness. Start picking relationships who understand this process and commit to each other that you will “work hard on yourself for them if they will work hard on themselves for you” there are no perfect relationships except the ones you create perfection within. Be strong enough to remain faithful to the people you invite into your life and you will have lots of incredible relationships. Enjoy the Search - Dugger

Chris Phillips So many times we enter relationships so quickly bc of the euphoric beginnings that the fears come out later in the process. The work done with those fears and the acknowledgment of them is vital to the growth of the relationship. Brene brown talks about the vulnerability in the space and the freedom that comes with it. I love the Dass quote you posted. Truth is scary but we have to face that fear to deepen the relationship to further dive into self love so we can love others. We just can’t give what we don’t have. Thank you for doing this all the time.

The vulnerability part is huge. In order to be so it must be a deliberate action which means we really let people see us. I have know so many people including lots of marriages that never create vulnerability. They never stop acting out an image and really let the other person in. If we do really stop being an image and start being the honest version, the scared version, the unsure version then maybe "they will stop loving me and I might not be able to love myself". Great thought Chris Phillips and I love taking the time to think and examine. Thank you for sharing the ride! 🙏

1

Manage

Lies won't create your Success

"You will either step forward into growth or you will step backward into safety" -Abraham Maslow

I read this quote BUT then questioned the word “Growth”… Don’t get me wrong I completely agree with this quote.. I was just wondering if “Growth” should mean the same thing to everyone??

I grew up being taught a strong focus on gaining money, achievement, image and ownership or at least those things as they are defined by a western culture.

I have now learned that success can be interpreted as many things but very often the culture you live in pushes you to define it in such a way that it keeps the culture and it’s societal “rules” most relevant. Our western culture demands “conformity” like paying taxes….. understanding our history the same way….not questioning the system too much… not questioning the powers that make the decisions too much…. different rules for those making the decisions… all of which ultimately leads to less than 1% of the people controlling the majority of our decisions…Healthcare…Food Supplies…Environmental issues….Social behaviors…Personal freedoms…decisions that are then dictated for the majority of the people by the few. Can you say Oligarchy? (Read “Merchants of Doubt”)  

Achieving success has long been seen as a drastically different view when you compare eastern and western cultures on all of the issues listed above. I was talking with a close friend this morning and trying to remember that the Image or the culture we are sold growing up is very often not the best fit for everyone to achieve growth or success with their life. Also remembering that the western culture is not the only one existing just the one you may be most familiar with.

For my journey it was not really the culture that dictated my personal drive to achieve many of my image based goals but rather something within me that needed to create my “mark”. I was so driven at times to create an image  that it became blinding and when it came to gaining my understanding of peace, love, happiness, kindness, generosity and tolerance they were a far second place to my focus on money, accomplishment, acquisition, control and the list goes on…..

I did not have many internal conflicts with searching out the path of achievement because I think for my journey I really needed to choose that route in order to find what I found for me and what I now really define as success …which has become first and foremost… peace, love, happiness, kindness, generosity and tolerance of others. These are my highest values behind loving myself first which leads to all of the above. In order to give love you must find love because after all “you can’t give away what you don’t have” - Wayne Dyer

There was a lot of rough energy (karma/dharma) I had to burn through which was really tough on me and those around me at times throughout my journey and even tougher to realize my highest path because of my obsessions with accomplishment. I now look at my past with appreciation, not because it gave me financial success or properties or security or financial freedom but because it gave me focus!

Focus on what really counts the most in this life.

If I had to make a choice today to give up the new values I hold.. the ones I just listed (peace, love, happiness, kindness, generosity and tolerance of others) values that I now hold very dear in order to create financial “Success” as western culture often demands… If that demand required my focus to be solely on acquisition and accomplishment forsaking my current values I could not do it. I now truly understand the value of people over possessions but I also now know how to merge putting people first while still meeting great goals and becoming financially prosperous.

I really think my life path was perfect for me to get where I am, which I truly love but I have met many people who SHOULD NOT choose the path I did because that choice will create incredible frustration in their lives. There are many people with natural personalities and characteristics driven to put people first over “winning” (at least the version of winning we are sold in a capitalist culture) starting at a very young age.

If you watch little kids play there are some so focused on winning the game, king of the hill, being recognized as the best and there are others who just naturally enjoy playing with the other children more than the focus of solely winning. I think it is so interesting to study the different types of personalities and how young they start developing these natural talents. Some are naturally focused on being the winner and yet MOST are focused on just being a part of their community and all of these personalities are natural life path’s, which should form their best ability to build a life filled with personal peace and success.

According to DISC personality testing less than 3% of all personalities are naturally driven to a goal winning focus as their primary driver while 97% have other primary driving forces. We all want to meet our goals but honoring the best fit for you is the key to understand.

I think the greatest challenge is that our western or capitalist culture is trying to push everyone into the same mold. Everyone should be king of the hill…everyone should be trying to own everything… everyone should be in first place… which is impossible and creates conflict.

I was telling a friend just this morning that I really love traveling and moving in and out of different cities or cultures and exploring. I am currently trying to build a portfolio of multi family real estate properties that serve as great investments by having monthly tenants/ airbnb income each month but also a place to go and visit for a weekend.. a week…a vacation.. a mini-vacation etc… in order to create my “Satsang” (Your “True People”…Google it).

I can at this point afford to buy 10 - 15 unique properties that will accommodate hospitality guests along with people living in the same properties full time. This creates a diversified portfolio and it affords me the ability to choose different locations I enjoy visiting. These properties can serve as great investments while helping me realize my dream of building community in different cities.

Much of the reason I can afford to do all of that is because of the path I chose (primarily acquisition focus) even though I don’t want to have to focus the way I did to get that income ever again! I understand what I did to create this now held freedom of choice but I think there are many ways to achieve finances and the freedom that it often allows while still having high levels of peace.

My job is to find my peace and then help others find theirs. My job is to remain true to my highest values and help other people learn how to honor their highest values and not the ones their culture is pushing. My path was to push hard in order to realize that’s not the best focus in life and now I can see a better way of living and sharing.

My needed path was one to burn through some bad karma or beliefs in order to find a better version of me. Instead of trying to be in “control” of the process, If my natural path would have been to just enjoy growing with the people around me and love being a “part” of the process it would have brought up other weaknesses than the ones I have faced so that is “MY” journey but it is not everyone’s journey.

Example..

Accomplishment can create financial security but neglect kindness…

Or..

Kindness can create great relationships but cause struggle with fears of security by neglecting goals.

Everyone has talents and everyone has correlating weaknesses but the main key is learning how to be you. The original you and not some fictitious facsimile demanded by your environment. The quickest way to financial security is not a one shoe fits all approach. The quickest way to accomplishing goals is by being the best version of you and honoring your natural gifts not the gifts, talents or path of anyone else on the playground even if the teacher says so…even if your parents say so…even if your friends say so…even if your boss says so!

Every business NEEDS goal setters, people uniter’s, evidence analytics, rule followers, master creators, visionaries, diligent workers, faithful participants and the list goes on. None of these people is worth more or is greater than the other and if you don’t figure that out in this life then you missed the whole point!

Everyone should develop their path and help others along their paths but not all must look the same. What if my path would have been different and I would have been more naturally focused on being a “people uniter” on the playground as a child?

I hope I would have met some great accomplishers that became part of my Satsang. I would hope they would have helped me build my financial goals while allowing me to remain true to myself and my highest values. I also would have appreciated them buying a few homes in different cities so I could share in their vision with them while making room for me to participate as I gained my success.

If they were my true people or my Satsang then I know we would have supported each other while honoring each other in our respective paths. One sharing their natural talents to create financial goals and another teaching us on how to remain focused to honoring and loving people. This list could obviously go on because the gifts of all people goes on and are so uniquely varied but the real answer is we should all be honoring each others talents and sharing the path.

Answer these questions for me from your perspective…

At the end of your life will it matter the most that your name be listed on the deed of the 15 properties and that because you were so driven you may even get a statue for birds to poop on dedicated to you?

or

Will it matter more that you remained focused on building the best version of you, remained focused on creating relationships that shared with you what they gained while you remained focused on building your security through your highest values?

If you work at anything consistently enough even something you may not enjoy you can likely build financial freedoms by remaining consistent, showing up to work etc. Please don’t wait until your 50 or 60 to enjoy the freedoms from a life that was focused on fear or expectations passed on to you by others. Don’t forget to be you so you can choose someone else’s path to creating finances. Earn money, become successful, create financial freedom but do it with ease by being you and your personality not by adopting some fictitious persona because the culture you were born in was trying to sell a one shoe fits all concept.

It is true that once you earn enough to get past your fears of safety, financial security and savings then you could be more prepared to create kindness, charity and openness because you have removed your fear but you also could be so locked into a pattern of placing goals over people that you cannot seem to change a developed destructive focus.

It is also true that if you choose to chase your highest version of who you really are and not an “image of what everyone should be” then it will allow you to earn the most by following your best version of your unique self.

“Do what you love and love what you do and you will never have to work a day in your life” John Demartini (at least that’s who told it to me)

Everyone is not the same but everyone has great talent to create great results. If they are not doing so then they are simply not free enough yet to be their highest version of self and attract greater wealth, relationships and achievements.

Build a Satsang that allows you to honor who you really are. Quit trying to be someone else because you saw it on a magazine cover or in a movie or because someone told you some fairy tale a long time ago trying to get everyone to simply conform. (Read Merchants of Doubt) These fairy tales are created so that those following them feel safe in the course they chose while trying to sell it to others. If we are all so different then why should everyone’s paths to “success” be so similar? It makes no common sense when really examined so be different!

Create vulnerability and really allow people into your life. Look for mentors, friends and lovers and let them know your visions of building your highest self by being an original you. Let them share with you what they have gained and created and you do the same. Make each other better and while your at it go vacation together in the shared accomplishments of your Satsang. After all 15 properties owned by you are not really worth much unless you have great relationships to share them with.

Enjoy the Search - Dugger

(post comments below I would love to know what your thinking)