Day 269/366 days Towards Self-Mastery.
What are the ingredients in the recipe of success? There is probably more written on this topic than any other so I thought I would reflect on the success and progress in my life and examine the threads that have supported me.
The very first thing that comes to mind is commitment, followed quickly by realising that I learned very early that there was something important for me to discover.
My early life was filled with the typical relics of trauma: relentless hard work and sacrifice, fear, struggle, caution, protection, bound together in a joyless symphony.
My commitment was to break away from that. Initially I thought it was about the pursuit of happiness but it turned out to be much more than that. What transpired was a journey to understand the traumas that informed my family system, their impact on me and my relationships in the world, and the means to liberate myself from them to live life more fully.
Sarah's suggestion is that the Tao of Success is about patience and persistence, the alchemy of which creates perseverance. I would add presence and commitment. Being present to my experiences, understanding them in the context of family and intergenerational trauma, releasing the tensions that accompany them in my nervous system as they surface is an ongoing process of discovery and healing.
My success comes as life becomes more expansive, more synchronistic, and more alive for me.
What is your fundamental commitment in life? Is it your work, your business, your family life, your relationships, or figuring out how to enable them all to work more synchronistically and smoothly? Self-mastery?
What will it take for you to achieve success?
366 days Towards Self-Mastery
When I considered my New Year's intentions for 2020 I had just one: To allow my heart to love what it loved...and let it lead me. (If not now, then when?)
I've spent months working on integrating my life. To live life more fully with my home life, my interests, my work, my responsibilities, all coming together, all connected. I want to give each the attention that they desire and need, and still have time and energy for the others. That means living and working from the heart.
As I was clearing out my bookshelf over the Christmas break I discovered Simple Abundance. I set it aside to explore it on New Year's Day as I lazed through another delicious day of nothingness. Sarah, the author, says this book is about living in grace. Living in grace I realised, is about Self-Mastery.
My thirst for understanding the human condition has driven me all my life, and hand-in-hand with self-mastery it has been a life-long goal. And seeing as I love to write, that living in grace is about self-mastery, and I love a bit of a challenge, then if I am truly going to let my heart lead, I really don't have any other choice. So scary as it feels, I'm starting out on a daily mission of leaning into the suggestions of this daybook and making a daily post to keep me accountable. If not now, then when?
I'm Josie. You can find out a little more about me here.
Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy: by Sarah Ban Breathnach.
This book is written for the Australian and NZ market because it refers to seasonal changes. It's available on Amazon here if you'd like to follow along.