Lessons for Living

The moment we deny ourselves some gratification, we feel deprived. Part X appeals to our selfishness, telling us we should never have to feel deprived.

The only way to fight this is to have an equally selfish reason not to give in to our impulses. In other words, we need to find a reward in depriving ourselves. In the lower-channel, purely material

The ego likes big, dramatic actions that seem as if they’ll magically change the future. This gives the ego a sense of power. Real discipline is quite the opposite. It’s made up of an endless number of small steps, each of which can seem meaningless on its own. The ego has to humble itself to keep going on a productive course.

Take Action

Unlike intellectual concepts, instinctual intelligence has no value until you act on it. Most of us have tremendous problems taking action. We passively wait, hoping to get into a state of mind where we will be more motivated, less afraid. This reflects a complete misunderstanding of success. We need to take action regardless of how we f

All of us need to feel able to create some sense of newness in our lives. We need to feel ourselves in flow every day.

Be honest. Your own life experiences have been far from ideal. But what you have experienced is what is real, not what you would like to experience. In short, the nature of reality is this:

Life includes pain and adversity.

The future is uncertain.

Accomplishment of any kind requires discipline.

You are not special. No matter what you do, you cannot av