Category: Inward

Posts dealing with introspection, or looking inward

Posted on

Ten Commandments of Logic

We all need some credos to live by.  You have probably heard of the Ten Commandments from the Bible but are there a set of ideals that anyone, regardless of religious affiliation or non-affiliation, can live by?

Here is a list that may help you live by your “Higher Self”.  Follow these commandments and see how your interactions with others are changed.

The Ten Commandments of Logic

Ten Commandments of Logic

  1. Thou shall not attack the person’s character, but the argument itself (Ad hominem)
  2. Thou shall not misrepresent or exaggerate a person’s argument in order to make them easier to attack. (Straw man fallacy)
  3. Thou shall not use small numbers to represent the whole. (Hasty generalization)
  4. Thou shall not argue thy position by assuming one of its premises is true. (Begging the question)
  5. Thou shall not claim that because something occurred before, it must be the cause. (Post Hoc/False cause)
  6. Thou shall not reduce the argument down to two possibilities. (False dichotomy)
  7. Thou shall not argue that because of our ignorance, claim must be true or false. (Ad ignorantum)
  8. Thou shall not lay the burden of proof onto him that is questioning the claim. (Burden of proof reversal)
  9. Thou shall not assume “this” follows “that” when it has no logical connection. (Non sequitur)
  10. Thou shall not claim that because a premise is popular, therefore it must be true. (Bandwagon fallacy)
Posted on

Real life is not scripted…

Keep calm

Life is all about being in the NOW and participating fully. If you want to hone these skills I would highly recommend that you attend an Improv Comedy class.
I attended some classes at my local improv group MopCo http://www.mopco.org/ and it has really effected how I interact with people. Take a class so that you participate in that improv called life!

Life is not scripted. We have to live in the moment and respond to life as it is and not as we would have it.

Posted on

Fire your inner critic

inner-critic

Can you control your inner critic? Or does that inner critic control you?  How much of a critic are you?  Are you of the highest order critic, like I was, able to find fault with perfection? Criticism like:

  • Buddha’s fat;
  • Ghandhi walks around half-naked;
  • Jesus needs a haircut.

It’s a lonely place. Fire your inner critic, your “lower self” and put yourself “Under New Management”. It doesn’t matter what your conception of this Higher Power is. What matters is that you have part of that Higher Power inside you. Right NOW at this present moment. Put yourself under the new management of your higher self.

This is your call to action. Take it up as your mission – to be a better more loving, less critical version of yourself. You are capable of this change as you have a piece of your higher power within you.  Embrace your own divinity and live in that light.

Posted on

Compassion as a spiritual practice

I was listening to someone speak today about how he was having an argument with his neighbor, and he recognized that his interaction with her was NOT skillful, and that there had to be a better way.  I started to think about the relationships in my life and when I’ve been jammed up and frustrated with how things are going.

I realized that I often get jammed up when I am lacking in compassion.  Why am I getting so upset when X speaks to me in a certain way?  X could be sick and suffering in some way, and if I act compassionately toward them I won’t get as upset, and chances are that the whole interaction will go better.

If I look compassionately at myself during the interaction perhaps I’m coming from a wounded place, also sick and suffering in some way.  What can I do in the moment that is compassionate to me, and not harmful to others?  If X is causing discomfort in me is there I way I can respond that is boundaried and mature?

Compassion is needed more in the world.  Be the starting point of something new and loving in your little corner of the world.

Posted on

Do the hokey pokey!

Sometimes we all get stuck and we are unable to move forward.  We think that we need to be graceful all the time, even the first time we do things.  This type of mental paralysis is quite crippling, it prevents us from achieving all that we are meant to be.

I was meeting with a friend of mine and I brought up this topic of feeling stuck.  He said it’s like the hokey pokey.  You just need to put your left foot in and shake it all about.  You most likely will not look graceful, but you will be dancing and you will be having fun (if you let yourself have fun).  Get involved in the dance that is life.  Do the hokey pokey, and have fun while doing it!  You deserve to have fun, you deserve to move past this mental paralysis.  Have fun, that’s what it’s all about!

Posted on

Personality type percentages

Don’t think that an online assessment can say anything about you?  I’m going to shock some of you, but the Myers Briggs personality Type Indicator (MBTI) is amazing in telling you characteristics about yourself.  If you don’t believe me, take an assessment and read about your personality type.

What’s also interesting to me is what percentage of the population are “my type”.  According to WikiPedia  (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MBTI) here are the percentages of the 16 Myers Briggs personality type in the US adult population.

Quick assessment: http://www.personalitypathways.com/type_inventory.html

Longer assessment: http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes2.asp

Descriptions of the personality types: http://typelogic.com
I’m an INTP and when I read the description it’s uncanny.

Posted on

Our Deepest Fear…

I occasionally post inspirational words that I have read. Here is another one for you.

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world. There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we’re liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

A Return To Love
Marianne Williamson
Page 165 hardcover edition
published 1992

Posted on

Seriously find out your personality type…

In a prior post I mentioned how enlightening it can be to know your personality type.  Here is a direct link to a 72 question assessment.  Make this investment in yourself to really see how you tick.  Once you know your personality type you can use it to determine the type of career that is best suited for your personality type.  You can Google your personality type and something else like hobbies, or activities, or find an online community of like minded individuals.  I discovered which historical figures had my personality type.  Once you know yours you could ask your friends and loved ones to take the assessment as well and understand them better.  Give it a shot you won’t be disappointed.

http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes2.asp

Posted on

Where are you on your map?

Every map is useless unless you know where you are on the map. ~ David Allen

If you want true lasting change in your life you need to know where you are emotionally, physically, mentally, and spiritually.  How then do you begin the journey of self discovery?  There are many ways to start, but here are a few that I’ve found helpful.

What’s your personality type?
According to some experts in the field of psychology there are 16 personality types. It’s helpful to know what your own personality type is, and it can be really freaky to read about your own personality type. It’s almost as though someone is in your head. For descriptions of the personality types, and links to online assessments please go to:
http://www.typelogic.com

What’s your love language?
There is a great book written by Gary Chapman where he posits that people take in and express love in one of five ways.  If you want love in the form of words of affirmation and your partner only gives you gifts you won’t feel loved.  I recommend that you know what your love language is so that you know what you need.  I further recommend that you know the love language of the important people in your life, and speak their love language to them often.  To find out your love language go to:

Posted on

4 Questions

Do you struggle being too critical and judgmental? I consider myself a “recovering know it all” who used to think he knew better for everyone.  That’s not the way that I wanted to live my life.  I don’t remember where I heard this advice but it was transformational for me.  If you want to let go of judgement and to be at peace ask yourself the following 4 questions before you speak:

  1. Is it True?
  2. Is it Kind?
  3. Is it Necessary?
  4. Is it Humble?

If you apply these questions truthfully you’ll be amazed at how quiet you’ll become.  I would often pass the True test, but I’d fail on one or more of the other questions.  It may be true that others misspell words or speak grammatically incorrectly but it’s not Necessary for me to say anything.  I’m not an English teacher correcting a term paper, nor have I been asked to provide feedback on their writing/speech so I need to keep my mouth shut.

After you’ve practiced this for a while and you’ve had some success with it I challenge you to begin applying these questions to your thoughts.  You’ll be further amazed at how unhealthy your thoughts are as well.

Good luck and I wish you well.