Have you ever paused to really acknowledge and savor the fact that every choice you make creates something? By “something” I actually mean a whole lot of things. Choices precipitate chemical reactions in your body, they may open up new possibilities in your world or keep you in a holding pattern, they can change the trajectory of a thought or project or your whole life. And whether we like it or not, we’re making choices non stop, all day every day, the vast majority of which are done from conclusion, judgment, and unconsciousness.
Please know, that’s not a judgment of you! We’ve been programmed to live in a sort of anesthetized autopilot. Strong language, I know. But have an honest look around. We are mimicking, repeating, aligning with, or resisting and reacting to basically everything. Where is the authentic, unadulterated, no-need-to-prove, life-giving and expansive space to choose for you? Have you ever truly acknowledged that as a possibility?
It’s so normalized to separate from our innate awareness in favor of deciding or reacting based on what we think, try to make logical, or have an emotional response to rather than choosing from what we know. I’m not aiming to blame this normalization, just acknowledge it. We have the choice to choose beyond it. Knowing doesn’t have any judgment in it; it’s not about thinking, assessing, calculating, figuring out, rationalizing, or justifying anything. And it's not about getting anything right. Knowing is tapping into the higher harmonics of your senses to perceive what’s true for you.
Take a moment to really savor that. You have an innate capacity to know. What do you know that’s greater than you or anyone else has ever acknowledged?
To access our knowing, we have to come out of conclusion and into curiosity and question. When we’re functioning from a place of total curiosity, we no longer rely on deciding what has to or should happen or trying to make sense out of anything. We can actually perceive what’s true for us. This is as simple as asking, “Does this make me feel heavy, constricted, and compacted, or is there a sense of lightness, spaciousness, invigoration, and fun?” You know what heavy feels like. And you know which state you prefer. Lightness is your true nature. And, it creates a whole lot more possibility for your life.
Here’s a simple example: Say you go out to dinner and many things on the menu look good. So you look around at other people’s tables, ask everyone you’re dining with what they’re choosing, and finally decide to get the surf and turf option. It sounds fun and looks appetizing. The food comes and is far more than what your body needs but it’s delicious and expensive so you eat too much. You say, “Oh I ate way too much, I knew I’d do that.” You already knew that wasn’t going to be the kindest choice, but you chose it because of something rather than asking, “What choice is the lightest? Which option will allow me to feel nourished and uplifted? Body, what would you prefer?” If you’d asked, you and your body would likely have a much more pleasant evening! How many things like this are you choosing?
Choice creates. And it doesn’t have to be complicated.
What most people do is choose based on what they’ve decided the choice will give them. How many times have you worked out elaborate scenarios in your head, weighing the pros and cons, perhaps even making lists or perseverating ad nauseum in an attempt to make the best, most right choice? Or maybe you tend to just choose what you “know” works, which is really about repeating predictability rather than creating possibility. If you’ve already decided, is it really a choice? Technically, yes. But what does it create? Does it allow your life to be any greater?
Here's a little tip you may not have considered: You can choose again. If you choose and it doesn't work for you, it doesn't have to be made into a some kind of concrete altar to eternally repent for your mistakes. (I have another blog post about significance that could be helpful here!) It's just a choice. What can you choose now?
You have this brilliant capacity to choose your life, and you have the genius of your own awareness to perceive the lightness available. That’s true whether you’re looking at a menu, building relationships, operating businesses, creating community, or absolutely anything else. My question is, is default mode enough for you? Or are you interested in a quality of life and living that’s created from curiosity, asking, perceiving, and choosing what’s light, spacious, and ripe with possibility?
This is a big question. Yet, it’s so simple. Every single choice creates something. Perhaps it’s time to disable that autopilot mode and begin consciously engaging in the awareness you are so fortunate to have? I wonder what you can create??