5 Principles for Success

Throughout my life, I have learned and experienced quite a bit. The thing that drives and motivates me from day to day is the excitement that I am going to learn and experience even more.

When the thirst of a curious mind is quenched, it feels good.

I have found that my own rate of growth and development has increased over time. Not quite exponential but certainly more significant than a linear relationship.

The reason for this increase in growth over time is the effect of positive feedback loops. Loops that are created when we make decisions which create behaviours and questions which empower us to make more decisions…

I have always yearned to simplify the complexity of life. Aiming to identify the simplest set of rules and choices that lead to a happy and fulfilling life.

I will now share with you the conclusions I have drawn from my journey so far. Think of these as 5 principles that you can use to guide your decisions and identify the right choices:

• Prioritise increasing vitality
• Be the change
• Speak sincerely
• Establish equilibrium
• Embody compassion

I find these principles when applied to life, create a resonance that I can feel deep to my core. They have enabled me to discover more about myself and the world around me, and have empowered me to apply myself authentically to living. To live on purpose.

Partnered with the key skills outlined in the getting ready for action post, they are behaviours which when practiced help you arrive in to the present moment. The only moment which truly exists and the precise location of happiness.

Now, lets take a look at each of the principles in more detail…

Prioritise increasing vitality

This is principle number one. The root higher principle that provides the anchor for all of the other principles.

Increasing vitality is synonymous to increasing the flow of life energy. Growing yourself and everything around you.

Vitality fuels the strength of mind required to focus, accept the truth, be decisive and take action.

Vitality is the prerequisite of action.

Prioritising increasing vitality is about making choices that will help you and everything around you grow. Evolving like lead in to gold sustainably over time.

I will explore this principle much further in the coming weeks in my Thursday posts.

Be the change

There is a famous expression:

“Be the change that you want to see in the world.”

In other words, take action to lead by example.

Most people attribute this phrase to Mahatma Gandhi, but what he actually said was this:

“We but mirror the world. All the tendencies present in the outer world are to be found in the world of our body. If we could change ourselves, the tendencies in the world would also change. As a man changes his own nature, so does the attitude of the world change towards him. This is the divine mystery supreme. A wonderful thing it is and the source of our happiness. We need not wait to see what others do.”

In order to take action, which leads others by our example, we must first learn to lead ourselves to change. This means if you adopt the principle of be the change, you are committed to:

• Being Curious
• Accepting responsibility
• Taking action

By developing the skills to take action, we provide ourselves with evidence that forms the foundations of a trusting relationship. A relationship with ourselves where trust is the antidote to fear.

Building that relationship with ourselves allows change to happen through authentic action.

Speak sincerely

Stemming from the Latin word sincerus meaning clean and pure, the word sincere means: Free from pretence or deceit; proceeding from genuine feelings.

When I was being negative my mum always used to shut me up by saying:

“If you don’t have anything good to say, then don’t say anything at all”.

In my mind I would always think, what do you actually mean by good?

Speaking sincerely is about communicating honestly with yourself and others. When you adopt this principle, you will, as much as you can, clearly communicate what you think and what you feel. Being honest with yourself is the first stage on the path to being honest with others.

Establish equilibrium

The word equilibrium is almost interchangeable with the word balance. In fact, the word balance is used heavily to define equilibrium and vice versa:

Equilibrium

• A state of rest or balance due to the equal action of opposing forces.
• Equal balance between any powers, influences, etc.; equality of effect.

Balance

• A state of equilibrium or equipoise; equal distribution of weight, amount, etc.
• Mental steadiness or emotional stability; habit of calm behaviour, judgment, etc.

They are however subtly different. Holistic balance is our aim, and it is achieved through the maintenance of many equilibria. Thus, we cannot achieve overall balance without understanding how to maintain the equilibria that exist within and around us.

This is a topic I will explore in greater detail in future posts but for now I will give you one essential example: When good things happen to us, we create energetic equilibrium with the universe by expressing humble gratitude.

Embody compassion

Understanding compassion is one thing, applying it is another. Embodying it; well, that is a serious challenge and may take a life time’s work to achieve!

Aim for the stars, even if you fall short you will still land on the moon.

Compassion is central to the way we connect with each other and create meaningful mutualistic relationships. When you develop compassion, you relate to other people as equals, allowing you to share their suffering and celebrate their success.

When suffering is shared, it means you feel it too; when people feel suffering, they want to relieve it; compassion gives you the capacity to relieve and transform the suffering of others. You may then find; the universe conspires to support you too!

Cultivating a compassionate mindset and using sincere words are key to elevating the energetic vibrations of those around you. Compassion allows you to feel their resonance and identify how you can help increase it.

Practicing compassion is the principle of prioritising increasing vitality in action when applied to the world around you.

The Archer

Here is a little vision to help you conceive these principles in action…

When I first imagined this, I had a vison of an archer emerging from a woodland at the top of a valley; watching them taking aim as a small target on the other side. Ominous dark and light grey skies with a stiff breeze and drizzly rain.

You are the archer.

The bow represents your intention.

The arrow represents your action.

The target represents your goal.

To hit their target an archer must have:

• Compassion for the target so they can select the right arrow to penetrate the surface.
• The vitality needed to pick up and draw the bow.
• Equilibrium of balance so they can account for the environment influencing their aim.
• An acceptance of their responsibility to hit the target and effect change with their arrow.
• Honesty in their heart so they can fire the arrow sincerely straight and true.

Enjoy, for now.