Hi ,

If you don't read further than the first sentence, I just wanted to say that you got this, whatever you are going through, you got this and you are amazing!

Back to basics. That is the name of the game we should all be playing when things start to go downhill, or seemingly so. 

I had my very first newsletter written couple weeks ago, after another few weeks of searching for inspiration. It never saw light of the day. Why? 

Because I didn't hit send the moment it was written.

The more time passed, the more old patterns of thought started to creep in, judging and belittling what I thought was a masterpiece at the time of writing. However, with my focus being scattered, I didn't notice it happening, along with many other things...

I like to think that I can keep things under control, but life has a sneaky way of teaching me lessons lately, and this one was no different.

I am very aware of things that are happening in and around my life.

I keep a wide eye but I don't try to control life, there is just a great value in being aware.

Awareness is like a gift that we all have in front of us but we never unwrap. Once we know what's inside, we can let go.

Let go of wanting to know, let go of expectations, let go of trying to control what we want something to be, and in general let go in order to get back the piece of mind. 

If this analogy is not ringing any bells, here is a real life example.

How many things that you are losing your mind over are actually in your control and affecting your day to day? When you read articles on war, violence, corruption, maybe your company firing people... can you let go or do you find yourself stressing over things that you have no control over and that have no impact on your life in this very moment?

Now take that and apply it to your life and any situation you are currently dealing with.

Is it in your face, right here, right now, and are you suffering the consequence of whatever you are stressing about?

If you are still reading, then the chances are no, its not. Its just something that keeps coming up but has no real power in the present moment.

This is where awareness comes in. How aware are you of things that are occupying your mental space?

Can you let go, or are you at the mercy of what your mind's reaction to the external world? 

Let me give you a hint, we spend most of our life with the latter.

But how does it happen? How did I end up here, again?

(a hint: Once you become aware, these thoughts can no longer control you, because you see them for what they are, thoughts)

In my case, stretching myself too thin caused me to lose awareness of what is important. And as this happened, I started to unconsciously try and control the outcomes and lose sight of what was actually here, coupled with few days of being sick, and my world started to crumble down. 

I started to think about what will people think about my writing and content? Am I doing enough to continue running this new career? Am I eating healthy enough? Am I being a good dad? What else can I do...?

And guess how many of these things I took action on and addressed?

Exactly 0.

I got stuck in the overwhelm of all the things that I should do and the expectations that I put on myself. Sounds familiar? Yes? So what's the way out?

Its simple. Let go of trying to control the outcomes. Everything you need in your life right now is already here. You already know enough about things that you should know enough. People around you are exactly those that should be there and all you have to do to feel better is to be more you (feel more, love more, cry more). If this doesn't ring true, go deeper and thank me later.

As for me, I took a step back. Whether or not it was caused by my friend asking me what's up with the newsletter, or something else, I don't know, and I don't need to know. But I took a step back and went back to basics. And internal dialogue in the moment I decided to change the situation sounded something like this:

me: Ok, some things need to change because this doesn't feel right.

Me: What doesn't feel right?

me: I am getting all wound up in this business thing, overwhelmed by all things one should do to stay afloat, but instead I am doing nothing, and I feel stuck, it just sucks and my whole life is worse for it.

Me: I see, and do you remember why you are doing this, why you quit your 9-5?

me: I want to help people, and when I do it I feel sense of fulfillment and inner peace and I am overall a better version of myself.

Me: so why are you not doing that then? 

me: *proceeds to run 101 excuse from past few weeks* (not enough clients, lack of motivation, house is a mess, I am tired, I don't feel like recording today...)

Every time I have these deeper conversations with myself, I try to fall back in the meditative state, where I simply observe what is going on, as if I was you listening to myself now. Without judgment, just observing.

And then it hit me, back to basics. I lost track of what's important because all the noise from the outside.

It become a perpetual cycle and the more I wanted to do something, the more pressure and control I exerted.

So I took a deep breath, and decided that today, this newsletter is going out.

I am letting go of trying to control what you think of it, that's your job, not mine. My internal world is better because I hope that at least one person reading it finds some value, and I made that possible.

This is where the boundary of my control ends. I simply let it go. My part is done here and I can move on.

The point here is, we are missing out on what's in front of us because we constantly wonder somewhere else in our minds or we are clinging to things outside of our control.

People that I can reach today are now reading this, and today that is my purpose. Tomorrow? Who knows, that's the task for tomorrow.

So the question for you is, what are avoiding to do today that will make your life better? What are you trying to control that you have no control over?

I appreciate you and would love to hear if this had any impact on how you see things. 

If you feel stuck or just want to chat about self development, spirituality or simply bounce some ideas off a stranger, feel free to book a slot in my calendar or send me an email. I don't bite, I promise.

goran.kopri22@gmail.com

https://calendly.com/goran-kopri22/new-meeting

Happy Friday

/Goran