Lower vs Higher Self - Understanding Your Two-Faced Nature

Summary

In this enlightening episode, Leo from Actualised.org discusses the concept of the 'lower self' versus the 'higher self,' likening them to a light switch that can be toggled between two states. He explains that the lower self emerges in times of fear, selfishness, and pettiness, contrasting with the higher self's calm, kind, and selfless demeanor. Leo emphasizes the importance of recognizing the triggers that lead to this switch, often occurring unconsciously, and the detrimental effects it can have on personal and societal levels. He offers two key insights: the boundary between these states is threatened when one feels threatened, and mindfulness can help identify the emotional body's activation before it spirals into the lower self. Leo provides actionable steps to cultivate awareness and avoid negative outcomes stemming from the lower self.

Takeaways

• 🔄 The human self can switch between a 'lower self' characterized by fear, meanness, and selfishness, and a 'higher self' embodying calmness, kindness, and selflessness.
• 🐾 The 'lower self' is likened to an animalistic or beastly aspect of humans, which can be more damaging than actual animals due to the destructive actions it can lead to.
• 🔑 There is a boundary between the lower and higher self that is often unconscious, and it is threatened when one feels threatened, leading to a shift into the lower self.
• 💡 The first key insight is recognizing the existence of this boundary and understanding that threats can push us into our lower self, often unconsciously.
• 🌟 The second key insight is the realization from meditation that our emotional body can rev up in response to threats, and mindfulness can help us notice and manage this before it escalates.
• 📋 Keeping a journal can help identify personal triggers that send one into the lower self, aiding in self-awareness and growth.
• 🚫 Commit to never making decisions from the lower self and develop the awareness to recognize when you cross into this state.
• 🤝 Practice disengaging from people when in the lower self to prevent negative interactions and decisions.
• 🧘‍♂️ Regular meditation and mindfulness exercises can train you to notice the early signs of the emotional body revving up and help calm it before it leads to the lower self.
• 🔧 Consider making structural changes in your life to remove or reduce triggers that cause you to enter the lower self, such as changing jobs or neighborhoods.
• 📚 Seek coaching or therapy to help identify and address deep-seated triggers that cause you to revert to the lower self, as external guidance can be beneficial in these cases.

Q & A

What is the main topic of the video by Leo from Actualised.org?

The main topic of the video is the concept of the 'lower self' versus the 'higher self', explaining the two modes of human behavior and how one can switch between them.

What characterizes the 'lower self' according to Leo?

The 'lower self' is characterized by fear, meanness, pettiness, untruthfulness, selfishness, and is likened to the animalistic or beastly aspect of a person.

How does Leo describe the 'higher self'?

The 'higher self' is described as a state of calmness, kindness, nobility, generosity, truthfulness, and selflessness, embodying the noble aspects of humanity.

What does Leo suggest is the key to distinguishing between the lower and higher self?

Leo suggests that the key to distinguishing between the lower and higher self is awareness and mindfulness, particularly recognizing when one is being threatened and thus more likely to operate from the lower self.

What insight does Leo credit to Eben Pagan regarding the lower and higher self?

Leo credits Eben Pagan with the insight that the boundary between the lower and higher self is threatened when one is threatened, which often leads to unconscious behavior that can create problems.

Why is it important to recognize when we are in our lower self, according to the video?

It is important to recognize when we are in our lower self because decisions, actions, and plans made from this state are likely to be disastrous and can lead to regret and negative outcomes in life.

What are some examples of triggers that can send a person into their lower self?

Examples of triggers include physical danger, financial threats, family issues, intimate relationship problems, career challenges, reputation concerns, and threats to one's belief systems.

What action does Leo recommend to help individuals stay aware of their emotional state?

Leo recommends practicing mindfulness and meditation to become more aware of the emotional body revving up, and to notice when one is transitioning into the lower self.

What is the 'emotional body' as described in the video?

The 'emotional body' refers to the internal emotional state that can be triggered and rev up in response to threats or stressors, potentially leading to reactions from the lower self.

What practical steps does Leo suggest to manage the activation of the lower self?

Leo suggests several steps: committing to never make decisions from the lower self, disengaging from people when in the lower self, practicing mindfulness of the emotional body, changing the structure of one's life to remove triggers, and seeking coaching or therapy to address deep-seated triggers.

How can journaling help in understanding and managing the lower self?

Journaling can help by allowing individuals to record instances when they were triggered into their lower self, analyze the situations and triggers, and reflect on their emotional responses to better understand and manage their reactions in the future.

What is the role of physical threats in triggering the lower self?

Physical threats, such as being in danger or perceiving physical harm, can immediately trigger the lower self by activating the fight-or-flight response, causing a person to react from a place of fear and self-preservation.

How does Leo suggest changing the structure of one's life to reduce triggers?

Leo suggests identifying the specific triggers in one's life, such as a hostile work environment or unsafe living conditions, and making structural changes to eliminate or reduce these triggers, which could involve moving, changing jobs, or seeking new relationships.

What is the significance of the wasp experiment mentioned in the video?

The wasp experiment is a mindfulness exercise where one meditates near a wasp nest to observe the emotional body's reaction to the perceived threat. This helps in developing the ability to notice the activation of the lower self in real-time.

Why is it beneficial to commit to not engaging with people when in the lower self?

It is beneficial because when in the lower self, a person is more likely to behave negatively, selfishly, or untruthfully, which can lead to regrettable actions and damaged relationships. Disengaging allows the emotional state to stabilize before interacting.

What is the purpose of the Actualised.org newsletter mentioned by Leo?

The Actualised.org newsletter aims to provide subscribers with regular updates on personal development content, including videos, articles, and courses, to support their growth and help them build a more fulfilling and successful life.

Outlines

00:00

🔄 The Dual Nature of Self: Lower and Higher Selves

Leo from actualised.org introduces the concept of the lower and higher self, explaining that humans operate in two distinct modes. The lower self emerges in response to fear, selfishness, and pettiness, akin to an animalistic or 'beast' mode. In contrast, the higher self is characterized by calmness, kindness, generosity, and selflessness, representing humanity's noble qualities. He emphasizes the importance of awareness in recognizing when one switches between these states, as the lower self can lead to damaging actions with severe personal and societal consequences. Leo credits Eben Pagan for highlighting the boundary between these states and the impact of threats on crossing it, often unconsciously.

05:02

🧠 The Impact of Unconscious Threats on Decision Making

The speaker discusses how threats, whether physical or more subtle, can trigger a transition from the higher self to the lower self. He outlines various categories of threats, including financial, family, intimate relationships, career, reputation, and belief systems, which can unconsciously activate the lower self. Leo suggests that being aware of these triggers is crucial to prevent making poor decisions, taking disastrous actions, or setting harmful life goals. He encourages developing mindfulness and keeping a journal to identify personal triggers that cause this shift.

10:03

🐝 The Emotional Body and Mindfulness Practice

Leo shares insights from a meditation retreat about the emotional body and its role in activating the lower self. He uses the analogy of wasps during meditation to illustrate how the emotional body can 'rev up' in response to threats, even minor ones. He describes the physical sensations associated with this activation and how it can escalate into a full-blown lower self response if not checked. Leo emphasizes the importance of mindfulness in recognizing the early signs of this emotional response to prevent it from spiraling out of control.

15:05

🛑 Recognizing and Controlling the Emotional Avalanche

Continuing the discussion on emotional responses, Leo explains how the emotional body's reaction can snowball into an uncontrollable avalanche, representing a full descent into the lower self. He suggests that mindfulness and meditation can help in observing these reactions before they escalate. Leo also proposes an experiment involving wasps to practice noticing the emotional body's response, advocating for the development of the 'mindfulness muscle' to manage these emotional triggers effectively.

20:06

🚫 Action Steps to Avoid Lower Self Decision Making

Leo provides actionable steps to prevent decisions and actions taken from the lower self. He advises building awareness to recognize when one has shifted into the lower self and suggests various techniques, including meditation and journaling, to develop this awareness. Leo also recommends disengaging from people when in the lower self to avoid negative interactions and stresses the importance of changing life's structure to eliminate triggers that lead to the lower self.

25:08

🔨 Structural Changes and Personal Development

The speaker discusses the need for structural changes in one's life to remove triggers that cause a shift to the lower self. He suggests practical steps like changing one's neighborhood, securing the home, or even considering a job change if the work environment consistently triggers the lower self. Leo emphasizes the importance of identifying personal triggers and taking active steps to mitigate them, whether through therapy, coaching, or self-help resources.

30:08

📚 Embracing Personal Development and Growth

In the concluding paragraph, Leo encourages viewers to embrace personal development as a habit, suggesting that consistent effort over time leads to significant growth and self-improvement. He invites viewers to sign up for his newsletter at actualized.org for ongoing support and resources, including life purpose courses. Leo highlights the importance of the insights and distinctions provided in his videos for achieving a more fulfilling and successful life.

Keywords

💡Lower Self

The 'Lower Self' refers to the aspect of an individual characterized by negative traits such as fear, selfishness, pettiness, and untruthfulness. It is associated with the more primal or animalistic part of human nature. In the video's context, the Lower Self is contrasted with the Higher Self and represents a state of being that can lead to damaging actions and decisions. The script mentions that the Lower Self emerges when an individual feels threatened or experiences fear, which can be triggered by various life situations.

💡Higher Self

The 'Higher Self' is the opposite of the Lower Self and represents the noble and virtuous aspects of a person, including calmness, kindness, generosity, truthfulness, and selflessness. It is likened to the 'human' within us that embodies the best qualities of humanity. The video discusses the concept of the Higher Self as a state to aspire to, and one that can be easily disrupted by threats or negative emotions, leading to a shift into the Lower Self.

💡Emotional Body

The 'Emotional Body' is a concept that refers to the internal emotional state of a person that can be influenced by external events or internal thoughts. The video script describes it as something that 'revs up' in response to perceived threats, much like a physical reaction, and can lead to the activation of the Lower Self. The speaker shares a personal experience during meditation where the emotional body's reaction to a wasp is likened to the process of shifting from the Higher Self to the Lower Self.

💡Mindfulness

Mindfulness, as discussed in the video, is the practice of being fully aware and present in the moment, which includes being conscious of one's emotional state. It is presented as a critical skill for recognizing when the emotional body is revving up and potentially leading to a shift into the Lower Self. The speaker emphasizes the importance of developing mindfulness to prevent negative outcomes associated with the Lower Self.

💡Triggers

In the context of the video, 'Triggers' are the specific events, situations, or thoughts that cause an individual to transition from the Higher Self to the Lower Self. Examples provided in the script include financial threats, family issues, intimate relationships, career challenges, reputation concerns, and belief systems. Recognizing and understanding one's personal triggers is crucial for maintaining the Higher Self state.

💡Meditation

Meditation is a practice that involves focusing the mind and achieving a mentally clear and emotionally calm state. The video uses meditation as a tool for self-awareness, particularly in observing the emotional body's reactions. The speaker describes a meditation retreat experience where they became acutely aware of their emotional body's response to a perceived threat (wasps), highlighting the role of meditation in understanding the shift between the Higher and Lower Self.

💡Threat

A 'Threat' in the video is any real or perceived danger or challenge that can cause an individual to enter the Lower Self state. It can be physical, as in the case of danger, or more subtle, such as financial insecurity or emotional stress from relationships. The script discusses how threats can unconsciously push individuals into their Lower Self, leading to negative behaviors and decisions.

💡Personal Development

Personal Development in the video refers to the ongoing process of self-improvement and growth. It is presented as a necessary journey to gain insights and make distinctions that lead to a more fulfilling and successful life. The speaker encourages making personal development a habit through activities like reading, watching videos, listening to audio programs, and journaling.

💡Awareness

Awareness, as discussed in the video, is the conscious认知 of, and attention to, one's internal and external experiences and surroundings. It is closely linked to mindfulness and is essential for recognizing when one is shifting into the Lower Self. The speaker emphasizes building 'awareness muscles' to detect the early signs of emotional arousal that can lead to negative states.

💡Action Steps

The 'Action Steps' outlined in the video are practical measures individuals can take to manage their emotional states and avoid falling into the Lower Self. These include committing to never make decisions from the Lower Self, practicing disengagement when in the Lower Self, engaging in regular mindfulness and meditation, changing life structures to remove triggers, and seeking coaching or therapy to address deep-seated triggers.

Highlights

Introduction to the concept of lower and higher self as two modes of human behavior.

Definition of the lower self as the manifestation of fear, meanness, pettiness, dishonesty, and selfishness.

The higher self is characterized by calmness, kindness, nobility, generosity, truthfulness, and selflessness.

The human organism compared to a machine with a switch that can toggle between lower and higher self states.

The lower self likened to an animalistic or 'beast' mode, with a note on the unfairness to animals.

The higher self represents the pinnacle of humanity's noble qualities.

The societal and personal problems often stem from the activation of the lower self.

The importance of being conscious of the switch between lower and higher self states.

First key insight: The boundary between lower and higher self is threatened when one feels threatened.

The unconscious reaction to threats leading to the lower self and its negative consequences.

The role of emotional intelligence and awareness in recognizing the shift to the lower self.

Examples of subtle triggers that can activate the lower self, such as financial stress or family issues.

The practice of mindfulness and journaling to identify personal triggers for the lower self.

Second key insight: Understanding the mechanism of the lower self activation through emotional body awareness.

The experience of a meditation retreat revealing the process of emotional body activation.

The importance of observing the emotional body's response to threats without judgment.

Action steps for managing the lower self, including commitment to awareness and structural life changes.

Recommendations for meditation and mindfulness practices to develop emotional body awareness.

The suggestion to seek coaching or therapy to address deep-rooted triggers of the lower self.

Encouragement to make personal development a habit for long-term growth and self-improvement.

Transcripts

hey this is Leo for actualised

org and in this episode I'm going to

talk about the lower versus the higher

self you are like a light switch meaning

that you have basically two modes on

which you can run on and off or in other

words the lower self and the higher self

what is the lower self the lower self is

who you are when you're fearful when

you're mean when you're petty when

you're untruthful when you're selfish

the higher self is when you're calm when

you're kind noble generous truthful and

selfless and in the human organism if we

think of the human organism as a machine

it's like you have this switch and the

switch can be flipped at any time and

can send you from the regular place that

you're at which is usually the higher

self it can send you down into the lower

self and this is really the difference

between the animal inside you and the

human inside you the lower self is like

the animal the Beast although in a sense

it's kind of a slight and a slander on

animals to say that because it's

interesting you know with the human

organism the human is capable of being

like hyper human and embodying

everything that's the most noble about

humanity when you're in your highest

self but when you're in your lowest self

it's like the flip opposite of that 180

degrees and in fact you're much worse

than an animal and the things that a

human being does from the lower self are

really damaging both to

the individual who does it but also to

the people around that person and also

to society at large right and most of

the issues and problems that we have in

in society any like really serious

problems we have in our own personal

lives often come from the fact that this

switch gets flipped and we're not

conscious to the fact that the switch is

getting flipped so I want to talk a

little bit about that here right now and

I'm going to give you two key insights

here in this episode and the first key

insight is the following there is a

boundary between the lower and the

higher self and this boundary is

something that you probably have never

thought about and you're totally

unconscious of but here's the insight

this boundary is being threatened when

you are threatened you go into your

lower self and the crazy thing is that

this happens for most people

unconsciously they're not aware that

this is going on and that creates a lot

of problems I want to give a credit to

eben pagan for introducing me to this

insight here it's a very very powerful

and rare insight that most people do not

make in their lives and this creates all

sorts of problems which is why it's so

important so think about this if you're

making a decision from your lower self

chances are it's going to be a

disastrous decision also if you're

trying to take some action in your life

from the lower self it's probably going

to be a disastrous action or behavior

and if you're making some sort of plans

for your life or setting goals for your

life from a position of the lower self

and that's going to be a disastrous plan

that you're making so why is this issue

important well for these reasons because

we don't want you making bad decisions

bad behaviors and bad plans right and um

you know people who really screw their

is up um one of the most common ways is

this issue right here something happens

they get pissed off or they get really

afraid they get threatened in some way

they get sent down from their usual high

self which is you know nice and then

they get sent down to this mean petty

brutal person and then they do something

or say something that they really regret

and can never take back

and then this destroys their life and

really you know that could happen once

or twice but it's really bad when it

keeps happening repeatedly and you don't

understand that it's going on with you

and the crazy thing is that you can be a

very intelligent person and still not be

conscious and aware of the fact that

this is happening to you so there's a

distinction to be made here between

intelligence which is one thing which is

not really that important but on the

other hand like emotional intelligence

and awareness which is completely

crucial to the results that you get in

your life so when we say that the the

threat that you experience sends you

from a higher solvent to the lower self

what are we talking about well clearly

we're obviously talking about physical

danger if you get into a situation where

you are in physical danger for example

maybe you're driving your car and then

all of a sudden something happens and

you you realize that oh [ __ ] you're

you're really in trouble here in the

next couple of seconds right you had one

of those moments while driving even if

something bad happens to you ultimately

still you sense that physical danger and

all of a sudden it sends you into that

flight-or-fight response right it's a

physical threat so that's obvious stuff

or if you know if there's someone

stalking you in a dark parking lot then

you're going to sense that you're in

physical danger and you're going to get

flipped into your lower self but what's

interesting is that there's a there's

also triggers that are more subtle and

these are the ones you really got to

watch out for because the physical

danger stuff you know most of us aren't

really always like in physical danger

that's a rare situation that happens to

us and actually a lot of times you know

we respond fine to that the problem

is when you start responding or just

reacting from your lower self to some of

these other threats so here's some

categories for you so for example money

a whole category of threats can be

subsumed under that so money threats

there's triggers there that could

trigger you right so what do you do if

you're going broke you feel like

someone's going to steal some money from

you or you feel like you're not going to

be able to make more money in the future

something like that how about family

triggers the family category huge how

many of us are triggered by stuff

relating to our family that we don't

like you know what we're going to see

that person we're going to have to talk

to this person I'm going to have to

negotiate something there and those

triggers send us into the lower self

also intimate relationships is a huge

category career is a huge category

reputation is a huge category think

about situations where your reputation

is on the line and that's a trigger for

sending you into your lower self or also

think about belief systems think about

if you hold a religion or you have

religious dogmas or if you have some

sort of scientific background or you

have scientific dogmas and beliefs and

you have to defend all that and whenever

those come under threat then you feel

like you have to defend and when you're

doing that defending you're dropping

into your lower self so the question is

are you aware of what triggers you to

cross this boundary the the idea of this

entire episode is very simple right it's

just that there's this boundary and

you're crossing it and this boundary is

just a threat but you need to actually

get mindfulness and awareness around

this in your own life and you need to

see what are the individual

idiosyncratic triggers that you

personally have because each of us has a

unique constellation of triggers that

send us into this

kind of fear mode the question is what

is that for you you need to start

identifying that and getting more and

more clear about it and one of the best

ways is just maybe to keep a journal or

a diary and any time that you actually

do get sent down into your lower self

and you later notice it you write down

the situation so maybe you come home

after work and you're you're in a

conversation with your spouse and you

you two are talking about something and

all of a sudden some issue comes up and

it's like that's the issue that triggers

you to go from higher self to lower self

what of that is maybe it's money

maybe it's the in-laws maybe it's you

know the discussion about having a

children or maybe it's about you know

some religious view usually what would

happen is that you would just get sucked

in to the lower self and not even

realize that that's what happened you

just how you to just have a big argument

and you'd kind of know why it happened

but on the other hand you didn't really

understand why it happened right and

from that lower self maybe you did

something nasty or stupid or mean that

then ruined your relationship so that's

just one example right I'm sure you can

fill in the blanks and come up with your

own examples of how this works so you

need to start to do this work of

actually identifying this stuff not just

taking it as a theory because as a

theory you know this is nice but when

you identify it that's when it really

hits home to you when you actually see

it in action and here's the second key

insight that I want to give you here

what's the actual mechanism by which

this lower self gets activated sure

there's this boundary you get threatened

but how is it actually happening what

happens when you're in your lower self

this key insight came from my meditation

retreat what I wish I just done came

back from and what I noticed there was

something very interesting first of all

I heard the facilitator talking about

the emotional body and he said a very

curious thing which really piqued my

interest he said that one of the most

important ways in which mindfulness can

help us as human beings in everyday life

is to make us more aware

how our emotional body revs up and that

may be very curious and in fact he said

that the way he designed his whole

system and the way that he uses the

language to explain mindfulness to make

certain distinctions in your mind his

whole model for mindfulness was

basically kind of you know one facet of

it was designed in such a way that it

would help you to be able to identify

this within yourself while it's

happening and I didn't quite you know I

kind of intellectually understood what

he meant but I didn't get like an

experiential sense of what he meant

until I was meditating and I was

meditating outside for most of the

retreat

next to this little nice beautiful

wooden chapel just like this small

little private chapel and there was a

bench and I was sitting outside and it

was this place kind of near the woods so

there's a lot of insects flying around

and I was sitting there meditating for

the whole week and what I noticed is

that there's a man there's a lot of

wasps flying around me and at first it

just kind of see like I'll just you know

random wasps here and there that's

normal but then I looked around as I was

you know setting up my bench one morning

and I discovered that oh [ __ ] there's a

there's a wasp nest right behind me as

I'm sitting on my bench and it's kind of

near the ground and I'm sitting on this

balcony and no wonder all these wasps

are flying around me when I'm meditating

it's because I'm sitting in their flight

path it's like they're flying to and

from their home and I'm like right in

the middle of it sitting there trying to

meditate but you know it was a beautiful

spot so I wanted to keep the spot didn't

want to move and what I did is I just

said okay I'm just going to kind of deal

with it I'm gonna sit through it but the

very interesting thing that happened to

me is that see the problem is that the

emotional body revs up inside of you

probably many times a day in your life

but you don't actually notice it you're

not mindful enough you don't have enough

awareness this is a muscle that needs to

be developed so when I was sitting there

I got a really interesting kind of

science experiment just fall on my lap

because I was sitting there and I was

meditating and I was good getting into a

place record I could really totally calm

myself down and if you ever get into

that kind of meditative place where you

calm yourself

completely and you get a real clear

sense of what's going on in your body

emotionally like you get in touch with

all the different sensations in your

body what you're going to notice is that

there's a very clear and palpable sense

like oh I'm relaxed and everything is

normal and cool and I can just be calm

and you notice that there's like a lack

of any kind of churning emotions or any

kind of like churning sensations in the

stomach or in the chest or any kind of

like tingling sensations in in your

limbs stuff like that but then when a

threat presents itself and this is

actually the interesting thing here

because usually when you're meditating

you don't get threatened very often but

this was interesting because the wasp as

I meditated with my eyes open the wasp

flies by my face and I can't help but go

into an emotional reaction even though

like I'm not doing it consciously it

just happens to me right because in

humans were hard-wired to have phobias

of spiders and snakes and and various

insects so this was very curious because

I was sitting there and I was totally

peaceful and calm but then this wasp

just flies and hovers near me and all of

a sudden I can see like holy [ __ ]

my emotional body just lit up like a

Christmas tree right I could see it it's

like it's like it's getting going and

getting going and getting going right

and it starts as like a sensation in

your lower abdomen and then maybe it

moves up into your chest and maybe your

your hands and feet get involved and

your limbs get involved and then your

mind gets triggered and your mind starts

flashing pictures to you of a wasp like

biting you in the eye or you know biting

your eyeball out or landing on the back

your neck when you're meditating and and

stinging you multiple times in a row or

something like that right you start

getting these like fantasies of a killer

wasp out hunting for you or maybe the

whole family of wasp is going to come

join this one wasp and they're all going

to sting you to death

that's literally what your mind starts

coming up with once the emotional body

revs up more and more and more and

what's fascinating is if you ever get

the chance to just sit there and watch

how your emotional body revs up

and then also revs back down and then

revs back up and then revs back down

then you start to really get this sense

like oh man this is a really important

skill to develop is this ability to to

sense when this emotional body is doing

what now I was sitting there this was

like a perfect science experiment

because I was sitting there and almost

like this lab setting where I could

isolate the variables the problem is

that most people in their lives they

don't get this kind of opportunity and

in fact just the other day I was sitting

and doing some work right and only

because I've been meditating a lot over

the last couple of weeks after I

finished the work and I just took a

little break sat down on the couch I

realized lies holy [ __ ] I was just

working for 50 minutes and my entire

emotional body was like lit up like a

Christmas tree but I wasn't really aware

of it until I just came out of that work

session and into my break and now I've

my prime sitting here trying to practice

a little bit of mindfulness and now I

can actually see like oh man there's all

this like emotional weird emotional

sensation happening in my in my lower

abdomen and I can really feel it and

it's there and it's not that easy to

just let it all go I actually have to

sit there and practice meditation for

maybe two or three minutes just to start

to get it to rev down and rev down and

rub down and kind of just put me into a

really nice calm even grounded place

now that's something that you get when

you do meditation practice and

mindfulness practice which is what most

people are missing out on right they

think that meditation is just going to

give them you know something or some

calming of the mind but they don't

understand that they're going to get

these critical distinctions that now you

can apply to places in your life right

and it's like a muscle you have to build

up this mindfulness muscle so what I'm

talking about here this this inside of

the emotional body revving up I don't

mean that just as soon as it revs up

that instantly you're in your lower self

usually what happens that it revs up and

you're still cool but then it revs up a

little bit more and a little bit more a

little bit more and after a certain

point you know it revs up enough that it

it just kind of like becomes this some

this snowball that's rolling down the

hill and it's totally lost control it's

turn into an avalanche which is now this

powerful thing is unstoppable and that's

when you're in your lower self when that

avalanche you know when that snowball

turns into an avalanche and so why

mindfulness is so powerful in meditation

is such a powerful practice is that you

can start to see when the snowball

starts rolling when it's still a little

baby snowball before it turns into an

avalanche and you can prevent it from

becoming an avalanche not even by trying

to control it necessarily by just simply

by observing it it's crazy that just

simply observing what's happening in

your emotional body is enough to make it

dissipate and go away whereas when

you're not observing it and you don't

even know that this is happening inside

you what happens there tends to be this

just runaway effect and you just get

blindsided by this thing so one thing I

recommend is that if you do have a

hornet's nest near your house then go

try this out this is a really cool

experiment go try meditating outside and

make sure you're sitting there with your

eyes wide open so you can see all the

wasps flying around you maybe you want

to even put some some food for them that

they can come near you right and just

see how your emotional body revs up it's

a really cool exercise to do but also

you know not everyone has a hornet's

nest near them so a little hard to

engineer that all right so that's the

two key insights now you might ask okay

I get the theory now what do I do with

this Leo well here are some action steps

for you number one is make sure that you

make a commitment right now and for the

rest of your life - never make decisions

when you're in your lower self now of

course this implies that you have the

ability to be aware of when you're

actually in your lower self

so what that means in practice if you

want to actually honor this commitment

is that you have to build your awareness

muscles so that you can see when that

line is actually crossed and when you do

step down into your lower self there's a

couple of ways you can do this one way

is to just let it happen to you and

you're only going to be able to tell

after the fact right so maybe your

spouse says something nasty to you and

that sends you into your lower self and

you don't realize it for a day and you

have this huge blowout argument with

your spouse but then you know the next

day in the morning you realize like oh

[ __ ] I got sent into my lower self and I

didn't even realize it but at least I

realize it now okay so that's how it

happened

and you kind of retrace your steps so

there's that way that's kind of like the

trial and error approach you know not

the best way but that one works for four

people in a pinch so you can use that

you got to remember though to do that

right otherwise you're going to forget

maybe keep a journal or a log of all

these incidents that happen to you of

crossing the line so that's one way

another way is just practicing more

meditation another way might be doing

this wasp this wasp experiment that I

told you right so there's there's

multiple little techniques you can you

can employ to do this the other thing

you should do as an action step is make

a commitment to disengage from people

when you're in your lower self we don't

want you making decisions when you're in

your lower self we also don't want you

engaging with people why not

because probably you're not going to

have something nice to say when you're

in your lower self probably going to be

a dick probably you're going to be a

[ __ ] probably you're going to say

something nasty probably you're not

going to really be generous or

magnanimous or very truthful or very

honest right probably gonna be quite

selfish so all these things we'd like to

avoid in our lives because there's a lot

of bad fallout that comes from behaving

that way so one simple solution is just

to disengage from people and actually

you can tell them

Hey I'm in my lower self right now so I

don't want to engage you so maybe you

know your spouse is talking to you you

guys are in the middle of a conversation

and you're sensing that it's getting

heated and you sense that oh I just

crossed the line and if you have enough

of awareness of that then you can just

tell your spouse hey you know let's just

cut this conversation off right now um

I'm going to go you know watch some TV

for an hour because I sense that I just

got triggered into my lower self and I

don't want to say or do something that

I'm going to regret and just actually

say that to your spouse and just see

what happens

you'll probably get a much better

reaction than you normally would right

or if you're engaging with your boss

at work with your employees same kind of

deal right as soon as you sense yourself

getting triggered into your lower self

find a way just to distract yourself to

not have to deal with that situation

right there so that you can just take a

little bit of time off your emotional

body can rev down and then you can come

back clear-headed and deal with the

situation in a more empowering way so

make that commitment to also practice

mindfulness of the emotional body

revving up this is a more subtle thing

than actually crossing the line and this

is something you can do on a daily basis

just after you know go go work for a

couple of hours and then get off of work

and then just come come sit on your

couch or sit in a chair at your office

and just meditate for five minutes and

just see calm yourself down and just see

where were you ad before and where are

you at now what you're probably going to

notice that you're so stressed during

the day and you don't even notice that

you're stressed because it just becomes

like you know like you're a fish and

water you don't notice the water it's

only when you calm yourself down and

actually put yourself into a meditative

state you can actually finally realize

by way of contrast like oh damn I was

stressed for two hours and only now I

can realize why I was stressing the fact

that it's happening somewhere in my body

and you're going to get more and more

experience with that and then you're

going to get better and better mindful

this muscles so that's a that's a good

way to to practice that another thing

you should do is change the structure of

your life if you need to to remove the

triggers that send you into a threat

mode so if you're living in a part of

town where there's gangs and violence

then you probably not don't understand

it there and get accustomed to that you

probably actually want to go and change

your neighborhood or you know if you're

living in some third-world country where

there is some some safety issues and you

feel like you're in physical harm you

probably want to change your location or

maybe change where your house is

positioned something like that maybe get

some stronger locks on your door I mean

it's okay to actually go out and take

some action to fix this stuff right it's

not just all mental but also you know

beyond the physical danger stuff you

need to get more awareness around the

triggers that you have so money family

relationships you know all that stuff we

talked about career your reputation and

once you know those triggers then you

got to actually change the structure of

your life to remove the worst triggers

because if you're living your life in

this way where you're constantly

triggered by these things all the time

and that's just a function of the

environment that you've created for

yourself then you know what you know all

the personal development in the world is

not going to really help you because you

do need to work on these triggers so

maybe you have a boss that's always

yelling at you and berating you at work

and maybe that's always sending you into

your lower self because you always feel

threatened when he's yelling at you okay

well you probably want to consider

changing jobs or moving to another

department at work right that's what I

would call a structural change to your

life but before you can do that first

you need to recognize what are the

triggers so the last action that I want

you to take is go get some coaching or

some therapy or if you can't afford that

then sit down and really do some serious

journaling yourself and ask yourself

this question what are the most

common triggers for me that send me into

my lower self that's the key question

for you and this might be something you

can sit down and think about right now

and come up with some examples but also

it might be something you gotta actually

do over the weeks and months because

you're probably not going to be aware of

these triggers until they actually start

happening to you and now you know these

ideas that I've talked to you about

right now you have these distinctions

which you didn't have before so sit down

and slowly progressively make this list

of triggers so you know what they are

and you know you can get coaching on

those and get therapy on those you can

go buy some self-help books that will

help you to deal with those

you basically have to unwire them which

you're going to discover that a lot of

those triggers they probably go back far

into your past the roots of that trigger

stem all the way back you know to your

childhood somewhere maybe to your

earliest memories or maybe to the

dysfunctional relationship you had with

your mother or with your father or with

your sister or your brother or something

like that that's usually what it is and

you know those can involve some work to

unwire that's why therapy is so popular

because therapy does that that's why

coaching is popular because coaching

helps you to do that and it can be

difficult to unwire or trigger like that

all by yourself because usually what

happens is that you're so sucked into

the trigger that again you're like a

fish and water you don't notice that

this trigger is actually not a part of

you is kind of like an artificial

dysfunctional part of you so a lot of

times it helps a third person to look at

your situation to kind of give you some

guidance which is why therapy or

coaching can be so effective but you can

do it yourself if you're very determined

all right so that's it those are action

steps go ahead and do this and I will

see you soon this is Leo I'm signing off

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