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Through no fault of our own, most of us lack a certain degree of awareness about who we really are. I’m not talking about the person we are on the surface. Rather, I am referring to who we are on a core level once you strip away the social programming, ego, and learned defenses.
Being the adaptable creatures that we are, we learn to play peekaboo with our true self from a very young age. Over time, this adaptation make it difficult to connect with that sense of inner peace we all long for. And the process continues because we keep adjusting our behavior for various reasons as we are exposed to a variety of circumstances and situations.
This is good because adaptability is an important and vital life skill. In fact, on many different levels our survival depends on it. Businesses that don’t adapt to changing conditions go broke. The same could be said of relationships. Even the simple act of putting on a coat when the weather turns cold is a form of adaptation. Clearly, being adaptable serves us in many ways.
But here’s the challenge!
As we adapt, we risk losing our connection with who we really are on a core level. It becomes extremely easy to compromise our deepest values and passions for the sake of fitting in. When this happens, we create internal conflict between our true self and our new, adapted self.
We may have every intention of preserving our true identity, but the influence of our environment should not be underestimated. I first learned this lesson when I was only 19 years old. I went to work for a large construction company and everybody on the crew cussed (a lot). I was totally repulsed by their language and vowed that I would never allow myself to sound like them. Profanity violates my personal code of ethics and I was absolutely determined not to go there.
Well, guess what! Within a short time, I started to adapt my language to fit in with this new environment. That’s right, despite my determination to the contrary, I ended up sounding just like everyone else. It pained me to hear myself talk because of the internal conflict that now existed between my values and my actions. On a deep emotional level, I was at cross purposes with my true self.
I got out of there which resolved my conflict
Had I remained, however, I would have probably lost touch with the part of me that was uncomfortable in that situation. The continued influence of that environment would have caused me to bury my values in an attempt to end the discomfort.
In reality though, that would not have resolved my internal conflict. It would have just buried it so deep that I would no longer be aware of it. That means that instead of internal peace and harmony, there would be undetected, but extremely damaging disharmony. Emotionally speaking, this is like having a virus quietly corrupting you computer programs without being noticed. Sooner or later, there will be problems.
Internal conflict always finds its way to the surface
Have you ever known someone who continually self-sabotages their own success? It could be in any area of their life, business, relationships, health or anything else. As soon as things start looking good, wham, they let the air out of their own tires.
Often times this kind of behavior is a response to buried internal conflict. On some level they feel that they don’t deserve success. Their disharmony has negatively affected their self-esteem, and they aren’t even aware of it.
Another way that internal conflict can find expression is a chronic lack of joy. This might range anywhere from being moody to recurring bouts of depression. Energy levels can also be affected. It takes a lot of energy to fight an emotional battle around deeply rooted internal discord.
We’ve all been there to some degree!
Like I said earlier, we are adaptable creatures and that makes it almost impossible to stay true to our authentic self without some kind internal compass. Basic desires such as wanting approval, security and control have a huge influence on our direction in life. And even our core values evolve and change over time.
All of these factors combined make it very difficult to stay in harmony with who we truly are on the deepest levels or to find any degree of inner peace. So how can we adapt and grow, while simultaneously avoiding the trap of internal conflict?
Self-discovery and awareness are the key
The first step is to rediscover our true self. We need to get in touch with our deepest values, standards and passions. This is the only way to bring about internal peace and harmony. We need to go beyond the trappings of our lifestyle and environment, so we can figure out who we really are.
Any attempt to structure a meaningful life course must include this knowledge of true self. Without it, we will inadvertently compromise the very values that give us our personal identity.
How do we rediscover our true self?
Over the years I have developed a series of extremely effective questions and exercises designed to put you in touch with your true self. I incorporated these exercises into my home study course “Find Your TRUE SELF.” Following this program makes it possible for anyone to discover their true self, and to achieve and maintain internal peace and harmony while pursuing the life of their dreams.
Of course, this is only one aspect of the life transformation process, but it is the only way to build a solid foundation for a life of exceptional quality. If you are curious about what Find Your TRUE SELF can do for you, I encourage you to have a closer look.
Getting to the heart of disharmony
Resolving internal conflict is the only way to experience inner peace. Life has a way of disconnecting us from who we truly are, and we feel the effects of this in everything we do. We all buy anti-virus software to protect it integrity of our computers and keep them operating efficiently. Doesn’t it make sense to take the necessary steps to restore our inner harmony so that we can truly enjoy this wonderful journey called life?
