2010 is fast becoming to an end — less than 12-hours left, actually, as I’m writing this post.

So, by now, you’ve probably received a lot of advice about making (or not making) resolutions, plans for the New Year, and just being a more productive, value-driven person in general.

Scratch that. I know you HAVE!

Let’s face it, if you have an email, you get all kinds of seemingly must-read advice (heck, sometimes we’ve even put “must read” in the subject lines of past emails).

So yes, we, too, get stuff all the time… some of it great and uniquely usable. But, to be straight, most of it is just ‘me too’ surface-level drivel from self-appointed gurus-of-the-moment.

The approach we’ve taken over the years is simple, however:

We claim to know little… unless, that is, at the time, we know more than our current awareness would allow via experience. In other words, we do our best to NOT get too ‘turned on’ by any new idea, growth method, spiritual precept, or dominant social thought UNLESS we see it as instrumental in moving us forward.

There are way, way way too many teachers, mentors, and social thinkers out there who HOLD ON TO one key identity, one focused way of teaching _____ (fill in the blank), or a belief about who they are, and what they need to tell people who have preconceived ideas about what they feel they want to hear.

Grandiose labels are easy to list upon ourselves — such as King of Manifesting, JV Prince, Article Queen, or Laundry Goddess, etc. — but they’re just as easily detrimental to our RESULTS (i.e., “Am I really getting and doing what I say I want to get and do?” )

We humans  need to start believing in what we practice… and we  should consistently practice what we know to be effective for our growth. Anything else is just talk.

As Gary Ryan Blair pointed out to us once: “behavior doesn’t lie!”

And, if we’re not practicing (or living) the exercises and inner-world insights that are passed down to us from teachers we cling on to (some of us in a more worshipping, pedestal-putting way than others) — the very same “stuff” that we spout off to others, like we’re some all-knowing powerful seer of wisdom — then we’re not walking our talk.

And, if you’re not experiencing what you’re consciously trying to get, then maybe it’s time to just DROP the crap you’ve dumped on yourself.

Instead, just strip yourself of WHO you think you are, based on somebody telling you great things (or maybe not-so-great things) about how you did this or that in the past… and do what our friend and fellow renegade-thinker, Mike Kemski, is suggesting:

The following was a reply to Heather’s pretty kick-butt inspiring post (nothing more, nothing less) titled “Going All In For Life”

Hi Heather.  I think about this stuff all the time and you know what? A lot of people have NO IDEA what this really means…

Because it’s sort of scary for a lot of people.

I’ve been “All In” many, many times in life and some times I lost all my chips so to speak, but guess what I got from losing those chips?

Clarity!

Sometimes the stuff we hold onto is stuff we really should let go of because it’s not serving and the best and fastest way to do that…

You guessed it! GO ALL IN!  (It’s only scary because it forces us to get the hell out of our warm and fluffy comfort zones where NO GROWTH ever happens.)

And as strange as this may sound, even if you “lose”, you never really lose because you’re always left with EXACTLY what you need to enjoy life right now…

Going “All In” adds excitement to your life and keeps you on your toes… Who cares what the “other” people think or say!

Until the day comes that I can’t march anymore, I’ll be marching to the beat of my own drum.

Thanks for sharing this, chickadee! Tell Big B I said hi!

If you’ve yet to read Heather’s short post, “Going All In For Life,” check it out here…

Filed under: Personal Achievement