The fundamental question is, “how do we maintain our sense of centeredness, our sense of connectedness to life, our sense of presence, and do not allow ourselves to be immobilized by our circumstances when catastrophe strikes our life?” Is this possible? The temptation is to invalidate ourselves, condemn our circumstances, and assume a future of no possibility and doom.  How is it possible to stay free from these patterns of thought, and not let our circumstances define us?

Do we have the courage, and the ultimate integrity to remain trusting of life, even if we do not fully grasp the nature, or the full extent of what has overcome us? What happens if we continue trusting life, and we do not waver? Is it possible to hold your recent demise to be a heroic failure, more inspiring than victory? What could be concealed in the unfolding of events as a hidden treasure that you are not yet aware of?

When we make The Choice, to be happy, fulfilled, and content, no matter what the circumstances of our life are, a fundamental shift occurs in the way we relate to the circumstances of our life. When you examine your life in living The Choice, you will notice that you are no longer holding the circumstances of your life in a language that is accusatory, in a language that assigns cause and blame, but in a language of allowing. You become the awareness of what is happening. You no longer are what is happening. This subtle shift is the difference between personal freedom, and entrapment; the difference between being in charge of your life, and being consumed and immobilized by your circumstances.

Let’s examine what leads to this shift a little bit further. If you look at the nature of The Choice, you notice that The Choice aligns with life. The essence of The Choice is your trust in life. When you examine your life in remaining trustful of life, you notice a subtle shift in your relationship to what is occurring. Suddenly you are opening yourself up to the unfolding of your life that you previously condemned; you allow for the experience, and –when you hold life as fundamentally good—you now have the courage and the strength to allow it to come to its full presence in your awareness. You give yourself the permission to be with the unfolding fully. In this new awareness, you realize that you are much bigger than the circumstances of your life. In the silence of your being, you know that whatever is unfolding is not going to kill you. The essence of who you are stays intact.

How does being in a state of allowing impact the way you view yourself? When you muster the courage in yourself to embrace the circumstances of your life fully, you notice a sudden release from the “I” that is always there, assessing, criticizing, and condemning.  You are no longer divided and entrapped in your circumstances, and say, “these circumstances should be different, or this should not have happened” but there is an overwhelming sense of peace, and what shines through is perspective. You are now able for the first time to see through your circumstances, step back, and reclaim your presence. For the first time since catastrophe hit you, you are present to life. In a state of allowing, you are the awareness of what is happening, and you start to see new possibilities, and you are no longer immobilized. A new way is emerging in how language expresses who you are. A deeper understanding of what has been occurring in your life shines through—maybe not immediately in that moment—but it may come to you later when you are reading a newspaper, talking to a friend, or are having a walk.

Since I returned to Australia from my recent promotional bestseller campaign in the US, I did not accomplish bringing the book to the NY bestseller list—and even though I worked hard to make this happen—publishing and promoting my book was far more difficult than I ever imagined. The outcome of my efforts is that my book was published by a NY publisher. The consequences of the book not reaching the NY Times best seller list is that I had to declare bankruptcy, as I had invested an enormous amount of time, money, and energy into the book.  Despite failing in my efforts, I still believe that the message of the book is timely, powerful, and valid.

What has this experience of bankruptcy taught me? I am more present to life. I learned the value of true friendship; the value of gratefulness, the value of forgiveness—and more than anything else—to forgive myself.

This experience brings me to understand the human predicament at an even more fundamental level of integrity that would otherwise not have been revealed to me without this experience. It allows me to further evolve as a human being in bringing the message of A New Language for Life to the next level of simplicity, clarity, and elegance to evoke the human spirit, and unlock the secret of the human predicament.  I have come to understand many ways how not to publish and promote a book.

I have learned that I can live with less. I have become aware of my addiction to accumulate.  I have come to appreciate the simplicity of life. I have learned the meaning of true empathy. I have learned what displaces my being present in my relationships with my loved ones.  I have learned the futility of trying to be someone.

Isn’t this a gift? Isn’t this a true treasure that has come my way?  Financial bankruptcy taught me what habitual ways of being are bankrupt in my life—given my commitment to have a fulfilled life, be true to myself, serve, and share my humanity.

I am proud of who I am. Failing in my efforts has neither diminished me, nor the book that I recently published. I am picking myself up inside the circumstances that have come into my life. I am grateful for the hidden treasures that came my way—as a gift in the unfolding of my life.

Tips:

• Come from a place that honors the magnificence of your being. Decline any thoughts of self-invalidation. Honor your intentions, and allow yourself to be present to your accomplishments;
• Don’t say, “how come the universe let me fail so greatly?” Be open to the experience, trust life, and allow for hidden treasures to reveal themselves to you;
• Be proud of yourself that you failed greatly.  Sometimes heroic failure can be more inspiring than victory;
• Don’t try to figure out your demise. Only in a place of allowing you will gain true perspective, and get present to your assumptions, your habitual ways of being, and to the solutions you assumed that led to the catastrophe in your life. Embrace them. Hold them as your friend.
• Empowered with this new knowledge, trust yourself again, resurrect yourself, and have the courage to act on this new wisdom when your familiar ways appear again in your life.

I ask you to make The Choice to be happy, fulfilled, and content, no matter what the circumstances of your life are, and to trust life.  This will allow you to reclaim your presence, regain control, empower yourself, and manifest life as you are.

Find out more by reading a FREE copy of my book A New Language For Life, Happy No Matter What!

Click here to claim your free copy

Namaste

Louis Koster.

Photo credit: iStock