that prevents it from making use of ready solutions present in the alternatives flow. The mind’s compulsive desire to control everything turns life into an endless battle with the flow. If only the mind could allow the flow to go its own course rather than trying to force its will upon it. The mind’s greatest error is that it strives to control the flow itself rather than its own movement within the flow. This is one of the main causes of the majority of problems and disappointments that people face.
The purposeful stream that takes the path of least resistance is incapable of generating problems and obstacles. These are created by the madness of the mind. Activate your inner witness and observe at least for one day how the mind tries to control the flow. Perhaps you are offered something but you refuse it. Maybe someone tries to tell you something but you fob them off. Somebody tells you their opinion and you argue. Someone does something their own way and you try to set them on the right path. You are offered a solution but you protest it will not work. You expect one thing but receive another and express your dissatisfaction. Someone bothers you and it makes you angry. Something contradicts your script and you go for the jugular to force the flow into the right channel. Maybe things are different for you, but there is undoubtedly a grain of truth in these words.
Now try releasing your grip and giving the flow more freedom. I am not suggesting that you must agree with everyone and accept anything that is happening but you could consider making a tactical adjustment: move the centre of gravity away from control towards observation. Do not be in a hurry to fob someone off, object, argue, prove yourself, get involved, manage or criticise. Give situations a chance to resolve themselves of their own accord without active involvement or resistance. If not dumbfounded, you will at least be surprised by the result, for something quite paradoxical will happen. By being willing to release control you will acquire more control over a situation than you had before. The objective observer always has the advantage over a direct participant. This is why I so often repeat the words: exercise detachment.
In retrospect you will see that the control you were exerting before was making you go against the flow; the suggestions other people were making did in fact make sense and it was not worth arguing about; your intervention was not actually necessary. What you thought were obstacles, were actually nothing of the kind. When you let go problems resolve themselves quite satisfactorily without your having to know how; the things that happen that do not fit with your plan turn out not to be so bad after all; chance phrases can actually have quite powerful meaning; your gut feeling and instincts are there to warn you; you do not waste the same amount of energy as you did before and find that you are quite happy. This is the sumptuous gift of flow I mentioned earlier.
Of course, in addition to all that has been said above we could not forget our old pendulum ‘friends’. When people go with the flow it vexes the pendulums and so they try to provoke us at every step into beating our hands wildly on the water. Pendulums abhor streams in the flow for the simple reason that the stream moves in the direction of minimal energy expenditure. When a person goes with the flow of the stream they do not put energy into battling against the current, creating excess potential and fodder for the pendulums. The only form of control worth your attention is control over the intensity of projected inner and outer importance. Remember, that projected importance prevents the mind from letting go.
In many cases letting go of a situation is much more effective and productive than insisting on getting one’s own way. Even from childhood our striving for self-assertion generates the habit of trying to proving ones personal significance. From this stems the harmful tendency to prove that one is right whatever the cost. This striving creates excess potential and a conflict of interests. People will go to great lengths to prove that they are right, even when the verdict either way will not directly affect their interests.
In some people the feeling of inner importance is so exaggerated, that they insist on their own way even in matters of very little relevance. Self-importance can develop into a mania that produces a compulsive need to control everything. “I’ll prove I am right, whatever it takes.” It is a grave habit that makes life much more complicated, especially for the one so intent on defending their truth.
As long as you do not risk seriously compromising your interests, let go of the situation and let others exercise their right to beat their hands on the water. If you practice letting go consciously the feeling of relief will be greater than when you succeed in proving your point. You will experience a sense of fulfilment knowing that you moved on. Instead of insisting on your own self-importance, you manage to act like a wise parent dealing with difficult children.
Here is another example. Excessive commitment to work is just as detrimental as neglecting one’s responsibilities. Imagine that you have just taken on a new prestigious position that you have been dreaming of getting for a long while. You demand a lot of yourself because you want to prove your potential. There is nothing wrong with that in principle but if you throw yourself into the job too zealously you may find that you cannot take the pressure over time, particularly if the work tasks are very difficult. In any case, you will become less efficient and at worst you could earn yourself a nervous breakdown deciding wrongly that you are incapable of handling the position.
Another possible scenario is that you generate vigorous activity without observing the established order of things. You may see all sorts of things that could be improved on and initiate the necessary changes confident that you are behaving appropriately. However, if your innovations change the usual running of daily life for your colleagues no good will come of it. This is the kind of scenario in which using your initiative can become a punishable crime. You entered an environment with a slow, peaceful, even flow, and with your actions started wildly slapping the water with your hands, trying to swim faster.
Does this mean that you should keep your mouth closed and your head down? That would be a little extreme. The question should be approached with a sober mind. You should only consider getting annoyed and telling someone off if they are bothering you directly and then only if your criticism will change the situation for the better. Never criticize anything that happened in the past and cannot be changed. In everything else, go with the flow, not in a literal sense by agreeing with everything and everybody, but by moving the centre of gravity from control to observation. Observe more and do not be in a hurry to control things. There is no need to be concerned about getting the right balance. A healthy sense of moderation will come with practice.
Summary
The mind interprets information using a set of established designations.
The heart does not think or speak. It feels and knows.
The mind is only capable of building a relatively new version of a house from old bricks.
Fundamentally new discoveries originate in unrealised sectors of the alternatives space.
The heart serves as a medium between new information and the mind.
The heart perceives unrealised information as knowledge beyond interpretation.
A discovery is made when the mind is able to interpret information accessed by the heart.
The mind is capable of perfectly assessing one’s level of inner comfort.
Learn to pay attention to your inner state.
By foregoing the projection of importance you are free to choose your destiny.
Freedom of choice means being free not to ask, demand or fight for what you want but simply to go out and get it.
The information structure is organised in chains of cause and effect.
Chains of cause and effect generate the alternatives flow.
Paths of least resistance are organised into separate streams.
Streams in the alternatives flow contain the solutions to all our problems.
Inner and outer importance jolts the mind out of the optimal stream.
In the alternatives flow it is not the streams but your mind that brings