Hey guys, I'm going to be drawing from the martial a lot on this post, but keep in mind, it's theme just uses martial as a helpful example from my own case What I wanted to adress is how our preconceived ideas of things, like what we think is right or how to do it or how it's going to play out will get in our way, even if on paper they may be "correct." For example, lets take me. I have a strong Ralston esque background influence (gladly so,) and I also do mma. Many of the ideas and things I've learned from the ralston stuff was hugely beneficial for my training, like controlling the mind, the ability to learn faster, question stuff better, feel the body, etc Yet somewhere in there some other stuff got tagged on. Like my IDEAS of relaxing, and "force" or whatnot. Granted, I still believe relaxing is a hugely beneficial route to go that constantly seems to be expanding and opening as a pathway for discovery of physical mastery, bodily awareness and mental fortitude, capacities, and expanding awareness, but assuredly, I had some ideas, ergo BIASES that innately affected my ability to learn. That is, it affected my ability to look at what IS in experience, like any held idea seems to. Coming at it fresh, dropping my ideas of relaxing and whatnot engaged my mind in an actual discourse of the principles or ideas behind the moves and such that I was doing And enabled me to more freely discover for myself appropriate feeling states for wrestling takedowns, boxing, and etc. The principle of relaxing still shows up, yet even that's depth of possibility is MUCH DEEPER than it was before So readily, toss out any preconceived ideas, any concept that is personal or "held true" of you and pursue the truth in your own experience Then again, THAT could get turned into another idea. Well, lets just say in your discoveries of what's true, if you get to that point, feel free to toss that shit out, cuz, experience is much more raw anyway. And you might be wrong

Lately I notice I I have this thing where there's a "core personality trait" that I'm holding onto, out of fear, feeling like it really is important, and also a huge opening that starts to come, even if only briefly, when I abandon it, even just temporarily. I feel like I'm "stuck between a rock and a hard place" between holding onto this trait because of what I feel it "does for me," even if it really just seems to be comparing myself to other things and suffering, and the opening and depth of experiential prodding, "seeing what's out there" when I drop it. Could that be considered a mental "barrier?" That "resistance" to change, the impulse to maintain the familiar, or the general lack of openness? And, would you say this is a common aspect of the work, pushing past these barriers, wanting to know what is "beyond" the current level of understanding? I just wanna know

I'm in a situation that has activated my mind and survival (fear) since June. It has been challenging as the sensations and thoughts have been so strong. I have had to just be with them as is - no truth seeking or what they are has been possible, and in this situation I would just have used it to get rid of the uncomfortable sensations, not as an honest search for it. Two insights have come. 1) I could be calm and do my life in a sane way even though the situation is regarded negative. Why is it that I have to fall apart because of a situation? I could have the situation and be whatever I want - the situation is the same if I'm this or that. Before I could feel guilty for having a laugh or going out for a coffee - as if we were supposed to just be home suffering. 2) On the same theme, I was brushing my teeth and it dawned on me that I brushed my teeth before this happened, I will do it during and after it. The trees was standing there before, they stand there now and they will stand there afterwards. As everything else mundane that is going on every day. Nothing changes. I had a sense of another perspective and got deeply calm. I'm going back and forth, but not as intensely and I can work on what stuff is now. A positive thing is that it has forced me to let go of putting value on things that I held strong before, to open up. I will just add that we are doing what needs to be done practically for the situation. Thank you for letting me share and for reading.

Hi guys, I was checking out the new ranking system, and then realized it starts with assumptions. The funny thing is, I just finished preparing a webinar with a couple of colleagues at work (about technology and engineering), and one central theme in this webinar is, how assumptions on the one hand help us to navigate the world, and collaborate with others in complex projects. And most of the time this works, without a lot of communication. Cooperation may start to deteriorate, though, if we do not use the same assumptions as our team mates. This can be remedied, by speaking and aligning your own assumptions with the ones of your co-workers. So, summing this up and coming back to the title: Assumptions are powerful. Not good. Not bad. Just powerful. But there are also the occasions, where we are not even aware that we are operating and deciding on assumptions. Then, we run into trouble. And start to blame (often) others, or suffer. Because the world has decided to turn against us, and against our unrecognized assumptions. Becoming aware of these assumptions, recognizing and then communicating them, aligning them with reality: That is when the recognized assumptions start to empower you. Then you can use them like they are, powerful tools you apply, without becoming subjected by them.

Hello everybody, Following yesterday coaching with Brendan, I wanted to share an insight which has resurfaced lately from an experience I had a couple years ago. At this time I was deeply immersed into contemplation and, at some point, I existentially experienced how "I" (my inner-sense of self) did not exist at all. How "I" could disappear in a blink of an eye, like a rainbow in the sky. That "I" was only a tremendously big amount of concepts (being a daughter, a sister, my first name, family name, social identity, and so on) that I clung to and that resides in my mind and/or in another people's memory. This day, I realized that "I" could die instantly. And for sure, this brought me a looot of freedom. And at the same time, it freaked me out 😰😅. Suddenly I had no roadmap to cling to, no good reason to act this way rather than this other way, nothing really did matter. So I decided to go back on track and started to "rebuild" a solid sense of self with stuff I like, stuff I don't like, preferences, strong values, a social role, stories of my past, where I come from, and where I'm going, what are my goals in life, and so on. Now that some time has passed, I would say that what I experienced there, was a profound state of open possibilities, but also what I would call today "way way wayyy too much freedom" 😄🙃 So from this day I decided to use concepts with awereness of what they are (which one are impowering and which one are not) and to use them to create a structure, a frame for a meaningful life and hopefully impact positively other people's life too ;) Thanks to all the participants yesterday, it was good to listen to you!