Step One: Awareness.

When we talk about research we are talking about researching first ourselves. We do have to know where we are and more importantly who we are to get where we are going.

I mean this is even true as it relates to getting to a destination. The directions are subjective to where we currently are. And surprisingly to me this is often the reason we don't make it to that more we deserve - because facing the reality of how we are presently showing up is often hard to look at first. 

Seeing the person in the mirror isn't always easy because what we soon discover is that we are getting in our own way. To be fair life can suck sometimes, people can be annoying and worse - but the only that really matters when we are seeking more is how we respond to the suckie parts of life and the annoying people in it. 

And that's where research comes in. We have to take inventory of what are thoughts, feelings, beliefs, and behavior patterns currently look like. This inventory is not about assessment its just about knowing how you operate. Without judgement. Because this knowing can help you to develop a strategy to rig your own habits and more importantly your mind to be in alignment with helping you get to the more you deserve. 

OBSTACLES: 

Mental Programing. We spend our entire lives with ourselves. Why would we have to research ourselves to get more - doesn't seem to make sense. Truth be told we are in our bodies but we are often using everything we can to avoid actually connecting with ourselves. In fact, we've actually been trained or better yet programmed to operate like this. 

This training started for many of us at home watching others do it and got reinforced in schools. We are trained to look outward. We are trained that things in life are just happening to us and we are powerless against these powers that be so don't even bother trying just go along with the system. The lie detector determined that is a LIE!

ATTENTION: 

We are very powerful. And the most important power we have is where we choose to place our attention. And mastering the art of deliberately placing our attention where we want it to be - in alignment with the more we seek. 

In order to master where we place our attention we have to raise our self awareness. We have to cultivate the habit of observing ourselves. This is why so many people use tools like journaling, meditation and yoga. To help them see themselves. And this is why walking is so helpful in the research process.

While we are walking we begin to slow the mind down. Since the mind is already on 100 constantly being overly stimulated by TV, social Media, demands from family, work, and friends it's not easy to say ok now just sit quietly in meditation. That would be like trying to go from 100 to 0.

Walking helps to be like a transition. While walking your mind is still engaged. You can be stimulated visually by nature and then mentally using the Mindful Walking tool I shared in the previous I Deserve More Post. 

That's it for now. But wait. What do you do after you take the walk? Be easy and just know you'll know what to do. The strange thing about aligning with the more you deserve some how suddenly the next step or action to take just magically appears. In the mean time go ahead and take that walk - or another one. 

What's Next: 

Signposts and systems are my next tools that help me to assess how consistent I am being with aligning with the more I deserve. I'll talk about developing signposts and systems in my Discovering What Works Post.