This is the final edition of skillful living. I say practice, practice, practice. Grab one of these principles and practice it until you have it mastered—it becomes second nature to you. When you are unconsciously competent in this area, then you know you have it mastered. Then work on another and another…
8. Discover the difference between your head and your heart. It is one thing to have head knowledge about a thing and quite another to know it with your heart. Giving mental ascent to something is what we call above the waterline work. This may require thought, however it does not tap into the deep emotion that gets to the root of a matter. We can understand this through the iceberg analogy. What we see on the surface (head) is a small part of the whole thing. What lies beneath (heart) is where all the deep issues of the heart reside.
9. Follow your heart and do what you love. You have heard it said that if you do what you love, you will not work a day in your life. That is “truthy” and does not tell the entire story. You have to be pragmatic as well and earn a living to take care of your family, to be philanthropic, etc. I would like to revise this one to “Pursue Your Purpose.” When you are in pursuit of purpose, purpose will pursue you. In fact, your purpose wants you more than you want your purpose. It is in constant pursuit of perfect alignment between you and it.
10. Get your life together. You do not do this by trying to control people and things. There is a minuscule amount of things you can actually control in life, so that is certainly not the answer. In my faith, we apply a saying that says “let go and let God.” On the surface, that may seem counterintuitive, and that is exactly what we need to do. Do not try to force fit anything. This principle is really a culmination of all of the previous nine (do not look outside yourself for completion, run your race, do the right thing…always, face fears head on, take responsibility for your actions and life, do it—start moving, learn from your mistakes, understand that there is a major difference between your head and your heart, and pursue your purpose).
By applying these 10 principles consistently and persistently, you might become a sage and be able to teach others how to live skillfully. When you have mastered a principle, pay it forward.