On Listening to the Heart

This weekend I had access to a live webinar – a manifesting workshop – by a highly respected spiritual warrior. You know, one of those deals where if you pre-order the book – you get to watch them teach a master class to thousands of people? Yeah, that. 

What can I say? I’m a sucker for anyone who can package radical self-transformation into five easy steps. However, when it came time for the questions and answer portion of the event – I was struck by two things:

1. People mostly wanted to tell their story, they needed to be heard and seen, and have their pain validated. 

2. Most of the questions were a variation of this: “How do I know when to follow my heart and when to listen to my mind?” 

Undeniably, we are creatures of narrative (whether we are writers or not) and we need stories like air. Since we’ve been gathering around campfires, writing on the walls of caves, and living in community – narrative has been the song of our collective consciousness. And while we still love a good story, what makes a good story is certainly up for debate. Still, the most important stories are the ones we tell ourselves about ourselves - because our personal narrative becomes our individual potential or limit depending on how we process it. That’s where the heart comes in. 

So how do you know when your ego is lying to you in order to prevent you from experiencing pain? How do you differentiate a heart-centered desired from a mental construct? Here are three things to consider when you are struggling with what to do: 

1. Listen to your body. Both the heart and the mind are housed inside your body and your body doesn’t lie. Follow gut instincts, pay attention to what feels good and what causes pain. For example: the other day I was having a conversation about a potential business opportunity and I literally broke out in hives. No need to be a guru detective there. 

2. Meditate with a mantra. For those of you who have difficulty sitting still because you haven’t yet mastered the art of silencing the mind… give it something to do while you meditate! I prefer taking my mantra on a daily walk. In this way, my mind and body are fully engaged in activity and I can make a little room for my heart to whisper highest good to me. Some mantras to try are: I know the answer. I know what I want. I know highest good always. 

3. Write your way into a new story. Nothing is lost. And here is the best news of all: you are always where you’re meant to be. I know, I know, I know. It’s a paradox and probably one of the most difficult conundrums to master. But the deeper truth you need to ask yourself is “What’s the worst thing that could happen? What am I afraid of? Why?” Hold the vision, but detach from the outcome and get on with the business of moving towards love. Forgive yourself and align with the highest good for all involved. 

It’s time to change the narrative you’ve been clinging to. Where do you want to start? You get to decide what comes next.