Do you have an inner guide?
Monday, June 29, 2009
I am learning to trust my instinct, but not my inner voice. My instincts know things my body has no business knowing, like the time I delivered pizzas and one late night when the light changed, my instinct kept my foot on the brakes and a car ran through the red light at 80 miles per hour 2 seconds later. Or the time I was about to drop a quarter into a 5 gallon water jug with a shot glass on the bottom, and has a flash of light and knew that my quarter was about to land in that shot glass, and it did.
Instinct teaches me to be aware of what is going on in my head, and I made a very important discovery. When I have minor accidents, like when I stumble into a table while carrying a cup of coffee, the accident is preceded by a voice in my head saying, you will stumble into that table and drop your coffee. It is not a warning, it is the mental equivalent of a crowd yelling 'jump' to a suicidal jumper. So that type of inner guide I try to listen to and avoid following.
Instinct, yes. Voices no.
It hasn't let me down yet. If it's my inner conscience, it's there to help me and only me. To tell me right from wrong. From what I've learned so far, as easy as it sounds, go with your gut.
i trust my inner guide, yes i do. do i always listen? no. do i sometimes mistake my ego for my inner guide / higher self? well yes. i'm assuming by 'inner guide' you're talking about the one that represents the greatest good for the most people, as opposed to the other guide that also tries to speak to me all day who wants the most misery for everyone but me, and then once that is accomplished, the worst for me as well. i think it's a moment to moment question, half the challenge is to listen for it, and the second is to act, without spinning, as directed. when i listen to that voice, the one that comes from my chest/heart region, it's always good. i want to hear more about bart!!
When I'm learning new vocal repertoire and feeling like I'm constantly running uphill trying to be perfect, this voice inside me rips me apart and criticizes. It tells me things like, "You teach this to your students every day. Why can't you do it yourself?" and other nasty, undermining things. The standard I hold for myself is ridiculous and impossible to reach. I have to actively note the positive things I'm doing (I got that phrase in one breath that time, or I kept my placement consistent). It's a very difficult battle every day. So, no, I don't trust myself. I'm ruthless! I have to rely on God's strength and listen to his voice, because while He is always honest, He is also uplifting and encouraging. I have to let Jesus be my inner guide. Him I trust!
well i believe my inner guide is a mix between my own mind, my own conscious, and God's Holy Spirit. I'm horrible at trusting my own inner guide...it messes me up often and usually misunderstands things and makes them worse.
As a student of Zach I can attest that his work with the inner voice through the art of playing tennis is remarkable. I have been a competitive tennis player for over 20 years and never really had much success with it. My inner voice too was critical, judgmental, and self-sabotaging and never really trusted “me”. Working with Zach made my awareness and overall consciousness more specific. I never really found much “success” as a tennis player. My talent and ability to hit the ball is un-rivaled. An outsider might think I actually made a living playing tennis, but upon further assessment the “success” or the win-loss ratio, was never in my favor. Zach pointed out to me that I never really had any artistry on the court. He showed me that I hit tennis balls at the baseline with a margin for error that was so small that “success” was virtually impossible. As we dig deeper we discovered my most influential voice rearing its head. When I learned to play tennis my father used to say “hit it deep and to the baseline”. I wanted him to be proud and love me. I lost every match because I didn’t know how to hit angles, mix up the tempo, and find any finesse. My whole life has been trying to make him love me and be proud. He will never be able to give me that he doesn’t love himself. I had to walk away from him to shed the toxic energy that affects me to this day and I am almost 40.
Thank you Zach for that lesson and thank you for finding a place like this to share what you’re doing, it is truly remarkable. Who knew tennis could be the venue where we could actually explore our inner selves in such a profound way. Every shot on the court is about being in the moment, being present, being one with God and the universe and you my friend have found an amazing platform to do your life’s work.
Nick
In the vernacular of the game, Mr. Kleiman has hit a winner here--anyone who has ever set foot on a tennis court (or any playing field for that matter) can attest to the experience he so eloquently portrayed here. It is painful to witness, unbearable to live with.
Kudos to him for seizing not only the opportunity to explore the scenario on-court but to share it here with us.
All the best and then some,
TheSometimesWhy
I am very in touch with my inner guide, and I always hear her voice, but I feel like I ignore it most during very important decisions or when I'm in a panic. I want to learn to trust it more at these times.
I don't trust my inner guide enough because I think it has a couple of screws loose, but maybe I should learn to see past that and read the real message it has for me in all situations where it chimes in.
My inner guide is a total slut. Wouldn't trust him as far as I could throw him.
Some individuals are very sensitive to making errors even when their motivation is really good and they know they are trying to do what is right. Working through situations like that makes me have more compassion for myself and others who make mistakes. It also teaches patience.
I find myself at some of these times automatically wishing for a million dollars as if that could solve the problem. In reality, for all the problems that money solves, it just brings on a great many new ones. So I work toward being satisfied with what I have. I have to temper my inner guide to reality: focus on what is really important. If I make a mistake, I try to learn to use it to improve myself, rather than torture myself. Generally speaking, spiritual things are the most important.
So, yeah, I listen to my inner guide, but I have to make sure it really is pointing me in the direction I should go. Most of the time, "Keep it simple, stupid" applies -KISS!
My inner guide is spirit/Spirit by whatever other Name you might like to give It. Like anything else I have to develop a relationship with Spirit and learn to listen to the language of It's directives. Learning to tell the difference between the voice of Spirit and imagination or ego is very important. I have learned that when Spirit speaks, there is a physical confirmation that shows up through a sign or symbol, or I find it in writing somewhere, or someone gives me the same answer without knowing what I am looking for....that is how it works for me...
Hey Zach, who are the teachers you have learned the most from? What an amazing story! I do have an inner guide that lovingly convicts me, tells me I'm lovable and loved, and guides me into all truth. I don't listen to His voice nearly enough and all of my life I will be in training to be more attuned to His guidance.
Yes. We have to Listen to our inner Guide ...cause 99% of the time it guides us to the Right Path on what we believe that is right... to me inner guide is something that i live with...
This whole discussion is very contingent upon an agreed upon definition of "inner guide". I think of my inner guide as my "gut", or the conscious stream of thoughts, beliefs, and perceptions that guide my actions in day-to-day life. This can include but is not limited to morality.
I don't know if I really trust my "inner guide". That of course begs the question... does my inner guide distrust itself? I believe that is an accurate statement. Though I think of myself as a relatively thoughtful young adult, I am also profoundly aware that my perceptions of my world could be totally distorted. After all, they have been in the past. We all have moments, days, or years where we live like Bart: caught up in a vicious cycle of self-defeating behaviors and patterns of thinking. The very directions our "inner guide" is barking at us may in some situations not even be good directions to follow.
In response to this question I have another question. Would you say that your inner guide has maintained a basically uniform "voice" throughout your entire life? Or has it changed and adapted and learned from mistakes? I believe that an individual's inner guide grows stronger and wiser over time. There never stops being room for improvement. Recognizing where we can learn and embracing that opportunity is the only constant and worthwhile "guide" in life.
My inner guide is like a running partner that follows me and, depending of the situation, either gives me a soft nudge or a swift kick... that is, if I haven't already wandered ahead of it in the wrong direction. When that happens, it sprints to catch up, grabs me by the back of the collar and up chastises me with "I told you sos" while panting indignantly.
I have learned to listen to that little voice that tells me what to do and what not to do...when I haven't listened, I've regretted it.
I definitely need to listen to mine more. Every time I am in a store and the latest gadget or accessory is there and I hear a voice say 'walk away, you do not need it.' This voice usually gets drowned out by my hand reaching for my credit card and the temporary bliss of instant gratification.
Kerapt! Been running almost 60 years on nothing but a conscience, now I gotta go find a thingie call a 'inner guide'? Heifer dust! Now WTH is that?
MT C
I have a lovely, patient, practical, caring and wise inner guide. And occasionally, my ego shuts up long enough for me to actually hear what it's telling me.
Yes. My inner guide is my morals and values, which I work hard not to go against.
I am constantly receiving guidance from within, but I have to admit I do not listen to my inner guide enough. I also know after responding to this article I plan on thinking more about it, and making decisions accordingly.
DISCUSSION TOOLSET
@Zach Hey Zach! How are you? Still mentoring students, that's fantastic! I haven't played tennis for some time now, I'm doing bodybuilding and stretching exercises. I had a compressed disc between L4-L5 and it has improved my condition. I have been watching the men's doubles and thought of you. Best always, Zak