Tony Fahkry's Blog - Posts Tagged "action"
Leave No Stone Unturned In Your Desire for Success
“To find what you seek in the road of life, the best proverb of all is that which says: "Leave no stone unturned." - Edward Bulwer Lytton
In an ancient Greek fable, the playwright Euripides conveys a story of an army general who buries a large treasure in his tent, following his defeat in battle. When the conquering general and his troops could not locate the treasure, they consulted the Oracle of Delphi who advised them to look under every stone. The conquering general returned to the site where the tent was situated, ordering his troops to search under every stone until the treasure was uncovered.
The tale by Euripides, used since the 1500s, depicts man’s unbending desire to pursue every course of action to achieve his outcome. Consider the relevance of this story in your own life. Is there a goal or dream you are determined to achieve with a vehement desire?
Giving up is an easy way out since it abandons the need to concede failure and the ensuing emotions which arise from defeat. Yet character is formed in defeat, similar to the process where carbon dioxide when applied with intense heat and pressure, gives rise to form a diamond.
I’d like you to consider leaving no stone unturned in your pursuit to realise a particular goal or outcome. That is, adopt an unrelenting desire to pursue that which burns deep in your heart. Have you noticed, those who strike upon success have an unyielding tenacity not to lose sight of their vision?
Similar to a dog who refuses to let go of his bone until he has gnawed at it, thus reducing it to nothing more than bone fragments, you must strive to exhaust all avenues before retreating into defeat. Often, we believe every course of action is being undertaken, yet something is always lurking around the corner, waiting to command our attention.
People who seek a cure for disease or illness, may spend years searching for a solution to no avail. Yet, as they abandon hope, a likely solution is brought to light when they least expect it. Therefore, I urge you to stay vigilant, yet in a state of expectation without a projected outcome of how your goal will come to bear.
Consider your answer to this question - what is it you desire? We spend a great deal of time protesting what we don’t want, to the detriment of our true desires. Your subconscious mind constantly scans your innermost thoughts and daydreams. It does so by filtering pertinent information to reveal patterns of thought, particular to your character. Therefore, given your commitment, giving up should be the last resort until all avenues have been exhausted.
Similarly, what you set out to achieve may not be realised in the form you intended. Many of the world’s greatest inventions came to life because of an accident or mishap. Consider the inventions we take for granted nowadays such as: Post-it notes, Penicillin, the microwave oven, Velcro and x-rays. Such inventions arose out of mere accident and countless errors.
It is no surprise that vigilance, tenacity and an unrelenting desire are paramount in your quest to succeed. This principle applies to most areas of life: improving personal finances, career, entrepreneurship and seeking a committed relationship. I invite you to think in terms of infinite possibilities.
In their book, The Winner’s Brain: 8 Strategies Great Minds Use to Achieve Success, authors Jeff Brown and Mark Fenske state, “A Winner’s Brain is very good at tuning out distractions and choosing the best way to focus on a task (there are different types of focus the brain is capable of) in order to get the best outcome.” The ability to tune out distractions becomes a focal point to realise your intended outcome. The winner’s mind is goal orientated, given its laser focus to stay committed to the project until it has come to life.
Regrettably, most people adopt the suck it and see approach to goal attainment, eluding to the English expression of, “giving it a go” while attentive to what eventuates in the process. Whilst merit is gained in adopting this approach, it is better suited towards smaller goals rather than risk gambling with the game of life. A more likely strategy calls for developing a compelling inner resolve to pursue the goal til the end - far too many people give up, just when the tide turns. Whilst you may not appreciate how close you were, in hindsight you might lament your missed opportunity. I invite you to consider the timely quote by the late author and motivational speaker Jim Rohn, which invites us to reflect upon the value of regret, “We must all suffer one of two things: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret or disappointment.”
To leave no stone unturned in your quest for success, requires restrained patience and biding your time. In support, a steadfast vigilance to realise a successful outcome is similarly paramount. I suggest you alternate between these two states, given that patience and vigilance tend to oppose one another. Do not abandon hope when all seems lost, that is the time when the tide turns in your favour. Life is bound by unexpected change when you least expect it.
In concluding, pursue everything in your power to realise your goal, then turn it over to the universe to usher in the ideal outcome. It was in Dan Millman’s book, Way of the Peaceful Warrior, where he reminds us of the following affirmation, “I no longer presume to know how life should come or go; letting go in this way brings a sense of freedom. This doesn’t mean I don’t care or have no preferences. My actions naturally follow the call of my heart, my interests, my values. I make efforts in my personal and professional life in alignment with my goals. But once I've taken aim and loosed the arrows from the bow, I can only wait with interest to see where it will land.”
Assume the same inner conviction towards your vision of success. Sure enough, when you least expect it, success will greet you in the timeliest hour.
In an ancient Greek fable, the playwright Euripides conveys a story of an army general who buries a large treasure in his tent, following his defeat in battle. When the conquering general and his troops could not locate the treasure, they consulted the Oracle of Delphi who advised them to look under every stone. The conquering general returned to the site where the tent was situated, ordering his troops to search under every stone until the treasure was uncovered.
The tale by Euripides, used since the 1500s, depicts man’s unbending desire to pursue every course of action to achieve his outcome. Consider the relevance of this story in your own life. Is there a goal or dream you are determined to achieve with a vehement desire?
Giving up is an easy way out since it abandons the need to concede failure and the ensuing emotions which arise from defeat. Yet character is formed in defeat, similar to the process where carbon dioxide when applied with intense heat and pressure, gives rise to form a diamond.
I’d like you to consider leaving no stone unturned in your pursuit to realise a particular goal or outcome. That is, adopt an unrelenting desire to pursue that which burns deep in your heart. Have you noticed, those who strike upon success have an unyielding tenacity not to lose sight of their vision?
Similar to a dog who refuses to let go of his bone until he has gnawed at it, thus reducing it to nothing more than bone fragments, you must strive to exhaust all avenues before retreating into defeat. Often, we believe every course of action is being undertaken, yet something is always lurking around the corner, waiting to command our attention.
People who seek a cure for disease or illness, may spend years searching for a solution to no avail. Yet, as they abandon hope, a likely solution is brought to light when they least expect it. Therefore, I urge you to stay vigilant, yet in a state of expectation without a projected outcome of how your goal will come to bear.
Consider your answer to this question - what is it you desire? We spend a great deal of time protesting what we don’t want, to the detriment of our true desires. Your subconscious mind constantly scans your innermost thoughts and daydreams. It does so by filtering pertinent information to reveal patterns of thought, particular to your character. Therefore, given your commitment, giving up should be the last resort until all avenues have been exhausted.
Similarly, what you set out to achieve may not be realised in the form you intended. Many of the world’s greatest inventions came to life because of an accident or mishap. Consider the inventions we take for granted nowadays such as: Post-it notes, Penicillin, the microwave oven, Velcro and x-rays. Such inventions arose out of mere accident and countless errors.
It is no surprise that vigilance, tenacity and an unrelenting desire are paramount in your quest to succeed. This principle applies to most areas of life: improving personal finances, career, entrepreneurship and seeking a committed relationship. I invite you to think in terms of infinite possibilities.
In their book, The Winner’s Brain: 8 Strategies Great Minds Use to Achieve Success, authors Jeff Brown and Mark Fenske state, “A Winner’s Brain is very good at tuning out distractions and choosing the best way to focus on a task (there are different types of focus the brain is capable of) in order to get the best outcome.” The ability to tune out distractions becomes a focal point to realise your intended outcome. The winner’s mind is goal orientated, given its laser focus to stay committed to the project until it has come to life.
Regrettably, most people adopt the suck it and see approach to goal attainment, eluding to the English expression of, “giving it a go” while attentive to what eventuates in the process. Whilst merit is gained in adopting this approach, it is better suited towards smaller goals rather than risk gambling with the game of life. A more likely strategy calls for developing a compelling inner resolve to pursue the goal til the end - far too many people give up, just when the tide turns. Whilst you may not appreciate how close you were, in hindsight you might lament your missed opportunity. I invite you to consider the timely quote by the late author and motivational speaker Jim Rohn, which invites us to reflect upon the value of regret, “We must all suffer one of two things: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret or disappointment.”
To leave no stone unturned in your quest for success, requires restrained patience and biding your time. In support, a steadfast vigilance to realise a successful outcome is similarly paramount. I suggest you alternate between these two states, given that patience and vigilance tend to oppose one another. Do not abandon hope when all seems lost, that is the time when the tide turns in your favour. Life is bound by unexpected change when you least expect it.
In concluding, pursue everything in your power to realise your goal, then turn it over to the universe to usher in the ideal outcome. It was in Dan Millman’s book, Way of the Peaceful Warrior, where he reminds us of the following affirmation, “I no longer presume to know how life should come or go; letting go in this way brings a sense of freedom. This doesn’t mean I don’t care or have no preferences. My actions naturally follow the call of my heart, my interests, my values. I make efforts in my personal and professional life in alignment with my goals. But once I've taken aim and loosed the arrows from the bow, I can only wait with interest to see where it will land.”
Assume the same inner conviction towards your vision of success. Sure enough, when you least expect it, success will greet you in the timeliest hour.
The Truth Will Set You Free
“Truth, like gold, is to be obtained not by its growth, but by washing away from it all that is not gold.” - Leo Tolstoy
“I wish to become a teacher of the Truth.”
“Are you prepared to be ridiculed, ignored and starving till you are forty-five?”
“I am. But tell me: what will happen after I am forty-five?”
“You will have grown accustomed to it.”
This short tale symbolises that while we desire an authentic connection to our real self, pursuing the Truth may not be the charmed existence we hope for.
Your Truth is the source of all wisdom – every person retains their own Truth while no two are the same. To seek the Truth means seeing past the illusory thoughts of what life should be. “We perceive the world as we are, not as it is,” said Anaïs Nin. To see past the mind’s self-constructed bias, we surrender thoughts which perpetuate this distortion.
The Truth is relative to what you observe and what you hope to see. No two people have the same experience, given subjective reality.
It was the late Dr David Hawkins, a renowned psychiatrist and spiritual teacher who wrote in Truth vs Falsehood: How to Tell the Difference: “The human mind, by virtue of its innate structure, is blind to its limitations and innocently gullible. Everyone is the victim of the ignorance and limitation of human ego.”
Living in the material world means we are unable to escape the vicissitudes of sweeping changes ushered through life. From the moment of conception we are indoctrinated with rules, beliefs and ideas not of our choosing. I mean that in the kindest possible way – we are at the mercy of those we trust to reason the world for us.
Yet many of these beliefs remain unchallenged throughout our life. We need only interact with adults who behave in a regressed, child-like state to notice how they perceive the world through an automated lens.
Still, these same people claim to know the Truth, “Everyone secretly believes that their view of the world is correct and any other is wrong. Thereby opinion becomes promoted to “ostensible” fact and pseudovalidity,” states Hawkins.
So what is Truth at its core?
To live the Truth means to live according to your authentic self. To think and reason the world without other people’s thoughts to dominate your mental landscape. Popular culture is lined with the herd mentality espoused through: mainstream music, pop culture, political influences and inauthentic leadership. These are ways in which our minds are subdued into a distorted illusion of what is real.
In his book, Your (Re) Defining Moments, author Dennis Merritt Jones states, “We have to enter into unknowing to discover the truth, because there is no room for unknowing in a mind that believes it already knows the truth.”
“Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth.” - Marcus Aurelius
I am reminded of the Zen teaching, "Like this cup, you are full of your own opinions and speculations. How can I show you Zen unless you first empty your cup?" We must empty our minds of inaccurate distortions to discover the Truth – a busy mind cannot gain new information when it overflows with ideas.
How do we arrive at this state of emptiness?
In an earlier article I affirmed everything is relative to the perceiver. For example, you do not see the sun where it is now since it has moved. You see it where it was eight and a half minutes ago, given the Earth’s approximate distance from it. Subjective reality asserts other people’s perception differs to yours since no two people share the same experience.
Who is right? Who upholds the Truth?
To take a different view, British-born philosopher Alan Watts states, “To “know” reality you cannot stand outside it and define it; you must enter into it, be it and feel it.”
We must go beyond the self-created illusion if we wish to penetrate the Truth while letting go of thoughts that no longer serve us.
Speak your Truth, trust your Truth and live your Truth.
Be who you came here to be, irrespective of your religious denominations or cultural beliefs – live your Truth at the deepest level. Embody it, even if you take a lifetime to discover, it will have been worth it.
Refuse to be indoctrinated with someone else’s Truth – those same people are prone to regurgitate knowledge and have nothing new to offer the world. Such distortions will consume you until you honour your Truth by giving it life – yield to it. Whilst disheartening, the ego delivers a false impression of security as it consolidates its hold on you. The illusion keeps you from realising your authentic self.
“Truth and Reality are identical and eternally present merely waiting discovery,” affirms Dr Hawkins.
The Truth sets you free since it liberates you from a self-imposed prison disposed to minimise your potential. The wisdom of the soul is your real connection to your spiritual source – trust this connection to the Truth.
Confront the Truth with compelling certainty, an open mind and a sincere heart – then can you claim to have a command over it. Don’t allow the egoic voice to drown out your inner spirit. Reason and logic will bargain and banter to convince you the Truth is unattainable – don’t argue with it.
The Dutch philosopher Gerardus van der Leeuw reminds us, “The mystery of life is not a problem to be solved, but a reality to be experienced.”
Embody the Truth in your obligations, whether it be through your thoughts, actions or words. The world needs more original thinkers than naysayers who conform to popular opinion.
As James Blanchard Cisneros reminds us, “Once you awaken you will have no interest in judging those who sleep.”
“I wish to become a teacher of the Truth.”
“Are you prepared to be ridiculed, ignored and starving till you are forty-five?”
“I am. But tell me: what will happen after I am forty-five?”
“You will have grown accustomed to it.”
This short tale symbolises that while we desire an authentic connection to our real self, pursuing the Truth may not be the charmed existence we hope for.
Your Truth is the source of all wisdom – every person retains their own Truth while no two are the same. To seek the Truth means seeing past the illusory thoughts of what life should be. “We perceive the world as we are, not as it is,” said Anaïs Nin. To see past the mind’s self-constructed bias, we surrender thoughts which perpetuate this distortion.
The Truth is relative to what you observe and what you hope to see. No two people have the same experience, given subjective reality.
It was the late Dr David Hawkins, a renowned psychiatrist and spiritual teacher who wrote in Truth vs Falsehood: How to Tell the Difference: “The human mind, by virtue of its innate structure, is blind to its limitations and innocently gullible. Everyone is the victim of the ignorance and limitation of human ego.”
Living in the material world means we are unable to escape the vicissitudes of sweeping changes ushered through life. From the moment of conception we are indoctrinated with rules, beliefs and ideas not of our choosing. I mean that in the kindest possible way – we are at the mercy of those we trust to reason the world for us.
Yet many of these beliefs remain unchallenged throughout our life. We need only interact with adults who behave in a regressed, child-like state to notice how they perceive the world through an automated lens.
Still, these same people claim to know the Truth, “Everyone secretly believes that their view of the world is correct and any other is wrong. Thereby opinion becomes promoted to “ostensible” fact and pseudovalidity,” states Hawkins.
So what is Truth at its core?
To live the Truth means to live according to your authentic self. To think and reason the world without other people’s thoughts to dominate your mental landscape. Popular culture is lined with the herd mentality espoused through: mainstream music, pop culture, political influences and inauthentic leadership. These are ways in which our minds are subdued into a distorted illusion of what is real.
In his book, Your (Re) Defining Moments, author Dennis Merritt Jones states, “We have to enter into unknowing to discover the truth, because there is no room for unknowing in a mind that believes it already knows the truth.”
“Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth.” - Marcus Aurelius
I am reminded of the Zen teaching, "Like this cup, you are full of your own opinions and speculations. How can I show you Zen unless you first empty your cup?" We must empty our minds of inaccurate distortions to discover the Truth – a busy mind cannot gain new information when it overflows with ideas.
How do we arrive at this state of emptiness?
In an earlier article I affirmed everything is relative to the perceiver. For example, you do not see the sun where it is now since it has moved. You see it where it was eight and a half minutes ago, given the Earth’s approximate distance from it. Subjective reality asserts other people’s perception differs to yours since no two people share the same experience.
Who is right? Who upholds the Truth?
To take a different view, British-born philosopher Alan Watts states, “To “know” reality you cannot stand outside it and define it; you must enter into it, be it and feel it.”
We must go beyond the self-created illusion if we wish to penetrate the Truth while letting go of thoughts that no longer serve us.
Speak your Truth, trust your Truth and live your Truth.
Be who you came here to be, irrespective of your religious denominations or cultural beliefs – live your Truth at the deepest level. Embody it, even if you take a lifetime to discover, it will have been worth it.
Refuse to be indoctrinated with someone else’s Truth – those same people are prone to regurgitate knowledge and have nothing new to offer the world. Such distortions will consume you until you honour your Truth by giving it life – yield to it. Whilst disheartening, the ego delivers a false impression of security as it consolidates its hold on you. The illusion keeps you from realising your authentic self.
“Truth and Reality are identical and eternally present merely waiting discovery,” affirms Dr Hawkins.
The Truth sets you free since it liberates you from a self-imposed prison disposed to minimise your potential. The wisdom of the soul is your real connection to your spiritual source – trust this connection to the Truth.
Confront the Truth with compelling certainty, an open mind and a sincere heart – then can you claim to have a command over it. Don’t allow the egoic voice to drown out your inner spirit. Reason and logic will bargain and banter to convince you the Truth is unattainable – don’t argue with it.
The Dutch philosopher Gerardus van der Leeuw reminds us, “The mystery of life is not a problem to be solved, but a reality to be experienced.”
Embody the Truth in your obligations, whether it be through your thoughts, actions or words. The world needs more original thinkers than naysayers who conform to popular opinion.
As James Blanchard Cisneros reminds us, “Once you awaken you will have no interest in judging those who sleep.”
