There’s something so wonderful about discovering things about yourself, having realisations and seeing tangible results from doing self-development or spiritual work. In fact, it feels so good, that frequently we can become rather smitten with the whole thing, and with good intentions want to share it with others.
The intention to share is a very human thing and comes from our tribal eras where sharing was the only way to survive. However, ‘sharing’ can also becoming ‘pushing’, pushing our ideals, our practices, and our experiences onto others. The intention can also quickly go from wanting to help, to wanting to fix. It’s something I see in Workshop environments a lot. Someone will adopt a new technique or tool and love it so much, that before the Workshop is even complete, they are asking, ‘how can I make my wife/husband do this’.
This enthusiasm is so wonderful please don’t get me wrong. And there’s a really good chance that person will go home and be openly received. There’s also a much higher chance it will take that person eyes off their own path. Fixing someone else is a big distraction and takes us from our own work of sorting our own crap out first.
So, in order to gain some clarity on whether we are sharing or pushing, or sometimes even shoving, some things to ask…
– what is my true and honest intention in sharing this?
– am I attached to any particular outcome and if so what is it?
– can I keep my equilibrium whether my suggestion is shrugged off or will I be upset?
If our answers are along the lines of, ‘this has transformed my life and I would love them to experience it if they want to, and I will ask once, and see what they say with absolutely no preconceived ideas about them taking this up, and I feel grounded and calm whilst approaching this’ then by all means plunge in.
If our answers look like ‘they REALLY need this right now’ or ‘I’m sharing it as they are a mess’ or ‘they must listen to me on this one’ or ‘I will be so pissed if they shut this down’ then we have our answer that perhaps this is a distraction from our own work.
Sent with love,
Jac x