Why Do Authenticity and Joy go Hand in Hand?
It takes an awful lot of energy to try and be anything but yourself. And yet so many of us, truly most us actually, move through our lives without any real idea of who we really are. Yes, we know who we think people want us to be. We may have figured out, some more successfully than others, how we need to act to fit in and be liked. We may know whats trending, whats cool and whats not. But do we really know anything about our unique individual essence…. that spark of individual and unique perspective that is us? … I like to call this the snowflake within.
With this in mind do you know what kind of snowflake you are?
The more and more we know ourselves, the more we flow. The less negativity, frustration, stress, sadness and pain we build up. There is what I call a “soul ache” that develops when we do not honour who we truly are and what our soul yearns for us to be doing in this very precious life. This soul ache is often reflected as stress, anxiety, frustration and the fact that peace and joy constantly evade us.
When I speak of Joy, please let me very very clear that I am not talking about happiness. I do not actually believe it is possible for anyone to be happy all the time. Happiness is circumstantial and comes from events outside ourselves. Life is going to, at times, be painful, disappointing and frustrating, but that does not mean that even while we are experiencing authentic ups and downs, that we do not feel joy within. The Dalai Lama uses a wonderful example to bring to life how this works. A mother in labour could be experiencing deep pain, but still be in a place of joy.
When we are on a path to knowing ourselves we have a reference point, and because of this reference point, we always know where we are going in terms of the bigger picture. When we know ourselves better we are more capable of making choices that are truly soul aligned, than aligned to the programs and beliefs of others that we have taken on as our own. We are more likely to be in relationships that serve the real us (you know that person inside that you can never hide from?). As we get to know ourselves better, we are more likely to be doing work that truly sparks authentic passion for us. All of this takes us closer to living in a constant state of joy.
And so when I talk about finding your path to joy, or searching for authenticity, or seeking to get to know ones self better, the goal and the outcome are all one thing. When we are living authentically, we live in joy. It is not possible to find joy if we do not know ourselves. And it is not possible to know ourselves really well and to not experience states of joy.
