Today’s meditation is called “The Observer”, we could also call it “The Witness” and it’s the practice of a skill that we all have, the ability to step outside of ourselves and look at our SELF. The better we are able to be this observer, the more able we are to look at our mistakes and learn from them.
Today’s wisdom from Oprah connects well with this topic:
“Learn from every mistake because every experience, encounter, and particularly your mistakes are there to teach you and force you into being more who you are.” – Oprah Winfrey
“Nobody’s journey is seamless or smooth. We all stumble. We all have setbacks. It’s just life’s way of saying, ‘Time to change course.” – Oprah Winfrey
“You will be wounded many times in your life. You’ll make mistakes. Some people will call them failures but I have learned that failure is really God’s way of saying, “Excuse me, you’re moving in the wrong direction.” It’s just an experience, just an experience.” – Oprah Winfrey
“No experience is wasted. Everything in life is happening to grow you up, to fill you up, to help you become more of who you were created to be.” – Oprah Winfrey
Our mistakes – ALL of our experiences in fact – are fertile ground for learning and growing however…
Are you able to look at YOU without judgement or criticism?
There was a time that I used to think self-judgement is a necessary tool for self-improvement, that we need to judge ourselves in order to move ourselves to change but your harsh inner-judge is actually preventing you from growing! Here’s the truth…
While you have harsh judgement and criticism of yourself, the parts of you that feel guilt and shame will try to hide as much information as possible. While you judge yourself it’s impossible to be completely honest with yourself, because it’s not entirely safe to go there.
Oprah’s words, “learn from every mistake” are incredibly valuable, but you will only have the full capacity to learn from your mistakes when you are able to be the observer of YOU in the absence of any judgement.
So if you want to really grow, if you’re serious about using the wisdom from past mistakes to make better decisions in future, then you need to make your inner environment a safe space for all the information to come to the surface, and that only happens in the absence of judgement.
To cultivate non-judgement as a way to grow, consider the following mantras:
- “I am a work in progress.”
- “I release the need to be perfect.”
- “I am worthy of love and compassion.”
- “I learn from mistakes without punishing myself.”
It’s important to remember that self-compassion is not the same as self-indulgence. It’s about treating ourselves with kindness and understanding and still… being able to hold ourselves accountable.
You can join us for today’s meditation as a practical experience of looking at yourself without judgement.
Have a beautiful day peeps!
– pierre –
Today’s LIVE meditation is: The observer.