Ego, the King of Sabotage

A great teacher once told me “The more you are able to identify the illusion of the ego, the greater your future will be.”

Every time we are afraid to make a choice, we give in to our ego. Every time we shake in our boots before a presentation, we succumb to our ego. It is the same reason why we are afraid to take risks: we are afraid to sacrifice our ego.

Ego, in the martial arts, is referred to as pride or self-centeredness. It’s that gut wrenching feeling we get when we make a mistake in front of someone else. It is the opposite of humility.

Ego can be like your arch enemy, trying ferociously to sabotage your every desire. It is the little voice in your head that tells you “You are not good enough” or “You do not have what it takes to start your own business”. We need to fight this enemy by taking risks. On the opposite side of ego is certainty. We need to risk our ego to destroy it, it is the only way.  We need to be vulnerable.

This week, find ways to break down your ego. Tell someone you made a mistake. Put on a presentation at work; the one you have been putting off for a long time because you are afraid of what others will think. Start that business you have been dreaming about for years. Ask that person on a date that you have not had the courage to in the past. Or, start training in the martial arts, even though you think you will look silly doing it.

Every time you conquer your ego, you will become stronger and wiser.

All the best,
David Alvas

Vacuum of Opportunity

This week, my staff has been teaching some great classes. They have been focusing their lessons on never quitting. I found this inspiring and want to elaborate on this in a more specific fashion regarding failure.
Failure is not a “thing” you can put your hands on. As a matter of fact, failure doesn’t exist. Just like black is the absence of all colors, failure is the absence of success.

\When a person fails at something, it almost always is painful. This pain makes us feel like we have a vacuum inside of us, sucking away at our happiness. But if we change our perspective, and look at a vacuum as an attraction, something pulling into our lives, and not just empty space, a vacuum becomes an opportunity. It becomes an opportunity to attract.

So, when you fail at something, you automatically start attracting something. What you attract is up to you. If you make excuses for your failure and become defensive about it, you attract further failure. If you look at failure as an opportunity for growth and success, that is what you will attract.

Just as outer space is a vacuum with boundless opportunities, so is failure. Failing creates space inside us for growth. What you fill that vacuum with, that space, is up to you.

This week, spend some time looking back at what you failed at and find the opportunity. It could be a mean thing you said, a complement you never gave, or a test in school you did not pass.

All the best,
David Alvas