← Feel Better, Live More with Dr Rangan Chatterjee

How To Find Inspiration Everywhere You Look with Light Watkins #195

Jun 29, 2021 1h 40m 40 insights
CAUTION: This episode contains mild swearing. My guest today is internationally acclaimed meditation teacher, speaker and author, Light Watkins. I first spoke to him back on episode 23 of the podcast, when I know he inspired many of you to start a practice of meditation by breaking down common misconceptions and stripping away some of the rules and rigidity around meditation. So we begin this episode by talking about how our own approaches to meditation have evolved. We discuss the importance of consistency and how meditation is a catalyst for change even when you’re not meditating. Light explains how he committed to sending out a Daily Dose of Inspiration – a positive story, anecdote, or learning - to his email list back in 2016. Now, some of these emails have come together in Light’s latest book, Knowing Where To Look: 108 Daily Doses Of Inspiration. We talk about how he managed this huge undertaking – by approaching writing in the same way he meditates: consistently. The process quickly showed him that it’s possible to find inspiration everywhere you look. It trained him to look at life through a different lens and find life’s silver linings. In this conversation, Light shares how we can all find the inspiration that is all around us by training ourselves to look for it. We talk about how you can learn to trust your inner guide by starting small - Light calls it his ‘divine GPS’, a power greater than himself that’s showing him the way to go. Whether you believe in a higher power or not, just being open to the idea that there’s a different way to view every situation is a powerful skill to cultivate. Think, ‘Why is this happening for me’ not ‘Why is it happening to me’, he advises. This conversation is full of inspiring anecdotes and advice that I hope will give you a new perspective.  Show notes available at https://drchatterjee.com/195 Follow me on https://www.instagram.com/drchatterjee Follow me on https://www.facebook.com/DrChatterjee Follow me on https://twitter.com/drchatterjeeuk
Actionable Insights

1. Embrace Discomfort for Growth

Act on opportunities that push you beyond your comfort zone, especially when fear is loudest, as this is where ‘all the magic is happening.’ Cultivate more courage than fear to take the leap and experience transformative change.

2. Choose Empowering Life Perspective

Consciously choose a perspective that empowers you, such as believing the world is working for you, rather than adopting a victim mindset. Your chosen perspective significantly impacts your experience of life.

3. Adopt Positive Perspectives

Choose to look on the bright side and believe that things happen for a reason, even if unclear initially. This mindset fosters calmness, reduces reactivity, and leads to greater peace and happiness.

4. Reframe Setbacks as Education

When you ‘fall off’ a plan or routine, reframe it as education and learning about yourself, rather than failure. Avoid negative self-talk and recognize the valuable awareness gained from the experience.

5. Commitment is Resilience in Adversity

Understand that true commitment begins when your original plan goes ‘off the rails.’ It’s an opportunity to develop resilience by figuring out how to achieve your goal despite challenges, rather than giving up.

6. Build Self-Trust Through Action

Consistently show up and commit to your actions, as this builds powerful self-trust. Your unconscious mind knows when you’re making excuses, so consistent follow-through strengthens your inner resolve.

7. Prioritize Process Over Outcome

Focus diligently on the process and consistent commitment to your habits, rather than fixating on specific outcomes. Desired results, like writing a book, may emerge as a natural side effect of dedicated process.

8. Teach Others How to Treat You

Recognize that your actions constantly teach others how to treat you. Be mindful of your behavior, such as reactivity, gossiping, or over-giving, as these patterns shape how people interact with you.

9. Control Response to Criticism

When receiving criticism, focus on controlling your response by asking what you can learn, if there’s any truth in it, and why it bothers you. Use it as an opportunity for self-reflection and growth.

10. Recognize Affirmative Inner Guidance

Distinguish your inner guidance from fear or other voices by its affirmative nature; it tells you what to do, not what not to do, and always directs you forward, fostering progress.

11. Experiment with Optimism and Trust

Challenge the societal conditioning to err on the side of negativity by experimenting with more optimism and trust in your internal guidance. Consciously choose to explore the positive side of situations.

12. Be Open to New Interpretations

Cultivate an openness to the idea that there could be a different way to interpret any given situation. This simple openness invites new, potentially more positive, perspectives into your experience.

13. Trust Uncontrollable Delays

When faced with unexpected delays beyond your control, shift your mindset from ‘why is this happening to me?’ to ‘how is this happening for me?’. Trust that these events might be perfectly timed for your benefit.

14. Habitually Find Silver Linings

Develop the habit of actively looking for the ‘silver lining’ in almost any situation, even random conversations or media. This practice trains your mind to notice positivity and inspiration everywhere.

15. Actively Seek Inspiration

Consciously train yourself to look for inspiration in your daily life. What you actively seek and focus on is what you will perceive, so direct your attention towards finding positivity.

16. Cultivate Gratitude and Presence

Find inspiration everywhere by looking within your heart and spirit, focusing on gratitude and being more present. This shift in perspective will make life’s positivity more apparent.

17. Practice Gratitude for Clarity

If you can’t see your next step, start a gratitude list to anchor yourself in the present moment. This practice helps you hear your inner guidance more clearly, revealing your next instructions.

18. Focus on Next Small Step

Avoid paralysis by not trying to visualize the entire path or ‘whole staircase.’ Instead, focus solely on identifying and taking the very next small step forward.

19. Take Small Inspired Leaps

If you feel stuck, take a small, tiny leap or make a little change today based on what inspires you, even if you don’t know the outcome. Small actions can initiate bigger shifts.

20. Integrate Comfortable Meditation

Approach meditation as a lifestyle, not a rigid periodic task, by finding comfort in your practice. This integration makes it more accessible and sustainable for daily life.

21. Prioritize Comfort in Meditation

Disregard rigid meditation rules like sitting with a perfectly straight back or cross-legged. Focus on being comfortable to make meditation more accessible and practical for daily life.

22. Befriend Your Mind in Meditation

Shift your relationship with your mind from combative to friendly during meditation. Treating your mind as a companion, rather than an enemy, will help it settle more easily and enhance your practice.

23. Embrace Stillness for Benefits

To achieve the unique physiological changes in mind and body that meditation offers, commit to simply sitting. Activities like journaling or active breathwork provide flow states but do not elicit the same specific biochemical responses.

24. Anticipate Initial Meditation Discomfort

Understand that the initial stages of meditation, like starting at the gym, may involve rustiness, soreness, chaos, and turbulence. This is a normal ‘rite of passage’ before achieving a more settled mind.

25. Cultivate Lifelong Meditation Habit

Commit to developing meditation as a skill and habit, as consistency in practice will provide benefits for the rest of your life.

26. Prioritize Daily Meditation Consistency

Focus on the principle of daily consistency in meditation, even if it’s just 10-15 minutes, regardless of other routines like coffee or drinks. The key is to fit it in regularly.

27. Gauge Progress by Daily Life

View meditation as a catalyst for change, not an end in itself. Measure your progress by how you show up in the world daily, aiming for even 1% improvement over yesterday.

28. Trust Your Personal Practice

Trust your own intuition and what works for you, rather than seeking external validation for your practices. If a routine, like having coffee before meditating, makes you feel great, that is sufficient.

29. Choose Sustainable Habits

Select habits that are most sustainable for you, as these will naturally become more attractive and appealing over time, guiding your body towards balance and homeostasis.

30. Trust Creativity’s Generative Power

Believe that creativity is self-generating; the more you engage in creative acts, the more ideas and content will flow. Don’t fear running out of ideas, as creativity fuels itself.

31. Define Clear Creative Criteria

Establish clear criteria for your creative output, such as ensuring it’s inspirational. This clarity acts as an effective editor, helping you hone in on the core message and purpose of your work.

32. Frame Work as Community Service

Increase motivation and consistency by framing your work or projects as a service to others, rather than solely for personal gain. This perspective can help you show up even when you’re not feeling inspired.

33. Fulfill Your Commitments

To be ‘outstanding’ in your circle of influence, simply do what you say you’re going to do. This rare quality builds trust and impresses others.

34. Use FOMO to Clarify Priorities

When experiencing FOMO (fear of missing out), use it as an opportunity to consciously reaffirm your true priorities and commitment to them, rather than succumbing to the feeling that happiness lies elsewhere.

35. Start Meditation Simply

Begin your meditation practice with any accessible method, such as a meditation app, and aim for a daily habit of even just five to ten minutes. The key is to get started and build consistency.

36. Learn Basic Meditation Mechanics

Utilize resources like books to learn basic meditation mechanics, specifically focusing on making friends with your mind and finding comfortable positioning, as these dramatically improve your experience.

37. Seek Community for Accountability

If you lack local support for your inner work, seek out online communities or groups that provide accountability, quality support, and a sense of belonging to help you establish and maintain practices like meditation.

38. Navigate External Resistance

To hear your inner guidance clearly, cultivate your relationship with it and be prepared to move through resistance, even from close friends and family, who may question your unconventional choices.

39. Define Your Growth Challenge

Identify your personal version of challenging your comfort zone, which might be the opposite of someone else’s. For example, seeking stability if you grew up with instability, or vice versa, to foster growth.

40. Correct Mistakes with Next Action

Understand that an initial ‘wrong’ action is not inherently bad; it’s your subsequent response that determines its outcome. Focus on playing the ‘right chord’ after a mistake to make the situation right.