I read a lot, and find a lot of interesting material that floats around in the back of my head, and then comes out in all sorts of ways.
In my leisure reading I have been reading a series of books by crime fiction writer Michael Connelly. It is in one of his books that I found the seed for this post. He described an engraving that said…
Vision to See
Faith to Believe
Courage to Do
I had a rough outline for a post and then as part of my online reading I was at Ben’s site where there was an amazing quest post by Marc Winitz, and it caused a re-assessment of what I was going to write.
The Vision Thingy
Vision to see.
When most people think of the word vision, especially when they think of it in terms of self-development, they think in terms of goals, and where they are going.
They refer to the ability to see and define the possibilities of the future and set themselves on a path to reaching that goal. This is a valuable frame of reference that helps many people achieve a lot in life, but it is an external frame of reference.
What about vision from an internal, or inward looking perspective?
In this perspective vision is about seeing ourselves as we truly are. It means stripping away the layers of deception and the masks that we routinely present to the external world, and come to accept as ourselves.
It means negotiating yourself past that internal dialogue that is either full of bullshit and bravado about how good we are and over-estimates our abilities, or full of the other type of bullshit about how inadequate we are.
It means taking stock of the very core of who we are, without the baggage that has been built up over our life time. To get there we have to look closely and with great attention. We need to remain aware and awake to catch the thoughts that attempt to maintain the masks. We will be navigating across rough waters to see the calm and peaceful core that exists in all of us.
Keep the Faith
Faith to Believe
Belief means many things to many people. To some people it means their theological beliefs, most of which are some form of homage to an external deity, to others it means their self belief or ego. There have been challenges on this site before about examining our beliefs.
When discussing beliefs in terms of personal development people are again often focused on an external frame of reference that relies on a “belief” in our ability to take action and conquer our fears along the way to the goal set by our vision of our possible future.
What about our faith to believe from an internal perspective?
From an internal perspective the courage to believe is about the courage to maintain that watching vigil established by your internally focused vision.
It means having the faith that you will be able to find that calm and peaceful core and that you will be able maintain a connection with it no matter what those rough seas and foggy skies, internal dialogue and shifting masks of our minds might do to try to obscure the vision of it.
Courage
Courage to Do
Most discussion about courage in the self-development world is also externally focused. The discussion tends to revolve around our taking risks, our ability to get up and get things done, to take action towards the goals and future that our vision has defined.
What about courage to do from an internal perspective?
A recent post discussed how to be courageous that touched on the internal perspective of courage, but it extends further than this.
The courage to do in this perspective is about stillness not action. It is about having the courage to go looking, it means having the courage to battle those voices of bravado or doubt, it means having the courage to ask the questions necessary to defeat the false arguments put forward by those voices about why we don’t need to go looking or about why we are inadequate. It means having the courage to keep watch over our thoughts.
The courage to do is about being willing to see we you truly are, to believe in the value and nature of our core and to have the courage to sit with that truth no matter what the internal or external world may throw at us.
Are you willing to really see, believe and do?
Creative Commons images in this post by Paul-Simpson.org, Mike Licht and CarbonNYC @flickr
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Mick, I’m dropping by again, and like what I see. Another intelligent, articulate and thought-provoking piece. Thank you. When I find myself at a cross-roads, I often self-coach. I use some of these techniques, for instance, by asking myself: ‘What do I need to see right now?’ Or ‘what do I believe right now’? Or (most often) what do I need to do now to create a positive shift? By looking within, we usually have the answers to unlock the mental log-jams that we face. Sometimes just using a different ‘tool’, (what do I SEE, instead of what do I BELIEVE?, for instance) can be useful and give another vantage point.
Good to see you here again Mandy. I appreciate the compliment on the post. You’re right I think we more often than not have the answer to our dilemas we just need to unpack things in a slightly different way, take a different focus and reframe the issue. As Einstein said (loosley paraphrase.. apologies to Einsten…) the same thinking that got us to the problem won’t solve the problem.
3 great points. I especially like the last part about “courage to do.” I feel like many people possess the vision and faith in themselves, but they lack the courage to take chances.
Excellent post Mick.
Thanks Steve, having courage to take chances means having the courage to take a chance on yourself as well!
Hi Mick,
I read Michael Connolly, too. He’s a great crime writer with intricate plots that I enjoy reading.
You are spot on when you say, “It means having the faith that you will be able to find that calm and peaceful core and that you will be able maintain a connection with it no matter what those rough seas and foggy skies, internal dialogue and shifting masks of our minds might do to try to obscure the vision of it.”
Having the internal fortitude to withstand anything that life throws at you, and trust in yourself enough to believe that you will have the courage to act, is so important. When you have that, you can accomplish anything you set your mind to. It’s really important to develop this within ourselves because no one will do it for us.
It takes a lot of internal focus and being self-aware to get to this state, but once you are, you will be resilient in life and have vision, faith and courage.
Karen
Thanks Karen, He is a great author, I’ve been working my way through his entire series.
Thanks for the generous comment, and for putting in how you see it. You are right, if you can get to the core and stay connected to it…. anything is possible.
I think it’s often easier to step up to plate and take action with the things that are around us than it is to look inside ourselves.
I’ve been down this path a fair bit recently even though I haven’t shared it with any of my family. It’s not an easy path but the results at the destination are truly awe inspiring.
Thanks for the mention on this great post.
Thanks Ben, you’re welcome for the mention (maybe it is some of the academic training, but I think it is important to acknowledge your sources).
And you are right much easier to focus “out there” than “in here” but I reckon the internal journey can actually be a more interesting one.
Excellent post bud, a really inspiring post. I run off of belief more than anything. I believe that everything will happen the way it was supposed to happen. Seeing and having the courage for the follow through will follow after that.
Thanks Ryan, it is important to have beliefs, but beliefs based on substance…. hence the getting to the core of yourself.
Mick,
An intersting looking at three important concepts of personal development Vision, Faith and Courage.
Yes I agree, they could all be interanlly focussed.
Regards
Paul
Thanks Paul, a change in perspective can be a wonderul thing.
I am willing to do all three!
Interesting list here. I appreciate each of these. This goes back to the law of attraction. You need to see yourself doing it, believe you will and then you will. I love this kind of stuff.
Thanks Alex, as long as we know where we are looking!