{"id":1198,"date":"2012-01-10T03:00:22","date_gmt":"2012-01-10T08:00:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/lettinggo\/?p=1198"},"modified":"2012-01-07T15:56:32","modified_gmt":"2012-01-07T20:56:32","slug":"step-out-of-the-chains-called-self-control","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lettinggo\/2012\/01\/step-out-of-the-chains-called-self-control.html","title":{"rendered":"Step Out of the Chains Called Self-Control"},"content":{"rendered":"

Trying to dominate our destructive thoughts and feelings, or seeking to liberate our “better” parts through some form of self-discipline, is secretly at the expense of our freedom, and not in its cause. Freedom from the ties that bind, victory over our own nature, is not a conquest in the usual sense. Try to see the following as deeply as possible: anything that has to be kept in check must also keep its checker in chains<\/em>. The person with this kind of control over him or herself is like an ignited rocket tethered to the ground. The opposing forces eventually cause an explosion. We need release from ourselves, not a better way to live in prison. Keeping these points in mind helps us to arrive at this totally new consideration: what we really need is distance<\/em> from our own highly reactive thoughts and feelings.<\/p>\n

To start stepping back from yourself, collect all the facts you can about your true inner condition. Support your findings with further personal investigation. These actions bring higher discoveries which will inspire you to reach higher on the next round of self-study. For a start, the following is an exercise in how to work successfully at stepping back from yourself.<\/p>\n

You can wake yourself up just as many times as you’re willing to catch yourself in daydreams where you’re the star. This amazing discovery proves that the only<\/em> power your present nature has to keep you slumbering is how much you enjoy feeling like you’re in the spotlight on center stage. But you can have something much higher than these bittersweet temporary sensations.<\/p>\n

Each time you find yourself daydreaming, give yourself this healthy jolt: Cancel all remaining performances of that show. They’re probably just reruns anyway. Your choice to come wide-awake, and to live without your dream self is the same as choosing in favor of freedom — the permanent home of your Real Self. This conscious act places you directly in the healing spotlight of the present moment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Trying to dominate our destructive thoughts and feelings, or seeking to liberate our “better” parts through some form of self-discipline, is secretly at the expense of our freedom, and not in its cause. Freedom from the ties that bind, victory over our own nature, is not a conquest in the usual sense. Try to see…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":232,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[672,1],"tags":[984,986,34,973,987,985,983],"class_list":["post-1198","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-changetransformation","category-enlightenment-self-realization","tag-a-healthier-you","tag-destructive-thoughts-and-feelings","tag-present-moment","tag-resolutions","tag-self-awakening","tag-self-control","tag-self-discipline"],"yoast_head":"\nStep Out of the Chains Called Self-Control - Letting Go with Guy Finley<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lettinggo\/2012\/01\/step-out-of-the-chains-called-self-control.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Step Out of the Chains Called Self-Control - Letting Go with Guy Finley\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Trying to dominate our destructive thoughts and feelings, or seeking to liberate our “better” parts through some form of self-discipline, is secretly at the expense of our freedom, and not in its cause. Freedom from the ties that bind, victory over our own nature, is not a conquest in the usual sense. 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His ideas cut straight to the heart of our most important personal and social issues - relationships, success, addiction, stress, peace, happiness, freedom - and lead the way to a higher life. Finley is the Founder and Director of Life of Learning Foundation, a nonprofit Center for Spiritual Discovery. He is the acclaimed author of \"The Secret of Letting Go\" and more than 45 other books and audio programs that have sold over two million copies in 26 languages worldwide. His work is widely endorsed by doctors, business professionals, celebrities, and religious leaders of all denominations. Through Life of Learning Foundation, Guy has presented over 5,000 unique self-realization seminars to thousands of grateful students throughout North America and Europe over the past 20 years and has been a guest on over 700 television and radio shows, including national appearances on ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, and NPR. The Foundation's popular Key Lesson e-mails featuring inspirational quotes by Guy are read each week by a hundred thousand subscribers in 142 countries. Guy speaks four times each week on inner-life principles at Life of Learning Foundation's home in Merlin, Oregon. These meetings are ongoing and open to the public. For more information about Life of Learning Foundation, Guy Finley, and their life-changing messages, visit guyfinley.org. \"Guy Finley is...one of the leading experts at the forefront of human potential.\" -Nightingale Conant \"Guy Finley has helped millions live fuller, more peaceable lives.\" -Barnes and Noble","sameAs":["http:\/\/www.guyfinley.org","https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Guy-Finley-260924340633\/","https:\/\/x.com\/guy_finley"],"url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lettinggo\/author\/gfinley"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lettinggo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1198","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lettinggo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lettinggo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lettinggo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/232"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lettinggo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1198"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lettinggo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1198\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1200,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lettinggo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1198\/revisions\/1200"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lettinggo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1198"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lettinggo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1198"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lettinggo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1198"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}