“You are the master of your destiny. You can influence, direct and control your own environment. You can make your life what you want it to be.”
Napoleon Hill
Beyond the Quote (161/365)
Influence is the effect one person has on another person’s thoughts and actions. Influence happens every second of every day of your life. Most notably, when you are in direct communication with another person. What another person says and what they do influences you. Either you like what you hear and see and so adjust accordingly, or you dislike what you hear and see and so adjust accordingly the other way. There is no neutral when it comes to interactions because neutral would either mean that you were looking at an exact replica of yourself or that you didn’t notice the other which implies no interaction. We are all so different and unique that we can’t help but influence each other in one way or another.
What’s more, is that we rarely ever even realize that we’re making these adjustments as we go. It’s primarily a subconscious response to the stimuli in our given environment so that we can better prepare for the future ahead. It’s adaptation in its modern day form. By keeping what we like and discarding what we dislike, we are essentially evolving to a better, more prepared version of ourselves—at least through our own eyes and based on our own experiences.
Less notably, influence happens indirectly and in micro form too. We are influenced by what we see and hear on social media, TV, news, advertisements, peer groups, and any one of the other infinite sources of stimuli in our environments. And we make those same subconscious adjustments with every interaction in this space too. You read a tweet you like and those words stay with you. You read a facebook post that upsets you and your identity becomes a little more clear. You see someone walking down the street whose style catches your eye and their taste becomes a part of your taste. You see a commercial on TV and decide that the product they’re offering would really help you in your life. You binge on a Netflix series and make countless connections of how to act in relationships based on what you see the fictional characters do in complicated, dramatic situations. It’s never ending.
And probably the least notable of all, is the influence that happens in subconscious form between you and your ego. Have you ever wondered who you were speaking to when you’ve told yourself to, “Shut up?” Or have you ever been at a low point and thought to yourself, “Ugh, I can’t live with myself anymore!” Who is it that you’re talking to? In both of these examples, naturally, there has to be two entities for the statement to make sense. One person wouldn’t just tell themselves to, “Shut up” if they are the ones who are controlling the speaking. And who exactly is it that you can’t live with anymore? The statement implies that there are two: one who is annoying and one who is annoyed.
Well, that annoying, second entity that you tell to, “Shut up” is your ego. And your ego, as you might be able to relate to in the examples above, is not within your control—it’s independent and does whatever it wants. All you can hope to do is guide your ego in the right direction. Or with careful practice (or a deeply profound realization), quiet the ego so as to become just one entity—the witnesser rather than the mouthy, crazed, relentless thinker.
So, how do we quiet the ego and guide it in the proper direction? By moving through life with awareness. We have to act as just one entity—the witnesser—rather than two. Once you are aware of what influences you, you can act and interpret more deliberately. Awareness is the key to all of this. By moving with awareness you are out of your head and are connected to your senses. And when you are connected to your senses you are connected to the present moment—it’s the easiest way to be here, in the now. When you look—really see. When you hear—really listen. When you touch—really feel. When you taste—really savor. When you smell—really notice.
This is the way to quiet the influence of the ego. And as you move with awareness, move towards environments that are going to properly stimulate your senses for the better. Don’t move towards screens, people who tend to be toxic, or concrete jungles. Move towards nature, people who fill you up, and nurturing sources of insight. What you will find is that starting from within, the witnesser will begin to evolve and the ego will begin to quiet. And as you evolve from within you will more mindfully receive and adjust to the micro influences. And so it goes all the way up to the macro influences that you choose to welcome into your life from there forward. Again, you ALWAYS are influenced by your environment and surroundings, it’s simply impossible not to be. And so guide your senses and expose them to the most positive, constructive sources of influence that’s available to you. Be the master of your destiny and evolve how you may.
Read Next: 12 Humbling Quotes on Ego from Ego is the Enemy
Don't Let the Motivation Stop There...!
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