"Above all, don't lie. Don't lie about anything, ever. Lying leads to Hell."

For everyone reading, for anyone who has ever lived, this is the MOST
valuable maxim any person could ever follow.

You'll find an expansion on this solemn truth on page 198 of his book:

The truth is the truth,
whether you choose to address it or not.

In choosing to deny your own truth, whatever it is, you are selfishly harming not only yourself but also those around you.

Occasionally, some of us may think that we are "better" than what we truly want, and we deny ourselves what we want in this pursuit of 'existing' at a higher level...

But we are NOT that higher power we may aspire towards... We are flesh and blood.

While our consciousness may aspire towards a higher plane of existence, at the moment, we are bound by our flesh.

Decisions to:

• Save and invest money rather than treat ourselves to a shiny bauble or newer vehicle,

• Eat bland, healthy food over cheap, convenient, tasty (but very unhealthy) fast food,

• Sit on the couch and watch a movie rather than get into the gym and have a painful yet productive workout...

These examples ARE choices where we can manifest a higher level of reality for ourselves.

These choices, where discipline serves our future selves, are choices that prove worthy sacrifices for a better future!

HOWEVER,

If your sexual partner yells at you, demeans you, denies you sex, or treats you in a worse manner than they would a stranger in the street.... And you lie to yourself by telling them (and yourself) that "It's ok," you are laying the stonework for your own personal path to Hell.

If you drink yourself into oblivion either purposefully or inadvertently, there's a level of self-care that's lacking... One avenue for escaping the Hell that you currently find yourself is cheaply and easily accessed by your libation of choice!

When the alcohol wears off, however, you're back in Hell.

With a hangover.

WHATEVER truth you're denying yourself from addressing, it needs to be examined and reconciled; about yourself, the reality you've gotten yourself into, and how misaligned your circumstances are from your happiness.

That truth will certainly be painful to contend with, otherwise you would have already acted upon it to rectify your situation.

You may need to change your perspective of reality as it actual IS, compared with what you believe or wish it to be.

CHOOSE humility.

Opt-in to the idea that perhaps you were wrong.

Our expectations and our reality don't seamlessly come together as often as we would like.

Adjust your course, your expectations (of the world, and of yourself), and chart a new path, based on what you've learned about the world, yourself, and how you remained a slave to your erroneous expectations.

And recognize how badly this ideology that you ONCE had has harmed you.

Examples might include:

• The belief in Santa Claus
• The conviction that your first love was your only one and true partner for this life.
• Property values always go up.

NEVER UNDERESTIMATE HOW WRONG YOU CAN BE.

Honor your own truth, regardless of how you may then think of yourself.

Your initial pre-supposition was a lie.
Whether for good or for bad, recognizing yourself for who you truly are is the critical foundation for progress.

That's when the real work begins - once you've accepted what you have to work with, progress can be made.

Remember folks!

We're all silly, lost, hairless apes who (apparently) just arrived in a closed-system Universe that's 13 billion years old.

Psychology was figured out less than 300 years ago, and its implementation into the understanding of ourselves is just awakening...

While its use to unconsciously manipulate our individual choices as consumers is in a golden age.

Embrace the humility that you can do better.

Focus on fixing yourself and your future.

By doing so, you will recognize that you have FAR more work to do on yourself than you have the luxury of time for fixing your friends or family!

We ALL do!

So live your truth.

Serve yourself, by being your BEST self.

It starts with a very honest self assessment and determining what you need to be happy; not what someone else has convincingly sold you on.

They might honestly believe it, and it might be true!

For them.

But you are you.

And your truth may well be different from theirs.

"Lying leads to Hell."

Take a wild guess where the truth leads.

@scan0017 😘