The Home of Steven Barnes
Author, Teacher, Screenwriter


Monday, January 03, 2005

Balanced Goals

The idea here is that goals in all three arenas give you both short and long-term feedback on your internal processes and the reactions of the environment to efforts.  This increases the accuracy of your "reality map" (in other words, if you are getting good results in all three arenas, it is fair to assume that you have a realistic perspective on your territory and efforts.  You are honest with yourself about your abilities, and have the capacity to trust your own word, etc.).  If you are getting terrible results in all three arenas--or even two out of three, it is a pretty safe bet that you have beliefs or perceptions about reality that are inaccurate.  The constant, daily attempt to adjust forces you to develop simple rules of engagement, simple principles that govern your actions and perceptions.  Such as:
1) What helps me keep my word to myself and others?
2) Under what circumstances am I best able to predict results?
3) Under what circumstances do I seem to get "lucky"?
etc.
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These three arenas create a "triangle".  Who we are is the invisible center of the triangle.  Actions in the three arenas are visible, our essence is not, but still revealed by our actions, as bending grass reveals the wind.  By working for balance in all three arenas, our daily life reveals our inner world. The visible reveals the invisible.  Over time, we develop instinctive responses: what need I do to please my mate?  How shall I work my body today to increase energy?  How shall I eat to sleep most deeply?  What goods or services does my community require?  The factors are so complex, that again our subconscious seeks the answers that work in all three arenas.  Simple , profound truth.  the words may be different for each man, but I think that as we move through life, seeing the cycles of our existence, our actions repeated over and over again, we see how our bodies, our relationships, and our service to tribe all interact, are all expressions of some central truth.  And we seek the wisdoms that will give us deeper understanding, and reject simple answers that merely provide advantage in one or two of the arenas.  I consider this the fastest path to genuine wisdom.  It is hard.  Most people would rather pull out their own teeth with pliers than commit to genuine balance.  But for those with real commitment, it is probably the fastest path to genuine knowledge.

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