The 3 Secrets of the Favored (Part Two)

This is the part two of the article Secrets of the Favored. In case you haven’t read the first part, here it is. The part one discussed about how loyalty to one’s passion can result to amassing of huge wealth and fortune, and this part of the article reveals the second secret of the favored; and that is silence. If there is Power of Word that I explained here, there is also Power of Silence. This is also one of the reasons why most of the successful people in science, corporation and even entertainment industry are the ones who are silent and introvert.

Successful people take time to be alone and have a moment of silence on a daily basis. It is when they are having a private moment with themselves for the revelation of new ideas, innovation, and solutions to problems. It’s doesn’t only give them new ideas, it also refreshes their minds and recharges their spirits. Even an effective prayer requires silence. Needless to say, silence is a very powerful practice that has been known to be one of the keys to success even on ancient time which the favored people these days seem to be taking advantage of all along. Here is an acronym I made to some of the benefits of silence and that is ASAP.

Aspiration. The first benefit out of practicing silence is aspiration or what I call the “divine nudge”. Some people call it “divine calling” and let me tell you that everyone has it. It happens when we suddenly wake up for no reason at all at the same time every night. I was actually surprised when Dr. Wayne Dyer has discussed this in one of his podcasts. It rang true to me because I knew what he was talking about. I personally experience what according to his term is “personal time”. It could be 2AM, 3: 45AM, or maybe two hours before your alarm. Mine is 4:10AM and it is consistent and no coincidence.

I know that many of us are just too tired to actually get up especially when we still have to go to work the next day but let me tell you that if you’ll just try to teach your body to get up early and enjoy the silence of the dawn, I assure you that you will be astonished by the dramatic change that these “nudges” can bring into your life. Nudges usually give us instant solutions to the problems, creative innovations to our business or maybe new ideas that could bring prosperous results.

A very good friend of mine, who's having a “divine nudge” now and then, called me one time to assign me for a special project. It’s editing a controversial book that he has written which full of wisdom that was revealed to him. I asked him why he chose me and he simply told me that the vision was clear, and the message specifically instructed him that I had to be the one to work with him on this book. It thrilled me as it was such an honor to edit a very new kind of genre to me and  who am I to argue with a very clear message?

However, not everyone gets the message as clear as that. “Divine nudges”, aside from it only works in silence, has different ways of communicating. It is not always a form of a clear message.  It can be in any form and I guess it’s different for everyone. Sometimes, I will have this “divine nudge” and the instruction is not really given to me in terms of words. Sometimes, it’s just a sudden urge to just open my laptop and write. It happens a lot of time to me. In fact, the finest articles, blogs and books I’ve ever written are the results of my trust in this “divine nudge”.

There’s something about this aspiration, divine nudges or whatever you may want to call it, that gives us precise guidance in silence. These are golden wisdom that we never knew and never heard from anyone else before. When I was not really very aware of it, nudges or aspirations usually come whenever I take a shower. That’s because that is the most quiet and private time I could only have because of my very hectic schedule. But when I started paying attention to it, I was actually the one who volunteered of making time for my silent moment every day.

Sometimes, it can be a form of thoughts that speak to us directly and sometimes indirectly. It’s a subtle voice (most of the time unuttered) that instructs you, communicates with you, and teaches you what you ought to do. The most incredible part of it is that the message is understood by the receiver directly to his thoughts even without a single word at all. Sometimes, it can also be a form of a guide. It guides you to the right people, right books, opportunities that will somehow inspire you or trigger you to serve a certain purpose or complete a certain task.

I’m sure you know what I’m talking about. Everyone has experienced this one way or another but very few actually understand and use it to their advantage. So, how would you know if it is the divine nudge and not just your own thoughts making it up? The answer is simple. These nudges are way more gentle, smarter and wiser than you. It teaches you wisdom that you’ve never heard before or lessons you’ve never learned from anyone else. It’s always precise like a guide that has your best interest. It is relevant to whatever situation you are having at the moment. The ideas it gives often contribute to growth and inspire others instead of harming them. Just be careful because remember, we have to test every spirit. 

So, this is how nudges work. Have you ever read a book, perhaps seen a new invention, or maybe had an idea before; but failed to bring it in action, and now you see someone else thought of that same thing, executed it, and now the whole world talks about it? If you experienced any of this, then it’s a clear sign, you’ve let passed a nudge before. You’ve just declined an assignment. You’ve said no to an opportunity so it has to be given to someone else. 

But guess what? The very fact that you are reading it right now means that there are still plenty of wisdom and tasks awaiting to be trusted in your hands. I believe it’s no coincidence that you are on this website. It doesn’t matter how old you are, where you are, whatever kind of past you have, because the nudges always wait for you only if you will find time to practice silence and let the ideas flow. The world is big and there are just endless of opportunities to be seized that need your talent and personality.

*****

Self-image. Wise men say “The shallow waters are noisy; deep waters are silent.” I know a lot of successful and highly intellectual people who are most of the time quiet. Maybe you think that they are just simply introvert but there’s more than just being an introvert. I am not in any way promoting introversion but what I’m saying is successful people know very well how to choose their battles. They just don’t waste time and energy over things that may disturb their peace. Through observation, I realized that silence is an art everyone has to master that has a huge impact on one’s substance or great self-image.

Silent people value their words and opinions so much that they just don’t give their words easily. They know that they don’t have to react to everything. They know the value of their opinions. They are hard to read. And because they are silent most of the time, it makes their opinions more important and when they say something, it gives their words more power. And it seems like even the greatest men in ancient time knows about this wisdom. You can find a lot of passages in the bible that actually reveal us the wisdom behind silence. They were even praying to be silent (Set a guard over my mouth, L-rd; keep watch over the door of my lips Ps.141:3) and a lot of reminders of what will possibly happen to us if we fail to tame our own tongues. It also points out what silence does to our self-image. One passages even said that even fools are thought wise if they keep silent (Prov. 17:28).

I had been in an environment before where I used to meet a lot of VIPs from time to time because of my work. One of my job nature is to basically talk to VIPs, rich, honorable, powerful world leader advisers. And I’ve learned something very important. In the midst of upper class people, where everyone seems to be the same, it’s easy to spot the ones with the highest status. The most powerful man in the room is usually the most silent. And it doesn’t mean that they are introvert. In fact, their vibes radiate in a perfect balance of humility and confidence, something that’s hard to really describe, but it’s a picture of a truly great self-image.

The way I observe it, being loud doesn’t prove one’s substance but it’s the other way around. A great self-image has a lot to do with silence. People with very low self-esteem seem to talk a lot. They always have stories to tell because they somehow feel the need to prove their substance. They react to just anything, they have opinions on every little thing, because of hunger for approval and attention. Well, compliments, acceptance, and recognition are really nice. In fact, these are factors that bring instant energy to motivation. Who doesn’t like to be recognized? But if that recognition becomes a need for you then it results to poor self-image. Just like Dr. Wayne Dyer once said; “People who need approval the most get the least of it; while people who need approval the least get the most of it.”

***

Accomplishment. This is another benefit of silence. The most productive time for me is at dawn when the rest of the world is sleeping. It’s the time of the day when there is no disturbance and noise when I can just enjoy doing my own stuff. Aside from getting up early to accomplish more tasks, it makes me feel like time is pretty slow. What I can accomplish from 3am to 6am is pretty much twice as I can accomplish during day time.

This is just how accomplishment has direct connection to silence. When it’s silent, the more focus and efficient we become. Thus, it doubles our productivity in a short period of time. Silent time is also the best time for self-improvement. It’s the best time to do something that you have always wanted to do but you never really had the time to do so. It’s the best time to learn new things too. Maybe there’s a new language that you want to learn or maybe there's a creativity which you never really had the time to unleash. Aside from those, it is also the best time to grow in faith. One of the best way to start my day is to start it with listening to faith building messages or motivational materials.  


A housewife or a regular working father might disagree with me and reason out that there’s simply lack of time to find time for silence but let me tell you that lack of time is just an excuse everyone has been telling to themselves to put off what they had to do. If you would wait for the right time to do something, it will just never happen. You have to decide and make time for something if you are really willing to do it.

Assuming you’re nine-to-fiver and you can’t quit that job that covers the bills, you can just always wake up at least two hours before your alarm, then you will have just an ample time to write the book you’ve always wanted to write or plan the business you’ve always dream of managing. Two hours a day is 14 hours a week and that’s an extra 60 hours a month! One of the books I’ve read in the past says that when you’re starting anything, it takes 10 efforts for one result. But as you go further, the job will become easier, results multiply, and you get better and better. Write that one thing that you’ve always wanted to do and give your extra two hours every day to do it in the comfort of silence.

****

Peace. One of the many benefits of silence is peace. A wise man said before that rich people have two S’s: Smile and silence. Smile to fix the problem and silence to avoid it. Rich people know the value of silence because it protects one of the most valuable thing to them; their privacy. Silence and privacy always go hand in hand. Only few people understand that getting along well with others doesn’t mean that they have to give everyone an access to their life.  

Successful people understood that troubles in relationships are waste of time and sometimes, it even costs. So, they choose to be at peace with people around them while focusing their energy to more important matters that bring productive results.

One may think that silence is not really very hard to achieve. All it takes is being alone, turning off anything that may create a sound and voila--- we have our silence. However, silence does not only mean our physical environment but it also requires us to silent the noisiest part of us--- our thoughts.

A simple browsing on social media basically causing a lot of noise in your head. I am not advising anyone to stop using any of social media app but what I’m saying is we don’t sit down the whole day checking new posts from time to time because it will just never end. Maybe you can commit to limiting your use of social media. Anything that disturbs your silence, drama on tv, social media, newspaper, disturbs your peace. And anything that disturbs your peace is not good for your mental health.

This is why learning to silence our thoughts requires consistent practice. Worries too are the number one cause of a disturbed mind. I know it’s hard not to think of negative thoughts as situation happens. Truth is, negative thoughts are always there and if you will start counting it, I bet the list goes on. But one of the most effective way to handle negative thoughts is to learn to let it go. When bad thoughts start coming in, don’t invest any feeling to it, judge it or blame the circumstances to another person. Just let it pass and it will go away on its own. The negative thoughts only stay if you are actually entertaining it.

For instance, a negative thought comes in and remind you about your past. Instead of justifying yourself by reasoning out in your mind, I strongly advise you not to respond at all. Because if you do, it would never stop reminding you of all the things that would somehow make you feel guilty. If it's just too much to bear, you may respond to it using positive affirmation, say it aloud, and stop the thought from there. Don't respond to it again and just let it go away on its own, moving on to a new thought. 


I know it is hard to quiet the mind but once you are aware that you are capable too of silencing your negative thoughts, you will master how to recognize thoughts that needed to be magnified and thoughts that needed to be ignored.

Without silence, it is just impossible to have peace. When you don't have peace, it’s difficult to function in your full potential, thus, missing what truly matters and that is serving your very own and unique purpose. 


RELATED TOPIC
The Secrets of the Favored (PART ONE)