"You can't pour from an empty cup." Selflessness is a journey that starts with the self. In order to be of service, you first have to take care of yourself. Start by making sure your energy levels are high, your stress levels are low and internally balanced.
This blog post will provide some tips on how being more selfish first can lead to being selfless. Stick with me here!
We often associated being "selfless" with doing things for others first and all the time without any concern for oneself. The truth is, selflessness starts with one person - you!
Take a deep breath and re-read this sentence.
"You cannot pour from an empty cup."
The journey to selflessness starts with you and expands outwards. Think about it from a loving point of view. One cannot give love if they do not love themselves or know what it means to give to themselves. That would be hypocritical.
The same applies to selflessness.
Each person must selflessly love themselves first before they can selflessly give to others. Once a person begins the journey of selfless love, it becomes easier and more natural as time goes on because you've already done all the work!
Know thy self and love thy self go hand in hand. When we know ourselves, we know others. when we love ourselves, we love others. When we learn to give to ourselves, we learn to give to others.
We remove the walls of separation. We become that which we give and it becomes us. This is when it overpours into the world. First to those close to us and spread out to everyone you connect with. Everyone you meet.
This love is infectious and can be spread in this way to all of humanity, one connection at a time. This is the beginning of healing for us as individuals but also collectively because it's not until we learn selflessness that we have any hope of being able to help others beyond ourselves without becoming too exhausted or burned out.
If one person can infect the whole world negatively, surely one person should be able to affect the entire world positively. A good example is a virus starting from one man/woman and spreading across the world.
It may take us days, months, years or a lifetime to get to that level of selflessness but it's worth it because once we're there, the world shifts in some way.
We understand more about what matters and why; consequently slowing down is inevitable which means less stress, anxiety and fear.
That may sound like a lot of work but shouldn't change how you live your daily life until you reach that point where selflessness takes over every aspect of your day. Once you reach the tipping point, everything in your life becomes easier and you become a much happier person.
You seize to see yourself and another. You see us collectively. But you also see yourself in another.
To be selfless is to love and respect the person that you are inside, no matter how flawed or bad your situation may seem. You have a choice - stay where you are because it's safe or reach for something better even if it feels scary. It ultimately comes down to two questions: Do I want to feel better or carry on the way that I am?
It may take time, but once you make a decision stick with it. The better it gets, the better it gets.
Conclusion paragraph:
One of the most important things you can connect with is self-awareness. This means getting in tune with one's thoughts and feelings, noticing when they change or how we react to certain situations. It also includes understanding your strengths and weaknesses, what motivates you and why, and where you want to go in life.
If this sounds like a lot of work (it’s not), we encourage exploring self-awareness through our exercises in the book - Alchemy Of Happiness
Let us know if/when you start an awareness journey!