Living Life Proactively

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Guest Post by David Rivinus

In my metaphysical classes, I am fond of saying, “Whatever you perceive is you.” And I am hardly alone in this understanding. Deepak Chopra puts it this way: “Look out into the world, and what you will see is a mirror of yourself.”1

My favorite adage on this subject comes from the late Dr. Ihaleakala Hew Len, the Hawaiian psychologist who made the Polynesian spiritual teaching of Ho’oponopono popular. Regarding objective life, he simply says, “There is no ‘out there’ out there!”2 

Even if this concept sounds remotely possible, you may be asking the same question I did when I first heard it: “How does this understanding make my life better?” 

Reacting to Life

I found myself riveted by this idea because, in it, I sensed a key to happier living. Somehow, there ought to be a way to harness this concept that everything I was looking at in the outer world was nothing but myself. 

Most of us live life “reactively.” We go innocently and calmly about our business until a spot-fire—or a legitimate crisis—turns our world upside down and makes us take action that we hope will bring us back to some semblance of normalcy.

I am no different. But I wanted to know why I wait for an irritation before I react. In other words, is there some way I can anticipate an uncomfortable life event or perhaps thwart it altogether?

Proactive living

I would soon be given an ideal “Petri dish” in which to experiment with this question. And central to my experimentation was the idea that everything I observed in my waking life was nothing more than a facet of myself. Here’s what happened:

My wife and I recently moved to a small town—with fewer than 800 residents. Somehow, I found myself in charge of a civic project that involved raising money for the expansion of a large building. 

There were multiple, often-contentious, groups of people presumably working toward the same goal, and there were one or two individuals whose tempers were so volatile that they were obstructing what little progress was being made. One way or another, even as a newcomer, I was supposed to bring order out of this explosive chaos.

It was exactly what I needed to try out my theories. If everything I perceive in life—including groups of cantankerous coworkers—is nothing more than a reflection of myself, then the key to bringing order and changing animosity into cooperation, is to make sure that, within myself, I am coming from as pure a place as I can possibly manifest. 

If I’m right about this, I don’t have to confront; I don’t have to discipline; I don’t have to prevent a mini war. I must simply make certain that I am operating from a space of neutrality and pure love.

The Big Field Test

I remember the first encounter well. It was with an individual whose long-term residency in the community gave her clout. She was known for her explosions when crossed, and frankly, I was not looking forward to our meeting at all! As nervous as I was, I kept checking myself to be certain I was in neutral and coming from a place of love. She knew nothing of my inner dialogue; she and I simply met and discussed business.

You would have thought it was Old Home Week. There was no tension between us; there was laughing; we got a great deal accomplished; and we left trusting each other. That was the moment I knew this idea was valid and that the technique works. I have applied it unwaveringly and relentlessly ever since.

Fast forward to now, and you will see a beehive of cooperative activity on this project. What’s more, we recently won a large grant bringing the total of our committed assets to well over a million dollars. 

Groundbreaking is around the corner. And I am given great accolades for my “insightful leadership.” I always laugh when I hear those comments because I didn’t do anything! I’m not even a particularly capable administrator. 

I simply acknowledged that the people I work with are me. And if I come from the highest place within myself, they have no choice but to reflect that.

It works! Try it!

1. DeepakChopra, The Return of Merlin
2. Joe Vitale, Zero Limits—The Secret Hawaiian System for Wealth, Health, Peace and More

The author of the book Always Dreaming, David Rivinus has been teaching and facilitating classes and seminars on metaphysical topics for several decades. His specialty is dream interpretation, and he offers group and individual sessions both online and in his home town on the Oregon coast. He can be reached at [email protected].