Bringing Souls Out Of Hiding

Ideas that give me energy:

* Pursuing excellence.
* Think about what I’ve done excellently
* Think about the look on the faces of people who appreciate me. Think about the pretty girls I’ve kissed and how they said wow afterward…
* Think about the most heartfelt things people have said to me
* Remember how I’ve helped people. 
* Connect with people I love
* A vision for how I can make a difference in the world, such as helping souls come out of hiding (a mission from a 12-step program).
* Thinking about places where I belong, where I am welcome, where people are glad to see me
* I had a therapist who had me list everything that was great about me and when I was done, she prompted me to add my good looks
* Anything that cracks me up 
* The states of God-seeking, faith-seeking, generosity and love
* Thinking about the homeless man who brought a dead raccoon into a McDonalds in San Francisco
* Connecting to things Australian (or whatever is bringing me energy in the moment)

Practices for energy:

* A diet soda, I don’t like them, but they change my state
* Watch an action movie
* Eat protein
* Cold shower
* Fave songs
* Drink some cold sugar-free crystal light
* A walk in the sun
* Listen to inspiring talks
* Developing new skills
* Holding things that mean something to me such as a cricket bat, didgeridoo, Aussie hat, 
* Playing characters, trying out different accents and attitudes
* Write about my feelings, the more shameful the better

I know a lot of paranoid people and it is exhausting trying to calm them. Those who seek frequent reassurance wear me down and I distance myself because I want to preserve my energy.

There is nothing I say or do that can’t be misinterpreted and misused. When I work with sponsees, I am usually exercising at the time. Because I got out of breath one time (I was either sharing something painful or doing something requiring exertion), he essentially asked me if I was masturbating. I was horrified.

I could recommend to someone that they go for a walk, and they might go for a walk and get mugged or break a leg. I might say you should drink a glass of water and you might drink 20 glasses of water and hurt yourself. I take no responsibility for that. I could recommend to someone that they read a book and it might trigger them into creating a disaster online. I might suggest an assignment and it might lead them to a nervous breakdown. I might say that they should become more visible and they might go out and become more visible in a disastrous way. I take no responsibility for the lives of others because I have no control over them. I do the best I can and then I turn over the results to God. Please use whatever I say in ways that benefit you and others.

With every potential sponsee, I give them a template for our work. This template lists two books that I require sponsees to have available every time we meet so they should get them as e-books available on their phone. And yet 95% of potential sponsees don’t have these books when we start working together.

It’s tiring to reiterate my standards.

About Luke Ford

I've written five books (see Amazon.com). My work has been covered in the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, and on 60 Minutes. I teach Alexander Technique in Beverly Hills (Alexander90210.com).
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