Newsletter #13

The Freedom to Create: How Entrepreneurs Can Find the Life They Truly Desire

Hi there,

Welcome to part 2 of ‘The Freedom To Create’ article.

The first part came out a couple of weeks ago (you can read it here). It was entitled ‘The Freedom to Create; What Really Holds British Entrepreneurs Back’. It was a bit heavy if I’m being honest. That’s because I really dwelt in the problem. The problem, I believe, a lot of people find themselves in. Especially entrepreneurial people. That problem being that we often feel compelled to create businesses and bring new ideas to life only to be dragged back by the culture of doubt that exists in the UK.

This edition, part 2, is much more upbeat. That’s because we’ll be dwelling in the solution. The things we can do to overcome our cultural gene of doubt and find the freedom to create the future we so desperately yearn. The freedom to create the life we truly desire.

That freedom to create starts by looking into the art of creating our own experience of life. An art that some people call ‘manifestation’.

Have you come across the spiritual concept of ‘manifestation’? The idea that we can somehow bend reality at will. That it’s possible to master the law of attraction to get what we truly desire. That we can literally create our own luck.

I’ve regularly dismissed manifestation as nonsense. As wishy-washy mysticism. And I still have some big reservations. But I have to say that I’m coming round to the idea. Partly because I’m understanding more of the nuance behind the true spiritual principles underpinning manifestation - and not taking notice of the Instagram-friendly snippets. Partly because the word ‘manifestation’ is just another way to say ‘create’ or ‘creation’. Partly because I can see how the manifestation or creation process has been working in my own life over the past few years. And partly because I’m feeling the effects of it happening right now.

Not in some dramatic, movie-like, three-wishes-granted way. But in a much gentler and subtle way. A quieter and more ethereal way. It’s more like intuitively crafting creation than carefully working out and executing a masterpiece.

What I’ve been able to notice (and it’s required some detailed watching) is the relationship between my shifting inner state and how the world seems to respond accordingly. Or how I perceive that the world is responding accordingly.

Maybe it’s coincidence. Maybe it's synchronicity. Maybe the universe actually does directly respond when we ask from a place of genuine alignment. I'm not sure about the detailed mechanics just yet. But I am convinced of this: when we change our internal frequency, our external circumstances appear shift in ways that feel almost orchestrated.

Here’s my take on what’s going on.

The Creative Mind in Service

Let’s start with a uncontroversial truth. We are creative beings. We have the ability to create something from nothing. We can turn ideas that appear in our head into material reality. We can even make other human beings appear from nowhere.

That's not a mystical hunch. That's physical reality.

Every invention, every solution, every breakthrough started as a thought. Someone imagined something that didn't exist, then brought it into reality. We do this constantly, mostly without noticing. We have problems, we create solutions. We have desires, we find ways to fulfil them.

The magic isn't necessarily that the universe delivers exactly what we want. The magic is that once we truly decide a desired state of being - at a deep level - our creative minds go to work.

And interestingly, this can work for us or against us.

I learned this the hard way through my messy experience with addiction. For years, I believed numbing away difficult emotions was the answer to my problems. What I yearned for was to be free of my worries. But rather than seek out solutions to those problems in a state of positivity and possibility, I sought out solutions from a place of fear and dread.

In that low vibration state, the idea my creative mind came up with to achieve the feeling I was looking for, was oblivion. That’s the state of being I thought would solve everything. So that’s the state of being I sought. Oblivion through the medium of alcohol.

My creative subconscious mind, that neutral executor of whatever I feed it, simply carried out this desire with ruthless creativity. I found ways to drink more and cover up the consequences. I rationalised it. I structured my life around it. I was brilliantly creative in service of a destructive desire to find oblivion.

The subconscious mind doesn't judge. It doesn't care if our desires and beliefs serve us or destroy us. It simply executes whatever program we install. With remarkable ingenuity.

I can see it now. It’s a hard lesson to learn. But there’s been one amazing revelation; once you see the pattern in action, you can start using it to work for you.

When Everything Shifts

The big shift for me has been better understanding desire. Getting underneath the question “what do we really want?” And making sure we’re not desiring something counterproductive.

The trick here, I believe, is not to focus on the question "How can I get what I want?" but start delving into the question "What do I actually want to feel?"

By focusing on the question “How can I get rid of my worries?” my creative mind provided a very effective answer “Drink yourself under the table and find oblivion.” But getting rid of my worries wasn’t actually what I wanted. Mainly because the method I ;anded on had some pretty horrific side effects.

If I had spent more time focused on the question “How do I want to feel?” I may have realised that what I really wanted was to feel a deep sense of peace. Oblivion is sort of peaceful for a while. But then the hangover kicks in and the shame-ridden, guilt-filled consequences of drinking are anything but peaceful.

If I had dwelt on that question for longer I may well have created a whole different experience for myself. I would have created a completely different path. I would have manifested a completely different life.

It’s interesting to follow that same thought process with your own desires.

What is it you really want? What do you truly desire?

Do you want your business to be more successful than it is? Do you want a new romantic relationship? Do you want a new job with more money? Do you want to start your own business? Think about what you really want for a minute.

Now strip away the layers of desires behind these ‘wants’ and you may well find that the things you’re coming up with are more like your best ideas to achieve a certain feeling. A more successful business may provide more income but it may also result in more stress. Do you truly desire that feeling? A new romantic relationship may provide companionship but is that the feeling you’re really after.

In answer to the question ‘what do you really want?’ I suspect the truth is that you want to feel valued, or feel free or feel loved, or cared for, or respected. The successful business, the new partner, the new job are just the stories you’re telling yourself of how you might unlock those feelings.

They may unlock them. But they may not. And that’s the point here.

The stories are absolutely fine. There’s no harm in wanting a more successful business, a new partner, or a new job. We should aspire to these things. But think about the state of being that’s calling from within before you settle on the way to achieve that state.

Dig into the yearning beneath your imagined solutions.

There are two big advantages of doing this deeper, inner work.

Firstly, by identifying the desired states of being coming from within, you can be sure that your creative subconscious mind is programmed with the correct information to help you hone in on to the right sort of successful business, or romantic partner, or new job.

Secondly, and here's where I think it gets interesting, once you identify the inner emotional need, you can choose to feel those desired feelings right now. You don’t have to wait for external circumstances to resolve themselves to grant those feelings to you. Feelings are not conditional on outside events. You can actively cultivate them in the present moment.

Not by ignoring or suppressing uncomfortable feelings with shallow positive thinking. But by acknowledging the reality of what you already have in your life and appreciating that the desired state you’re looking for is, in fact, within reach today.

For example, you may want a more successful business because you’re feeling financially insecure. Your desired state of being is therefore one of security. That’s good to know - growing your business using risky investments wouldn’t necessarily ease the feelings of security. But dig further and you’ll find the truth is you already have enough money to feel secure. You’ve always had enough money. You’ve always managed to get through. When have you ever died because you didn’t have enough money? You haven’t.

You may want more than you have. But that’s not the point. The point is that, it is entirely possible to experience the state of feeling secure now, because you already have enough to survive.

We always do.

The trick is to acknowledge this fact. To see the truth of this fact. And to feel it.

When we genuinely feel we have enough - not pretending, but actually experiencing enough-ness in our bodies - not only does our mood shift, our behaviours change too. Our perspectives change. Our choices shift. Our creative minds start working on the desires we’re holding in our minds in different ways.

This is the process of moving into the high vibration zones I talked about in the The Happiness Habit Newsletter #11 The High Vibration Business.

We may still desire ‘more security’ in our life. That’s fine. We can programme our creative sub-conscious minds to help find that security for us. But when we do so from a place of peace and fullness (high vibration) we start innovating in a different way. Ways in which we wouldn’t be able to access or see if we were in a place of fear and worry (low vibration). The ideas that come to us are different. The opportunities we notice are different. The chances we are willing to pounce on are different.

The world isn't changing us. We are changing it.

The Subconscious as Co-Creator

I made the decision at the start of this year to change the course of my life. I decided to be more open about my addiction and recovery. I decided to talk about spirituality and what it might mean to people. Especially people in business.

That decision came as a direct result of me wanting to feel more authentic and real about who I was and the journey I’ve been on. I wanted to feel free to talk about the things that were important to me.

I suspect I’ve had this desire for a long time. It was there two years ago when I decided to write the book. It was probably there many years before that too. I just didn’t act on it. I decided to ignore and suppress that inner most desire instead.

The reason? Fear. A very low vibration state.

I was worried what people would say about me openly talking about my alcoholism and spirituality. They’re not things people talk about in general. Certainly not on LinkedIn. And who was I to start talking about these things anyway? What sort of credibility did I have?

I was also worried whether I would be able to make living out of this new direction. I was worried about being a failure.

This is exactly the dynamic I talked about in part 1 of this newsletter. As an entrepreneur I had this urge to communicate my story, to be more authentic and real. I had this notion that I could teach people the things I had learned and maybe earn some money from that.

I felt compelled to create these ideas. I felt the urge to create a business from these ideas. But I was dogged by the cultural gene of doubt. I resisted the urge because my state of being was fear based; fear of failure, the imposter syndrome, the tendency towards perfectionism.

After some time, I managed to lift myself out of the state of fear into one of courage (one of the middle vibration zones).

I made the decision to start the process and write the book without really knowing how it would all transpire. I felt strongly that this was the right path to take. It felt right. My vibration lifted. I was optimistic. I had faith.

The moment I chose to go ahead in that state of high vibration, I took positive action. I re-designed my LinkedIn profile, started posting about my journey, I actively promoted my book. And then I noticed things shifting. Not just in the way I felt, but in my reality.

Conversations started happening. People started popping up in my life. Doors opened up that I hadn't even knocked on.

Was this just social media marketing in action? Well, yes. I was more visible on LinkedIn and so I was bound to get some sort of response.

Was this the universe responding to my soul-led desires? Well, yes. Some of the conversations didn’t come from any identifiable source. Totally random people got in touch with seemingly unrelated needs. There have been some very unexpected opportunities created that I could never have dreamed up.

Or maybe it was just my creative subconscious mind, now focused on a clear desire, working its magic in the background. Finding patterns. Connecting dots. Creating opportunities. Knowing what to say. Knowing how to act.

The point is that all these processes are in play. All these mechanisms are in action. And all are happening as a direct result of taking positive action on a heart-felt desire from a state of high vibration.

Most of our desires remain unfulfilled. Not because we can't have them, but because we haven't truly decided we want them. We want them with conditions. We want them without risk. We want them but worry we don’t deserve them. We want them without changing who we are. We approach them with low vibration trepidation, cynicism, unworthiness and fear.

But when you really decide - when you align your conscious desires with your unconscious creative power in a state of high vibration - you become unstoppable. Not because external forces magically bend to your will (although they might), but because you start bending reality through your positive choices, your focused attention, your optimistic attitude, your inspired actions.

Let the Magic Begin

Aligning authentic inner most desires with high vibration feelings and emotionally charged beliefs and then taking intuited positive actions.

This is the more subtle and nuanced path to the process some call manifestation. This is the way that creative entrepreneurs can bring new ideas into the world and NOT feel dragged down by our cultural gene of doubt.

I’d love to hear your take on this. Does any of this make sense to you?

And even better, let me know if you’d like to try this stuff out. Drop me a line and we can get to work on making the life you truly desire a reality.

Or you can make a start yourself. Simply start looking at your inner most desires, the core inner feelings that you want to experience and decide to make them real. Decide that you want to experience life that way. And find all the reasons why it is entirely conceivable to feel those feelings right now.

Not by wallpapering your despondency with false positivity. But by digging in to the beliefs that are making you feel despondent. Those beliefs aren’t real. They are limiting beliefs and they are limiting your experience of life.

Right now, in this very moment, you have everything you need to feel secure, worthy, validated, peaceful. We have it all in the present moment.

I know that sounds a bit zen and buddhist-like. But it’s true. Just sit with the thought that you have everything you need right now to feel the feelings you desire. Work through the stories about the future that worry you and discover the truth that they are false. Set aside the regrets of the past. Brush away those limiting beliefs.

What's actually happening right now? You're reading these words. You're breathing. Your heart is beating. In this present moment, stripped of all your busy, mental narratives, all of us have enough.

When you ‘get this’. When you truly feel this - not think it, but feel it in your bones - you’ve found the high vibration zone to get the magic started. Bring your desired state of being into mind. Imagine your future. Your creative mind can start working from abundance instead of scarcity.

The solutions you’ll generate from this palace are different. They’re better. They’re more aligned.

This is how the creative process works. You decide what you want to create, you align your inner state with that creation, then you let your magnificent creative mind do what it does best: turn ideas into reality.

The power is yours. It always has been. The creative capacity is always available. The feeling you've been chasing has always been within reach.

You don’t have to wait for permission from the universe. You're not dependent on external circumstances. You're not limited by your past.

You're a creative being with the power to decide what you want to feel, then use that feeling as fuel for creating the life that matches it.

Strip away the limiting beliefs and feel your desired reality now.

Your dreams await you.

Until next time,

Simon