Do You Already Hold the Key to The Answers You Seek?

This is one of the 112 stories included in my new book Wake Up Call: Daily Insights for the Spiritually Curious.

Have you ever had a tough decision to make, and you just can’t figure out what to do or where to turn? While we can tend to look outside ourselves for guidance—to friends, family members or even self-help books—0ften the answers we need are found a little closer to home.

In The Benevolent Universe, The Story of Your Unique Genius, Dana Drake puts forward a unique and powerful theory: any problems we have, any issues or big life questions we face, can all be solved by one person alone. You. In her words, “We are designed to know everything we wish to know,” including our purpose in life.

It’s Drake’s assertion that we’ve been given all the life tools we need by a Universe that “is not only kind, it is generous, forgiving and staggeringly compassionate.” Which raises several questions, including: If the Universe has given us these tools, why don’t we intuitively know about them?  And why do we struggle so mightily to navigate the many choices life presents us?

The problem for many of us: we put our ego in charge.

Drake writes that one reason we may perceive the Universe as being silent is our own human ego, “the ugly, hard shell of stories and behaviors we embody to protect our culture, our ideas, our beliefs.” She goes on to identify the ego as “the false, lesser self,” one that represses our soul’s connection to the higher, universal self.

As a result, we miss out on the guidance the Universe has to offer and “our lives become exercises in wake-up calls, where environmental factors such as divorce, accidents, or bankruptcy begin the self-reflection and awakening.” But ideally, we want to be able to bypass the more troubling “wake-up calls” of life. We want to be in a place where we make smart decisions from the get-go, where our actions are aligned with our purpose in life.

We need to function from a place of knowing before doing.

How do we do this? By tapping into a state of consciousness that Drake refers to as “genius.” While we often use this phrase to describe brilliant minds like Einstein or Marie Curie, she believes we all have the ability to access the genius within. That’s because it’s a trait given not just to a select few, but to everyone—a gift from the Universe. In Drake’s words: “Genius is simply our purest, most genuine self, manifesting that which comes effortlessly for each of us.”

The key to accessing this inner knowledge may be getting into a “zero state.”

Drake uses the phrase “the zero state” to describe the state of mind that puts us in touch with the universal consciousness. Think of the moments in life when you’re feeling totally calm and at ease. For me, this state can be induced through physical activities like running or a morning meditation session. Drake calls it “the state of the mind-body in oneness with the Universe … where we align ourselves with the true nature of our being.”  She continues:

When you achieve Zero, you will know you’re “there” and will redesign your entire existence to find more of it. This is the state in which you know your unique purpose on the earth. From Zero state, you will be guided step-by-step into an authenticity and abundance you’ve only glimpsed before.

It’s at these moments, when we immerse ourselves in “the boundless love and guidance of the Universe,” that we are best able to make difficult decisions and take a clear-eyed look at our lives. We can then determine if we’re on the right path or need to map out a detour to get back on course.

Drake believes that we all have our own unique path in life.

It is a sentiment shared by the spiritual teacher and author Caroline Myss who, in a conversation with Oprah Winfrey, once said that we all have a path—even if we are currently unaware of it. Myss suggests that we know when we are on that path because life just feels right. We know in our hearts that we’re not betraying or compromising ourselves.

Similarly, Drake writes that “the Universe is always conspiring to help us become conscious while on our path” and that “… we all have destinies. All of us. We are designed to know what we came here to do.” When we’re not on that path, we can sense that something is wrong. We might even feel ashamed of our past and present actions.

Not sure of your life path? The best way to find it may be to do nothing.

Drake advises that “doing nothing—literally and spiritually—is the highest choice when we don’t know what to do.” When we have the time (and we usually do), it’s best not to create an artificial deadline to make important decisions or attempt course corrections. We need to wait and do the right thing rather than to try and force the action. That means:

No speaking, no acting out, no eating, smoking, texting. Simply witness your stories and pain until it softens into wisdom of the mind-body. The energetic block releases, compassion awakens. Do nothing, change everything.

We must live our lives with compassion—especially toward ourselves.

No beating ourselves up for past mistakes or blaming ourselves if the answers we seek don’t come instantly. As a wise acquaintance once said, “Always give yourself the same love, compassion and acceptance that you seek from others.” In closing, Drake gives us the following reminder, one that encapsulates her philosophy:

We are designed for happiness and bliss every moment. If we are looking for others to fix us, we are disconnected from the place that knows we fix ourselves. When we are ready to seek true understanding and health and happiness, it will come.