The Life of Freedom | Overcoming Self-Consciousness

Listen to episode 460 of the Inspirational Living Podcast: The Life of Freedom | Overcoming Self-Consciousness. Edited and adapted from The Freedom of Life by Annie Payson Call.

Inspirational Podcast Excerpt: Self-consciousness may be truly defined as a person's inability to get out of their own way. There are, however, some people who are so entirely self-conscious that don’t even realize it. They are so completely in bondage to themselves that they have no glimpse of the possibility of freedom, and therefore this bondage is pleasant to them.

With these people there is nothing to do. It is only those who have begun to realize their bondage that can take any steps toward freedom. The self-satisfied slaves must stay in prison until they see where they are. It is both curious and sad to see them rejoicing in their bondage and miscalling it freedom. Indeed, it makes one long to see them struck by an emergency, bringing a flash of that inner light which is often the beginning of a new state of being.

When such enlightenment occurs, it is usually followed by a time of groping in the dark, and always by more or less suffering. But one must continue on the path, assured of the good results to come. Self-development requires that we be steadily patient, content to aim in the true direction day by day, hour by hour, minute by minute. If we fall, we must pick ourselves up and go right on. Whatever the stone may be that we have tripped over, we will have learned that it is there, and, while we may trip over the same stone many times, if we learn our lesson each time, it decreases the possible number of stumbles, and smooths our path more than we know.

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