Last week I noticed my brother trying to teach my three year old niece to say “I” – “I would like an apple…, I would like some grapes…” But she insisted that it should be said, “Vaishali wants an apple, Vaishali wants some grapes…!” Have you ever tried arguing with a three year old?

And what is more, she was right. Because right now at the age of three, she has not started to create her identity.

When you are born, you are whole, complete and perfect. Then what happens? The illusions of life begin to shroud your vision of reality as you begin to create your own map of the world. In fact, the creation of the identity occurs because of the basic principle that we are “meaning making machines.” Something happens in our life and we pass the information about the situation through the filters of deletion, distortion and generalization before the information is then represented to our conscious and unconscious mind. So we have added a meaning or further interpretation to what happened, without asking if this is a true representation of the situation.

Between the Ages of 1 to 5 A situation occurs such that you think something is wrong. The meaning that you add to it is ,”I failed to be….” , so you decide to be “X”. This is the first layer of your identity.

Between the Ages of 5 to 15 A situation occurs such that you think that you don’t belong to a particular group. The meaning that you add is, “I am different and I am not meant to be here”, and so you decide to be “Y”, such that you can “fit in”! This is the second layer of your identity.

Beyond the Ages of 15 A situation occurs such that you think you are on your own. The meaning that you add to it is, “I am alone”, and so you decide to be “Z”, such that you can say you are unique and separate from everyone. This is the third layer of your identity.

So in basic maths form, your identity I= X+Y+Z.

Actually you discover that it’s all a great big lie you have been telling yourself. When you walk the path of awareness and spirituality you will come to the point of asking the question “WHO AM I?” because consciously, deep down in your unconscious, and in your higher self, you know that the above formula is not true. Nothing is wrong, everything is perfect and is the way it is. It was just the meaning YOU attached to it.

You do fit in and you are meant to be here, because here you are. You are not alone, in fact you are connected to the infinite energy which is everywhere and everywhen. This energy is conscious and blissful, and this energy is who you are. So you are connected to everyone and everything. The truth is You are still whole and complete and as beautiful as the day you were born, and you are at choice. The choice is you can be whoever you chose to be in each moment. All you have to do is be honest about the “I” and give it up. What would life be like if you were to redefine your own foundation?

Because when you made those decisions you did not have enough life experiences to make the choices that would serve you in the future. You make decisions that will serve you in that instant because you did not know any better and some of those decisions may be holding you back from you experiencing your true nature.

You are the director, creator, editor and actor of your own reality. You are at choice in every moment. SO who do you want to be?

One question I am asked is that with this knowledge, could this whole process be avoided? The answer is no, because of the very way we are designed as meaning making machines, which is perfect, just like you. That just leaves me to conclude that there is so much we can learn from the honesty of a child.

As the world becomes more connected through the technologies of communication, it is also becoming easier to become disconnected from our own selves. The necessary quiet time that develops our natural, inborn connection with intuition and spiritual guidance is no longer easily found in our daily lives, and this can cause feelings of overwhelm, meaninglessness, and an inner sense of disharmony and emptiness.

In today’s world as we face unprecedented challenges both individually and collectively, there is also a very high level of daily stress that is constantly affecting our bodies, minds and emotions. Our daily lives are filled with intensity as we witness widespread social, political and climate change, uncertainty about the future, and fear of the unknown.

If these weren’t enough, there is also the effect of greater spiritual light expanding on the Earth, which is helping us to awaken spiritually, but is also creating a major cleansing process for us on all levels … spiritually, emotionally and physically. The pain of the past that we may have buried from our consciousness begins to surface into our awareness, bringing old feelings or physical symptoms to light.

We are all developing ways to cope with the increased levels of stress in our lives today. There are many spiritual tools and transformational supports that can assist you in reclaiming your inner connection with yourself. Once you create an intention to reconnect with your inner being, you will begin to draw to yourself the people, situations, and supports you need.

One of the most useful and simple ways to navigate through these very intense times is to develop a deeper connection with your natural intuitive spiritual guidance. Inner guidance is a gift from our soul to our embodied, human self which we all have access to. Some of us are more attuned to this part of ourselves, especially those who are artists, musicians, athletes, or whose work involves healing. Some of us may have learned to “turn off” this inner gift, because of childhood pressure to conform to social standards.

No matter how connected or disconnected you may feel from your inner spiritual guidance, everyone has the capacity to nurture, develop and strengthen this important part of ourselves. Living with an active and awake inner spiritual guidance offers us the opportunity to perceive and experience a whole new creative dimension of life. The universe of spiritual reality is vast and when intuition is activated, new experiences begin to open and create vaster and more meaningful possibilities.

In addition to expanding our daily experience of life, developing intuition and spiritual guidance serves to create a depth of connection to inner truth. If you’ve ever witnessed the simple and profound clarity of truth that comes from small children who have not yet learned to censor their inner guidance, you’ll have some idea of what is possible for yourself.

In today’s world where there are many sources of information that may or may not be accurate or truthful, your spiritual guidance and intuition can offer a clarity of direction in situations where it may not otherwise be possible to know what is real. As your intuition becomes more highly developed, you will be able to sense the presence of or the lack of love, light and warmth in people. You will be able to more easily discern what feels true or false to you, beyond the words that people say or the appearances that are presented.

In today’s world there is much at stake, and many choices are presented to us each day about who to listen to, and where to place our attention, time, and trust. If we are disconnected from ourselves and the center of our own being, then it is easier for us to be swayed in directions that depart from love and truth that we may later regret. Developing our inner spiritual guidance offers the precious gift of discernment, allowing us to see clearly what is true and what is not, and to navigate more easily in the great complexities and challenges that we face in today’s world.

Because the development of a positive mental attitude can be a truly daunting task for many people, the best way to begin is with a plan. All truly great endeavors, such as the making of the Empire State Building or the creation of the United States of America, each began with a plan. If the plan is a good one to start, it can later be improved upon and made to be even better. The beginning, however, will require a good plan and a devotion to success.

Once the plan has been set into order, it is best to give it a real practical edge. How exactly will you carry out your plan each day? How will you keep an eye on your progress and give yourself a regular assessment about your attitude? Here are some tips to get you started and to make your plan for a positive attitude more successful.

First, decide on just two or three things that you could do better to make your attitude a more positive mental attitude each day. Some people consider daily meditation to be a great way of improving their mental attitude throughout the day. It is easy to assess your progress with meditation because you simply mark it on your calendar each day that you sit still for 20 or thirty minutes. Over time, as you see the days being marked off consistently, you will also begin to see an improvement in your ability to sit still and to achieve a more calm mind. Then, after you have proven yourself to be truly dedicated to the task, you can increase the time to 30 or 40 minutes each day. This is one way to build up a more positive mental attitude in your life.

Another tip for creating a more positive mental attitude is to practice exercising several times a week. This can improve your health and your general attitude. It can also give you more confidence and make you more attractive to other people. This can do wonders for your self esteem and eventually lead to a better attitude. This is also very easy to assess each day in terms of progress and practical improvements because you can set goals for yourself and mark them off on the calendar as you achieve them. Don’t set your goals too high because you may not reach them and you may get discouraged too early. Set easy goals at first and pat yourself on the back when you achieve them. Save the improvements for after you have first proven yourself to be serious about following a plan.

Improving your mental attitude is really not that hard at any given time. The hard part comes when you first begin to feel that your plan is no longer interesting and you lose your excitement for improving. This is why it is good to increase your goal after a while and continue to mark the calendar even when you fail to live up to your goals. At least you are watching your progress and that is a lot more than you were doing before you started this new plan! Simple observation of yourself results in a positive improvement because you are applying the most powerful tool you have to your life. That’s your own mind! Improving your mind starts with using your mind and the improvements will naturally follow from there. It just takes a little common effort and some perseverance and you will find that your attitude will change at dramatic levels once the basic foundations of the plan have been set into order. America wasn’t built in a day and neither was the Empire State Building but they started with a good plan that they stuck to and finally carried out. You can also improve your attitude and eventually make yourself into a person who is full of happiness and bliss 100% of the time. If you believe you can do it, then it will come true!