The Enemy Within - Grasshopper

We all have an enemy within. In fact, it’s our most fierce opponent.

It’s with us 24-7 and we’re not going to defeat it, at least not in this lifetime.

The best we can do is peacefully coexist, even though it launches attacks on us every day.

Who is this enemy and how can we get it to attack us less often?

It’s our thinking.

You’ve heard the expression, “He’s his own worst enemy.” It also applies to “shes” as well.

The expression makes more sense when we discover that most of us believe that we are our thoughts – therefore our own worst enemy.

I’ll save the speech that we aren’t our thoughts for another time, but in this time, I’d like to offer a strategy to  neutralize the enemy within.

It’s a simple method that works wonders, but you got to work at it. That method is to “notice your thinking.”

That means to catch yourself in the middle of a thought and just observe your mind at work. Don’t engage in debate with the thought machine, just watch it in action. By doing so, you’ll discover what I did years ago: Your mind has a mind of its own.

It will prattle on and let you know how deficient you are in so many areas of your life. It will attack you from all angles that you have to keep your head on a swivel to ward off all the assaults. 

If you observe your mind rather than argue with it, you’ll be treated to the theatre of your mind. It’s quite entertaining. But the bigger reward of noticing your mind at work is that you’re no longer under attack, because you recognize you’re not the voice in your head; you’re the observer of that nagging contraption.

The observer isn’t being attacked; the participant is. What a relief it is not to be on the battlefield when you observe. 

Your mind won’t ever stop attempting to lure you back into the arena for a cage match fight, but it will stop attacking you when you stop and take the time to notice your mind at work.

The more often you observe, the less often the attacks will come. 

Noticing your thinking is a lifelong habit worth cultivating. It keeps the enemy within from showering you with chagrin.

All the best,
John