- In denial
- Frustrated
- Hopeful
- Learns about the Ideal Career Framework
- Discovers her passion
- Discovers her talent
- Creates a solution for clients
- Expands her circle of concern to more people (spiritual/moral evolution)
- Achieves creative power over her ideal career and life
- Becomes a supreme Jedi Master like Peter (just kidding)
The above should give you a very rough idea of the various stages of evolution expected of most human beings.
The first stage is “denial” and this is probably one of the most difficult stages, because a person who’s in denial, by definition, does not know that she is in denial. Similarly, a person who is drunk cannot know that she is drunk!
The source of this denial is the ego, which drives the person to want to be “right” rather than ” happy.” People who are in denial are often very argumentative, very critical of others and of anything that’s going on in the world, and very judgmental. They defend their point of view all the time, insisting that they are right and that others are wrong. They have a very fragile self-esteem, and therefore they feel vulnerable and will attack anyone who “seems” to attack them or their decisions or their lifestyle. They will do everything the system requires of them, because they want to be right. They are addicted to routine and are afraid of anything new (which they will instantly criticize because they fear change and they prefer to “stick to the tested and proven”).
Regarding their careers, some people can be in denial for 10, 20 or even 30 years. They may have issues that they want to work on, at their own pace, so do not give in to the temptation to “judge” them for you would then be expressing your own ego. This will be difficult at times, because they will not hold back in criticizing YOU! Their negative comments will sometimes hurt you, but just realize that they are in trouble and are only seeking help, and their criticism or anger is just a cry for help.
Next, we have people who have come out of denial, and have an idea of what they want. What they REALLY want might not be clearly defined, but they KNOW that what they currently have is NOT what they want. In short, they’ve stopped believing the illusion they’ve created, and have escaped the self-denial trap.
So now, they’re frustrated, because they know that THIS job or life is NOT what they want, but they feel there are obstacles that prevent them from getting what they want (even though what they want is not clearly defined in their mind).
However, “frustrated” is good, compared to “self-denial”!
At this stage, the key is to fill one’s mind with positive success stories and to seek the company of successful and inspiring people, like Peter Nguyen. Just kidding.
The key is to move from “frustrated” to “hopeful”. To paraphrase the future President of the United States, Barack Obama, it takes audacity to hope. It takes a certain daring of the heart to seize hope when one is frustrated.
I will write more about how to increase your sense of hope.
