Self-Mastery

Many people cultivate their gifts, talents, and abilities. However, because they’re not entirely healthy on the inside, as they climb the ladder of career success, what was missing in their personal lives begins to hinder the progression of their professional lives. In fact, some extremely intelligent people and talented entertainers became poor pilots of their own lives ending in bad and often fatal behaviors including, substance abuse, broken marriages, sexual violence and sometimes even murder or suicide. The reason for this is because they failed to do the personal homework necessary for sustaining an overcoming and fulfilling life. We have discovered that emotional intelligence (EQ) of which self-mastery is based, addresses the issues that many fail to discover and develop and when integrated in one’s lifestyle, it can lead to a life of resiliency and optimum productivity.

Self Mastery in a nutshell is maintaining a state of emotional awareness and stability regardless of what is going on around you. Awareness means that even when faced with adversity, you are able to maintain a healthy “state of being” to make a right decision. It means that even though you are in a storm, you never allow the storm to get in you. Self Mastery does not focus on the behavior; rather it identifies the root of incapacitating emotional patterns developed over time in one’s life and then reshaping those patterns to produce inward strength and power. It is not about being perfect, it’s about acquiring and cultivating skills that enable a person to develop and maintain an emotional state that is empowering in the face of challenges. It’s about developing and maintaining a healthy relationship with oneself.

What most people fail to realize is that pressures in life rarely create the emotional distress that one experiences; it simply exposes the emotional patterns individuals have developed over the years, often times since childhood. When the crises occur, that pattern simply has a face. The distress exposes a way of thinking and processing of reality that must be analyzed. The benefit of identifying negative thought patterns and responses that have plagued an individual most of their life is they now have an opportunity to re-write a script that will enable them to pilot their life with a sense of accuracy ultimately leading them closer to a life of fulfillment. Self Mastery also reveals the benefits of life’s contradictions. We all have challenges; it’s a part of life. What many fail to recognize, however, is that not all challenges or contradictions are bad and are certainly not designed to take you out of the game of life. In the book, we call these contradictions “Life Maturing Events” (LMEs). Although they rarely feel like it, LMEs are really gifts in disguise. As one grows in life, life demands more responsibility. For example, the life of a single person is not as demanding as the life of someone who’s married; add children to the equation and our ability to process information begins to affect more and more of our surroundings and relationships. Without this knowledge, through ignorance, people walk away from the very thing designed to perfect them—such as marriage, relationships, or children.

The information in this book is vitally important for many reasons; not only will it significantly decrease mental health issues such as depression and suicide, or maladaptive behaviors such as sexual violence or substance abuse, to name a few, it will also enable individuals to practice state management which inevitably will lead to discovering and utilizing their unique gifts; the catalyst for fulfilling purpose and true happiness.

Another reason we believe this information is vital, neuroscientists (those who study how the brain works) purport that every individual is hard-wired to operate at genius capacity, especially in the area of his or her gifting. Some are gifted to sing, others to dance; some to teach, others to be physicians. This is only possible, however, through recognition and cultivation of those gifts combined with state management, a critical component of Self Mastery. According to Abraham Maslow, the psychologist famous for the hierarchy of needs theory, an individual will never be happy until they have self-actualized (expressing their gift and passion in a cause greater than themselves). It’s what we have all been created to accomplish. Everyone has something to offer.

At the end of the book, we have included a Chapter Review and Study Guide to be used with each chapter. Also referred to as food for thought, it is designed to trigger something in you so that you can daily develop recipes that will nourish your mind so that you can respond to life's pop quizzes in a healthy manner. When we exercise the body, we must always replace it with the nourishment to support us throughout the day. Likewise, we must exercise and develop the mind by living a disciplined thought life. Once this book is devoured, you will be equipped to destroy any disempowering scripts that have crippled you or prevented you from enjoying life. Self Mastery is a key to unlock the door that will provide you an overcoming and fulfilling life.