Nothing you dont already know Nothing you dont already know Remarkable reminders about meaning, purpose, and self realization Alexander den Heijer Nothing you don’t already know Remarkable reminders.Nothing you dont already know Nothing you dont already know Remarkable reminders about meaning, purpose, and self realization Alexander den Heijer Nothing you don’t already know Remarkable reminders.
Nothing you don't already know Remarkable reminders about meaning, purpose, and self-realization Alexander den Heijer Nothing you don’t already know: Remarkable reminders about meaning, purpose and self-realization © 2018 Alexander den Heijer Re-edited, October 2019 All rights reserved This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review Photo by Steven Borghouts Editing by Julia Willard www.alexanderdenheijer.com alexander@purposologist.com “Life is a school where you learn how to remember what your soul already knows.” – Unknown Introduction In September 2015 I started an Instagram page called @Purposologist I wanted to have a platform where I could share ideas about self-realization and purpose All my life I’ve been fascinated with these topics, and in 2015 I felt the desire to share some insights that I thought might be useful to others Self-realization means two things to me On the one hand it’s about the actualization of our potential; to become what we are capable of being On the other hand, it’s about getting to know our true selves This book is about both The words I share on Instagram have been read and shared by millions of people I’m very grateful for all the support and feedback that I have received so far The encouragement and support of so many people resulted in the idea to write this book I once read that if you write to yourself, you write to an eternal audience That’s exactly what I did What I have written was initially meant to make sense of myself, and to remind myself of the things that I believe are important in life Each page in this book has a new insight for you to reflect on The book is laid out in such a way that allows you, the reader, to read it from start to finish or to flip it open to a page and use that insight as a daily reflection The chapters of the book represent my own journey They follow a path that may be recognizable to many of us; from being stuck in a place where we don’t want to be, to being in a position where we can inspire others I have also been inspired by many people on my journey; philosophers, psychologists, spiritual teachers and many more In the back of the book you’ll find a list of people that have inspired me in one way or another This book is not meant to tell you what to do; it’s only meant to make you think It’s not meant to tell you the truth either; it’s meant to encourage you to explore the truth for yourself Just see what resonates with you I believe the best books don’t necessarily teach you anything new, they just point to that which is already inside of you The only thing that I can do is share with you what I have learned, and hope that it will inspire you The word ‘inspire’ literally means ‘to breathe life into’ That’s the most beautiful thing words have ever done for me and I hope the words in this book may do the same for you Alexander Contents Title Page A call for change Leave the ordinary Overcome fear Know yourself Transformation Make a difference Inspire others A call for change You often feel tired, not because you’ve done too much, but because you’ve done too little of what sparks a light in you Many of us spend our working days running from desk to desk, solving urgent but insignificant problems Our managers are constantly searching for ways to get more out of us We’re habitually living in the future, thinking about the next quota to make, the next meeting, the next car to buy, the weekend We’re constantly trying to get somewhere instead of being where we are We miss the only moment we ever have access to The Now We spend more time at work than with our loved ones And when we come home, we are busier connecting to our devices than to the people we love We have become little more than zombies Yet we wonder, ‘Why am I so tired?’ We figure it’s because we work too much What if we’re not doing too much, but rather we’re just doing too little of what truly matters? It’s not hard work that exhausts us most, it’s meaningless work that exhausts us most The most harmful road is not the road with the toughest obstacles, but the road that’s heading in the wrong direction The most joyful state of being is being of service Aristotle said, “Where your talents and the needs of the world cross, there lies your purpose.” When we find a way to use our unique gifts in a way that it serves the greater good, we may experience the most fulfilling act in the world; the act of service When we are in service to the collective, we lose our sense of self and we are completely in sync with the present moment It’s the state in which the dancer becomes one with the dance This state of being can only come to us if we completely surrender to the work we are doing If we serve others solely out of obligation, it may drain us But if we serve others out of love, it may vitalize us If we expect something in return, we are not really serving Serving is not pleasing Pleasing is done with the intent to get something True service is selfless It's one of the highest gifts we can give to others, but also to ourselves Interesting people may be noticed, but interested people are the ones who are remembered Inspiring are the people who have never lost their childlike curiosity It’s refreshing to meet people who are genuinely curious and interested It’s even more refreshing to be such a person Train yourself to focus on other people Take the time to listen to people Be open to what people have to say Being open to people means that you are willing to be influenced by what the other person has to say Open up and listen fully Pay attention True connection requires your full presence If you are fully present, you inspire the other person to be present as well Find opportunities to connect Sometimes the best thing you can do to people is to really be with them There is no present more precious than your presence The heroes that inspire you are the ones that give you a glimpse of your own potential Michael Jackson once said, “The greatest education in the world is watching the masters at work.” Watching our heroes perform their craft can be extremely inspiring It doesn’t matter who these heroes are or what they do, but what matters is that they provide us with an example of excellence Their presence has the power to awaken parts in us that have been dormant They show us what we can be if we give it our best, every single day They make us dream bigger, aim higher, and push harder And it’s not even them; it’s a part of ourselves that we can see through them A hero is someone who embodies a set of universal virtues The point is not to idolize the person, but to embody those same virtues Find yourself some role models, some people you look up to People you can learn from This is one of the fastest ways to unlock your potential It’s not selfish to live according to your values; it’s selfish to demand that others live according to your values It’s on us to decide to live our lives in a way that we think is best It’s not on us to demand that others live their lives according to our values Before we try and demand anything from others, we must reflect deeply on our motivations Before we go out and try to change the world, we may have to ask ourselves why we want to change the world in the first place So that we can be happy? Why does the world need to change to make us happy? What makes us think we know what’s best for the world? “Yesterday I was clever so I wanted to change the world Today I am wise so I am changing myself.” – Rumi Be wise and focus on the way you live your own life, and let others be free to explore theirs Make your life a work of art Your own self-realization may be the best way to inspire the world Don’t work to survive; work to create something that survives you Time is our most valuable possession We cannot buy time We cannot get back lost time We cannot even decide how much time we have; we can only decide what to do with the time we are given We are just a flash in time and it’s up to every individual to decide how to make the best use of it A fulfilling way to spend our lives is to use it for something that will outlive it It’s amazing to be part of something bigger than ourselves, to create something that lives on long after we’re gone Use your time to leave behind something that is timeless Leave a legacy Not for the sake of being remembered, but for the sake of leaving the world a bit better off as a result of your existence Champions don’t show up to get everything they want; they show up to give everything they have To live a deeply fulfilling life, don’t strive to get everything you want from life Instead, give life everything you have Getting what you want causes a sense of achievement which is satisfying, but giving everything you have causes a sense of fulfillment, which may be more enduring and inspiring And guess what… we cannot control how much we get from life, we can only control how much we give Judge your day by what you’ve put into it, not by what you got out of it Give life everything you have and you can never fail, because failure is not about the absence of rewards and success Failure is about the absence of wholehearted effort At the end of the day, the question is not, ‘How much of what was out there did I get?’ But rather, ‘How much of what was in me did I give?’ People who have inspired me through their work Alan Watts Carl Gustav Jung Eckhart Tolle Erich Fromm Jan Bommerez Jordan B Peterson Ken Wilber Lao Tzu Marja de Vries Meister Eckhart Richard Barrett Rumi Simon Sinek S.N Goenka Ulisse di Corpo Viktor Frankl About the author Alexander den Heijer is a Dutch speaker, writer, and corporate trainer living in Amsterdam His workshops and talks about self-realization and purpose reach thousands of people from all over the world He is frequently consulted by organizations to share his insights on self-realization, personal leadership, and transformation Alexander has always been fascinated by the question, ‘What makes people flourish?’ this question has sent him on an infinite quest to understand human beings, especially himself He draws inspiration from many disciplines, including physics, biology, philosophy, spirituality, and ancient wisdom He believes no single discipline can answer the questions that are facing us We must see ourselves from different perspectives to understand and develop ourselves To book Alexander as a speaker or trainer, please visit www.alexanderdenheijer.com .. .Nothing you don't already know Remarkable reminders about meaning, purpose, and self-realization Alexander den Heijer Nothing you don’t already know: Remarkable reminders about... Photo by Steven Borghouts Editing by Julia Willard www.alexanderdenheijer.com alexander@ purposologist.com “Life is a school where you learn how to remember what your soul already knows.” – Unknown... So find out what it is you want, and cut off what's irrelevant Believe in yourself You become what you believe you can be Henry Ford once said, ‘Whether you believe you can do a thing or not, you are right.’ To be able to get something done, we must believe it is possible, even