How To Feel Satisfied

Do you feel satisfied?

We are all searching for meaning in the unknown. Life, we’ll say. Whether God, purpose, money or love our answers lie in the undetermined (or what we believe to be). We have a relationship with this unknown. It holds as much of our dreams as our fears, for we are deeply connected to something we can touch, but do not understand.

At the root of our relationship with the unknown are the patterns we sort to guide our lives, choices and decisions.  We have the archetype of the person we want to be and we pattern sort to support and justify our beliefs.

But what is Pattern Sorting and why is it so important to the unknown?

It is the recognition of behavior, actions, or causes triggering outcomes, by way of identifying a desired outcome first to understand and then engineer the components to achieve it.

In small ways, it is much like buying a refrigerator — we suddenly notice every refrigerator in every kitchen, cold water, ice makers, french doors, etc. When we are buying a new car, they magically come into focus on each drive, with stick and trunk space, leading us to the surfing adventures we so seek. We must ask ourselves simply “what am I wanting?” because that is what you will search for at every opportunity, and in many cases without mindfulness as to whether or not you are seeking the car or the adventure itself. If you fail to ask, you will subconsciously search without direction. Sort correctly and you can wisely choose your next step, predict markets, and find the truth wherever you search.

It’s in everything: Am I pattern sorting to bring us together or pattern sorting to break us apart? Keep this job or leave it? Have children, get married? Often, we do not see that in our moments of hyper focus, we lose sight of the great periphery, and all the available queues, data, signs, and signals that can better help us make more informed decisions.

As a species we are constantly searching, sorting and connecting. Understanding this allows us to utilize our brains as they should be used: we use our hearts to make a decision and our brains to execute it. When we access decisions from our brain we are only talking to ourselves — when we are deciding from the heart we are connected to everything else.

The key in recognizing the most optimal patterns is to be calm, present, and engaged. It is the truth we largely ignore, making most large decisions reactively when we are pushed or compelled by strong emotion. Leave this job, Brexit, end your marriage — the list is long.

Happiness is not a pursuit. It is a place of contentment and acceptance when we truly realize that all is as it should be. That we are part of something greater than ourselves. It is when we trust that everything in front of us is for our higher good. It is when we are found. It can be elusive.  We all want happiness on demand. We want it to be as easy as a Google search.  And it can be.

The most important part is to ask yourself what you are searching for. You may find it in innovation, co-creation and partnership as it is only in our relationships that we experience love, which is our driving force in the happiness field.

Our struggle remains with trusting the unknown and realizing that most of our surprises are benevolent.

The solutions we are all dancing around and not discussing are found in recognizing the patterns that have lead to thousands of years of hatred, persecution, war, slavery, misogyny and bigotry and changing them.  Once we understand it, we need to pattern sort for new ways to make basic connections and communicate from a heart based place that recognizes that fundamentally; We. Are. All. Here.

All of our actions must lead to acceptance, bring us closer, make us listen and encourage understanding. YOU can always make a difference by simply taking a deep breath and choosing to follow your heart and not your head. Demanding that each human exchange is mutually beneficial. If each move and decision we make is towards at first achieving the most basic human needs (food, shelter, and safety) for everyone, then there is lots of room to freely play in the collective unknown. Room for every person to explore that all important connection.

But right now too few of us feel safe, or are well fed.

We all need to be talking about just that. Sharing our dreams and letting our imaginations run wild is a good place to start. We need to discuss and change our individual patterns, until the air is dry in our lungs and our hearts ache. Until we are not ashamed. Embarrassed. Angry. Misunderstood. We need to trust that the unknown knows exactly where it is taking us. Wherever it is, it may just be our happy place. You never know when the unknown will bite you in the ass. And that is kind of exciting.

Satisfaction is in recognizing that you can only be in this moment. And that now is the only time to do anything. It’s in open dialogue, communication and clearly asking for what you want and recognizing it is all there waiting for you in the unknown. Pattern sort with your head, follow your heart and don’t be surprised when it actually shows up. Sort for Love. Ask. Aspire. Hope. Recognize that in this life, in your life as much as ours, we must start with the right questions in the unknown.