Expect

People expect things from us — and we feel those expectations. We feel them so strongly that we often mistake them for our own feelings. Then we react accordingly. Everyone has a feeling part, and this is one of the things that leads us into trouble.

Following our own true feelings leads us to success, joy, and fulfillment. Following other people’s expectations leads to hell.
Life is that simple. And we are all more sensitive than we think.

These expectations come in different levels — from the driver behind you who thinks you’re going too slow to the family member who quietly wishes you didn’t exist.

So how do you discern what’s yours and what isn’t? You need two things: a baseline and a direction.

Baseline

A baseline is a reference point you set each morning as part of a simple daily routine.

Start by tuning into the energy of the day:

• Family energy is slow and gentle.

• Action energy is fast, sharp, and “get ’er done!”
  These energies range from Level 1 to 7.
  Say today feels like Orientation — Level 4, medium energy.

Next, consider your curriculum for the day.
What do you want to learn?
How do you want to feel?

Ask yourself: “How do I want to feel today?”
Keep it simple — pick one focus.

Let’s say today is work.
Ask: “How do I want to feel at work?”
Answer: compact.

Meditate for a minute on being compact.
Say to yourself: This is my baseline.
Then go through your gift order: See it, feel it, understand it, know it.

When You Encounter Other People’s Energy

Now you arrive at work and suddenly you feel racy, pressured, overwhelmed — like there’s too much to do or you’re wondering what someone else is thinking.
This is your sign: you’ve walked into a storm of emotions that aren’t yours.

It’s raining feelings all over the place.
You need an umbrella or you’ll get soaked.

So get soaked.
Then get a towel. Regroup.
Return to your baseline and remind yourself:

These feelings are not mine.
You don’t have to absorb them.
Simply recognizing them for what they are neutralizes their influence.

They aren’t aligned with your feeling of compact.
They aren’t part of your life plan.
So let them go back to wherever they came from and stay calm, cool, and collected.

The Stronger Expectations

Sometimes expectations from others are stronger, deeper, and more persistent. These usually come from family, friends, or coworkers. They are ongoing and often feel like they’ve blended into your baseline.
“That’s just the way I am.”

This energy is sticky. Yucky.
It shows up as:

• “Why does he have to be here?”

• “Why does he get all the attention?”

• “What makes him think he’s so smart?”

This is the energy of undermining, sabotage — friendly fire.
People who smile on the outside but quietly hope for your downfall.
If you disappeared, they’d be relieved.

When this energy hits, treat it like a storm:
Batten down the hatches and ride it out.
Persevere in your direction and the storm will dissipate.

Do not feed the storm.
Don’t react to insults or rejection.
Don’t ignore it — but don’t engage it either.
Keep your windows closed. Keep that energy out of your aura.

Eventually, the storm will blow over.
It’s looking for a reaction. Don’t give it one.

Relax and stay open.
This will infuriate the hater enough to frustrate their plans.
Be patient — haters are slow learners.

You can even enjoy the attention, treating it as a strange form of praise.

A hater hates because they perceive you as better than them at something.
True or not, their perception drives the hate.

Know who the haters are in your life. Everyone has a couple.
Think of them like your little harem — and you are the king.
You decide who you want to let close.

Stray Thoughts

Sometimes feelings and thoughts aren’t directed at anyone.
They’re just lying around in the environment waiting for a host — waiting for someone to pay attention.

They’re like bugs.
Like a sudden itch or a sharp pain that comes out of nowhere.
Rub it and it goes away.

These are stray thought-forms looking for a place to take root — like weed seeds blowing in the wind.

The most obvious example: scrolling the internet.
You’re curious, you click, and suddenly you’re absorbed.
This wasn’t part of your plan — other than “find something interesting.”
You could spend all day feeding these thought-forms.
They’re usually harmless.
All they want is your time and attention.
They feed off you.

They steal your energy, your life force, and when they’re satisfied they drift away — until you return tomorrow.

Questions Worth Asking

How valuable is your time?
How valuable is your attention?
How much do you respect yourself?
When will you stop looking outside yourself for the fulfillment that can only come from following your own true feelings?

It might be worth taking a moment to actually answer these questions.

Tomas Burke
www.spiritual-pilgrim.com