Four Levels of Consciousness
While in NLP Practitioner Training this weekend I was fortunate once again to be re-united with Master Coach and trainer Helen Attridge Green as we studied Success Strategies. Helen is an extraordinarily successful coach, so it was a lot of fun taking apart her process to see what her goals are and how it is that she assesses who she wants to work with.
The first step of success lies in having an outcome, so the question was asked of Helen, what if you honestly don’t have any idea of what you want? What if all you know is that you’re not happy with the way things are?
This question spawned a number of things one can do to get the focus to shift toward a desired experience, one of the most powerful though was the Four Levels of Consciousness.
A Self-Assessment Tool
What I love about this model is how it can be quickly applied to just about any situation. It makes it really easy to identify what level you’re operating from, where you need to be and the single most valuable thing that will lead you to your desired place. For anyone well traveled on the personal development road…this is amazingly handy!
Life is Happening TO ME
The first level is Life is Happening to Me. In this stage you feel victimized and helpless…as if you have absolutely no power and that something else has to happen in your external environment in order to make a change. To move out of this stage you have to give up blame.
Life is Happening BY ME
The second level is Life is Happening By Me. In this stage you will feel that you have complete control over everything and that it will happen because you will make it happen. This is the highly driven personal action stage. In order to move out of this stage you have to relinquish control.
Life is Happening THROUGH ME
The third level is Life is Happening Through Me. In this stage you feel that you are here for a reason and that you have a purpose. You have gifts, you ‘re in touch with your Higher Power. You trust that you will get what you need, you don’t even have to try that hard to get it and know that worry just cuts you off from Source. In order to move out of this level you need to release separation.
Life is Happening AS ME
The fourth level of consciousness is Life is Happening As Me. In this stage you feel that there is no separation between you and Spirit and you and others. You show up without the beliefs that keep you separate so you are operating from a perspective of compassion in which you don’t necessarily feel that you need to change others or the environment because you see yourself as an extension of it.
Constantly Moving
In any context we are constantly moving back and forth between these different levels of operation all of the time. We often do this unconsciously in reaction to whatever is presenting itself to us within our life situations.
The Four Levels of Consciousness model allows us to purposefully assess where we are currently operating within our contexts and if that is the most appropriate and productive approach or if another level might serve us better within our experience?
It also provides a platform from which we can understand how it is that we participate in each level, how we create it and where to make the change in order to create something else.
Making the decision to live through your spiritual heart is the first step to inviting your wildly loving, passionately creative and truly free self into the world. It takes courage to be revolutionary and make the shift toward spiritual consciousness, which is why I'm passionate about helping people develop a relationship with their Inner Knowing through their Angels, Higher Selves and Spirit Guides. When we see our life from their perspective we develop the courage to be who we REALLY are!
Comments
By Andrea Hess|Empowered Soul on February 8th, 2008 at 8:33 am
This is a fantastic article, Paula! I love this frame of reference. It’s a great way of bringing consciousness to our life experience. Thanks for sharing!
Blessings,
Andrea
By Paula Kawal on February 11th, 2008 at 9:01 am
Hey Andrea!
You’re welcome. I’ve been using this one a lot and find it very handy
Much love,
PK
By Ari Koinuma on June 27th, 2008 at 6:38 am
Hello, just came over from pinkblock’s blog carnival.
Now, here is something I haven’t read before, and is a nice insight into where we are in terms of self-awareness. It looks like I’m somewhere around the 3rd level. It’s still a struggle, though — I haven’t quite reached the level of trust it takes to go up yet, though I am improving.
Thanks for the insight.
ari
By Paula Kawal on June 27th, 2008 at 3:16 pm
Hi Ari!
And welcome to the blog!
One distinction that I think is important to make here is that we are moving through these levels all the time. It is not the goal to achieve one and stay there as there times when another level would be a more appropriate response to that particular situation in life.
The idea is to self-assess and ask, what could be useful here? What is needed for movement and the kind of results I’d like to experience?
I’d also guess there are times when you have experienced that trust…many people have this experience in sports. Their bodies just know it’s right and often times they don’t even have to look. This is often described as being in “the zone”. It happens in music too, anytime you’re so involved and in a state of oneness with the moment that you forget yourself qualifies…even if it’s very brief
Love and Light,
PK
By James | Dancing Geek on April 21st, 2009 at 5:22 pm
Hi Paula,
This looks like a really useful tool, I would love to see more examples of it to get a better grasp. For example, you talk about the situation of not having a goal, of just knowing something is wrong. How would that specific example look in these 4 stages?
Thanks for sharing this framing.
By Paula Kawal on April 24th, 2009 at 10:34 am
Hi James,
I did write a post using this model called Falling Down – http://www.journeyinpro.com/2008/04/falling-down/ – which explains another scenario, however, let’s also address your question here.
So taking for example the scenario of losing your job. The “To Me” level of consciousness will sound something like this…I wouldn’t be out of work if our government weren’t such a mess. Or, if only the economy would improve, then I could get a job.
This same scenario in the “By Me” level would sound something like this…If there’s a job out there I’ll find it. I’m going to apply at every job until I get one. Or I’m going to create my own job by doing what I’ve always really wanted to do anyhow. I’ll work hard and it will work out.
In the “Through Me” level is would sound like…I’m certain that this will open the doors for something even better to come along. There is a learning that I can take from this experience that will help me down the road. Though this looks a little uncertain, I’m sure that it is in my Highest Good for me to move away from this company at this time.
And the “As Me” level would have no thought or concern at all attached. As me would be pure non-judgmental acceptance to the point where there is no internal dialog regarding it. It would sound like…empty space and silence because all is as it should be. There is no need to think about what to do next, as that will rise up and flow through you at the needed moment. You would accept that the job ending and enjoy each moment after completely undiminished by the prior experience, with in fact, a contented knowledge that your part in that experience is to dance with the others involved and is unfolding perfectly
So if your goal is to get another job – “to me” will keep you stuck. “by me” will give you the energy for the action you need to take, “through me” will help you learn so that you can make a better match next time around and “as me” would provide you with peace. So as you can see, you can choose whichever is most appropriate for your current situation and move through them as needed to get where you need to go.
Thanks for commenting!
Blessings,
PK
Trackbacks