Why did you stop drinking alcohol Kinja? So many people have asked me this during the last 13 years. My answer is really simple; when I looked at my track record, I did not have a ceiling and came to the conclusion that drinking would be my downfall if I did not stop. October 31st 2009 was my last alcoholic beverage. Drinking served one purpose in my life and that was to enhance my enjoyment through more intoxication. This awakening did not just happen out of the blue. Years of results with a mixture of personal development helped me get to a place when I was wise enough to stop administering my version of “kryptonite” to myself. Unhealthy foods, promiscuity, and several other forms of "kryptonite" have been discovered and addressed as well.
My history is why I will never tell someone else what they should or should not do when it comes to their happiness. I really do believe that the strongest awakenings begin from internal processes; there may be several influential processes that happen along one’s journey, but until that light bulb comes on due to self-realization, the statistics show that homeostasis will keep us doing what is most common and comfortable. Something drastic usually has to take place, and this is the problem for most people. The average person is not an extremist, so they never get to that drastic, do or die state where change must happen; that type of lifestyle usually leads to a slow and steady decline. In my opinion, my addictive and extremist personality helped me realize my issues quicker, which forced me to deal with them urgently instead of the slow and steady approach.
What if humans were expected to get better over time instead of slowly declining? What if the “average” human results led to more flexibility, emotional stability, financial freedom, and less stress as we got older? How would a phenomenon like that even take place? The answer is going to serve as a reminder of what we talked about earlier. More of us would have to become aware of what our versions of “kryptonite” are. We are born into households and sometimes our versions of “kryptonite” are given to us when we are one, two and three years old. We get addicted and can’t live without them for the remainder of our lives. In other cases, we get older and get introduced to our versions of “kryptonite”. And in many cases, it is not just one thing; there are several emotions, actions, people, responses, etc, that contribute to our trails of minor and major “kryptonites”.
How can you tell if something is “kryptonite”’? That is one of the biggest questions in each of our lives. The actions that continue to lead to the biggest problems we face; however, we must have awarness levels that allow us to witness what our problems are. Through my perspective, I think the Four Pillar Grades are a great start. Food, sex, social media, status, attention, and jeaolosy are all examples of possible “kryptonites”. If they are managed properly and can add growth into our lives, great; however, in most cases, complete elimination is key, and in others, a growing awareness will serve a person as they manage. When it is all said and done, all words like this can do is help lead someone towards their own awakening. My goal is to help decrease the self-imposed dangers that end up being listed in our autopsy reports. We are all going to expire one day; how we go is completely up to how we manage our versions of “kryptonite”.
Four Pillar Action Plan: Write down all of the habits that you know are considered your versions of “kryptonite”. Remember, these actions do not have to be on the surface. It may be smoking cigarettes, but it may be something as simple as watching too much television. The goal of this exercise is to be honest with yourself as you increase your awareness. After you have your list, think about replacement habits for each of your “kryptonite” actions. If you want to take it one step further, starting tomorrow, see how it feels to begin your Re-Creation. Pick the most dangerous habit and insert the replacement habit in its place. If you have the strength and discipline to do this for a month, you should definitely notice some benefits to your focus and attitude along your journey.
Kinja’s Current Reality: I just started a new food program on October 1st 2022. At an event with my extended family, I was inspired by a couple who designed a new food and workout program as they prepare for their next season of life. Even though my lifestyle may have been an inspiration to them, I used their tenacity as an added reason to upgrade my process as well. There are no ceilings when a person realizes how weak they are when it comes to their “kryptonite”. As opposed to viewing my weaknesses as negatives, they have kept me in check for thirteen years and counting. To dive deeper into understanding the Four Pillar system, explore the 365 page manual at any time. Regardless, next week I will see you again in another episode of the Decade Series.
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