A successful life is one in which has let the life express itself freely through its physical form. Whoever had done so would have lived a life of greatest serenity and happiness. Each of us is endowed with unique flow of energy. The will manifests on its own. As famously said, “You can do what you will but you cannot will what you ‘will’.” The energies, desires, inclinations and urges are natural to every being and no amount of conditioning, teaching, peer pressure can change its default alignment. Every person’s path is unique and it is best to align yourself with the default energies as you pursue the growth while keeping a careful balance to the material needs.

If you can wake up each day and look forward to the day with poise and positivity, consistently, it means you have let the life flow. It implies a lot many things further on. It indicates that your life has been successful. It means that you have advanced spiritually because consistency cannot come in without overcoming the duality of life (read adverse times). Everybody will encounter obstacles and unfavourable circumstances. Duality is life’s very nature. This duality has an impact on the mind and broadens your perspective of life. Only then you can bounce off as a spring from one polarity to another and progressively ease off on the base line – stable, unwavering, “detached”.

Follow your life’s passion. Do not let the mind come in the way and do not forcibly align yourself in the direction your energy is not geared towards. It’s not just about money or fame. Break free from the grip of fear by sharpening your understanding of life and the hindrance created by the mind. Know that to be bored of current situation and move to something far more captivating is in our mind’s very nature. You cannot defeat nature. Life is here to experience in each of us — from human beings to the tiniest insects. If you are in alignment with your life stream, the new areas of life that get carved out will also be aligned with your energies. If not, then you will keep moving with conflict and trying to conform to the societal norms, ultimately coming out as a successful mediocre who could only aptly fit in within the conditioning of the mind. However, there is a huge force within that is beyond the mind and that wants you to follow a path, but you are letting the mind in and believing it to be true. Mind is nothing but conditioning. Try to think of a subject you are unfamiliar with. You go blank. You will realise you can’t think. Thoughts can only come of things you have experienced through your senses. Recognising that you are a conditioned being is important. This conditioned mind has been the source of all of your beliefs regarding accomplishments and setbacks. It is a terrible fact that our ideals of success are ingrained in us from an early age and that our role models reflect this. Had our minds been conditioned to experience life fully with all its highs and lows, a great deal of our troubles could have been inevitably and easily avoided. Life would be ‘simple’ and you would have been content and happy regardless of your money and fame. Because then you would have gone with the tide instead of swimming against it. Like all the other bubbles, you are a bubble that, when blown from the bubble blow stick, carries a unique expression of life. Each of us is a bubble of life energy. Some will land near, some far, some small, some big, some might burst before landing, some later, and so forth. Simply watch your bubble stream through this life and cheer its unique expression at all points in time. Enjoy while it’s still here.

More so often, people go against the tide when it comes to their life path and then end up reading every self help book available. Many of these books will ask you to forcibly be positive in certain areas and provide various strategies to help you do so. There cannot be a suggestion more damaging. These, in a sense, ask you to hide the symptoms of your underlying discontent. However if you flow with the life stream, these positivity will emerge of its own accord. You will have healthy relations, healthy living, and healthy mind. Life will be fun and full of vitality. No book, no lecture will be needed. You are here only for a short span of time. Come, enjoy by doing what you like, do as much as you can while you are aligned and then slip off. Life is nothing but a big time pass, pass it well.

Look at life as having evolved and changed course through various civilizations. In one civilization, wheel was introduced. In another, a cart. Few centuries later, a car. In the near future we could have our own private flying vehicles. Civilizations will keep moving on, many have perished and many more will come. This civilization exists on a marble called Earth, which, when placed next to the sun, which is millions times more massive, appears as a tiny dot. Sun, in turn, is just a dot in front of other bigger stars of the solar system. The Milky Way galaxy is approximately ten million times larger than our solar system. There are about 300 billion stars in our galaxy. And consider the vast array of galaxies that exist in the universe. Hundreds of billions of them exist. We are just a tiny speck located in some tiny corner with some miniscule bit of power. We don’t even know if this life is just a dream and that we are actually sleeping in some other planet/galaxy. With this infinitesimal tiny influence that you can have and with so much non clarity on the real truth (if you really go to think about it), what is it that you want to do? Stick to the mind or follow your heart. Does this give you the courage to break open and express life to its fullest, or is the peer pressure still has its overwhelming power upon you. What do you think is real success to you when you look back 30 years from now!

The best way you can contribute to the civilization is from a place of freedom, when you can follow the energies you are bestowed with. The greatest loser is you, if you give in to social pressure and prevent life from freely expressing itself through you. Yes, situations differ; some are complex, some simple. Still, not expressing yourself is not an option and a great injustice to your ‘self’. There are ways, many ways to get it done. People have done it, so can you. It just requires your intent and understanding. In the book “Can You Play,” I go into further detail about this subject and how you can go about expressing yourself freely despite your present circumstances. It is founded on my knowledge and experiences from life. It also provides detailed guidance on how to figure your career path and plan your journey meticulously. As the book says – ‘ The feeling of knowing one’s purpose resembles that of a long lost dear thing that has been found again. There will be a sudden surge of positivity that finds permanent space in your mind irrespective of the activity you do. Now, all other areas including your job will be means to the end, to the achievement of your real purpose.’

But know that this, eventually, is only in line with the larger game of life that reveals itself in due course in the book. As Jim Carrey, the famous comedian actor nails it down,

“I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it’s not the answer”