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Positive Habit #1

Start the Day Right

Starting off on the right foot. Making a good first impression. Getting out of bed on the right side. Our language is full of expressions that convey the same message: the way we begin something has a big impact.

In fact, the first sixty seconds of your day may be the most important. In those initial moments you set in motion patterns that will subtly shape your experiences for many hours to come. That start-up programming can be conscious and purposeful, or—as it usually occurs for most people—it can be automatic and haphazard. The difference has a lot to do with whether or not your day unfolds as a centered and healthy one. In fact, here’s the very best place to start creating a spiritually centered life.

Waking up in the morning is a turning point. You move from the realm of sleep and dreams back into your familiar world of busy activity and responsibility. And the way you go through that turning point—the way you make that transition—may be much more influential than you realize.

Waking up in the morning is a crossroads. Something special happens in that simple act of emerging from sleep and regaining normal consciousness. Profound influences are set in motion by the way in which you make the transition from one dimension of awareness to another. However, before creating an optimal plan for the use of that first minute in the morning, it’s worth examining more carefully what’s at work here.

Whenever we make a change in consciousness—any dramatic shift in our level of awareness—very important factors come into play. The quality and content of the experiences that follow are largely shaped by what is held in mind during the transition. This is not an abstract principle of psychology. It’s something we can observe every day, especially by looking carefully at nighttime experiences.

What happens to us during sleep (in dreams and otherwise) is heavily influenced by our state of mind as we drift off at night. You’ve probably encountered this principle in both negative and positive ways. For example, if you’re worried or upset when you go to bed, you’re likely to have a troubled night’s sleep. On the other hand, if you drift off with a question on your mind, you may well get an answer to that very issue through your dreams.

A similar process is at work for the transition we call death. Research with so-called “near-death experiences” suggests that the attitudes and feelings of the dying individual play a major role in the types of experiences that the soul will have immediately upon passing over. According to this theory, experiences after death eventually transcend what was on the dying person’s mind, but initially they are especially influential.

A rather mysterious biblical passage hints at all this—a short teaching from the book of Ecclesiastes (11:3). “As a tree falls, there shall it lie.” What’s the hidden meaning in that enigmatic statement? The fall of the tree represents the transition. Its orientation for that fall—be it north, south, east, or west—establishes the direction in which it will lie on the ground for a long time to come. In the same way, our inclinations and propensities at the time of a change play a big part in shaping our experiences thereafter.

Getting back to the idea of waking in the morning, let’s consider what goes on at the time of that transition. Many sources of wisdom believe that during the night we leave our bodies. We “travel” in other dimensions of consciousness. In fact, we might understand sleep to be somewhat like the after-death state. It’s almost as if each time we fall asleep we rehearse what it will be like to die. The main difference is that we retain connections to our physical bodies which allow us to come back in the morning. We are psychologically born again at the beginning of each day as we move from one level of consciousness outside of our bodies back to the familiar level of physical awareness.

Most of us never stop to notice very carefully the flow of thoughts and feelings first thing in the morning. Our inner life just sort of “happens,” as if it were on automatic pilot. And so, we miss a powerful opportunity to shape the quality of the day that lies ahead.

What is the nature of our typical early morning thought patterns? For many people it concerns all the expectations and demands of the day. They wake up and immediately begin to think (or worry) about everything that must be accomplished in the next fourteen to eighteen hours. That automatic agenda hardly leaves any breathing space. What’s more, it often pops up almost before we can clear our eyes and begin to think straight.

For other people the first minute or two in the morning is a time to daydream lazily—to drift off in fantasies of what they wish they had in life, imaginings that quickly dissipate once they have to face the realities of the world a few minutes later.

One way to understand what goes on in our minds is to consider two sides of our own psychology. Cayce referred to one aspect as the personality; the other, the individuality. Briefly, the personality is that part of us that operates primarily on automatic pilot. It is the side of us that others see and know—the facade or persona, we might say. On the other hand, the individuality is the more authentic spiritual self. Without it, we’re really nothing. It is the “higher self,” an expression that’s become popular in recent years. It’s the individuality that surfaces when we meditate successfully. In fact, one way to define meditation is an activity that partakes, not of the personality, but of the individuality.

Even though the individuality is clearly the superior element in us, the personality has a constructive role to play as well, if it will agree to limit its authority. Instead of usurping leadership, its place is to serve the individuality and the high purposes within the soul. Unfortunately, the personality tends to do otherwise. It wants to be in charge. It has its own agenda and desires, and the personality tries to take control whenever it can.

One of the most distinct characteristics of the personality is a false notion of itself. In other words, we all have certain ideas about ourselves that are illusory. Those distortions come in many shapes and sizes, including:

• exaggerated notions of our own importance—what we might call self-aggrandizement;

• overly critical ideas about our own shortcomings—what we might call self-condemnation;

• distorted pictures of who and what we are supposed to become—expectations that don’t come from our own individualities but instead from parents, friends, or the society at large.

What does all this have to do with how you wake up in the morning? Simply this: Unless you make a conscious effort to do otherwise, your personality self quickly gains control of your life first thing in the morning. Unless you use your free will to change the pattern, the habitual thoughts and feelings of your personality self grab your attention from the initial minutes of the day. And in so doing, chances are severely diminished that your individuality will awaken and provide direction during the day. This condition is a sure-fire formula for tension and stress in the day that lies ahead.

What does it feel like when your personality makes this grab for power? You may experience it as a burden—the weight that comes from having a mental list of ways you have to please everyone else in your life today. Or, you may feel it as worry when you consider all the problems that you’re sure to face in the hours ahead. Another possibility is that first thing in the morning your personality will make you feel frustrated or discouraged, almost wishing that you didn’t have to get up because your actual life situation is so far removed from what you desire.

What’s the remedy? Transition times are especially important, so it’s crucial to get the day started right with a positive habit. But the question remains, “How can I, at least temporarily, keep my personality from asserting itself and instead let my individuality set a tone for the day?”

Here’s the creative habit that can make the difference. Its essence is a prayerful attitude that invites spiritual guidance. First thing in the morning upon awakening, you can dedicate one minute to God. If worries, concerns, to-do-lists, or desires try to squeeze in, they can be gently but firmly instructed to wait. No doubt they will get their turns later, but for this first minute of the day—as the transition is being completed back to physical consciousness—an expression of the individuality self will be given top priority.

Here’s one way to prayerfully hold that attitude. When you first wake up in the morning, say silently to yourself, “God, what would You have me do today.” Repeat it several times, and do it with sincerity. It’s crucial that you really mean it. Feel your openness to be guided. Then listen for an inner response—an intuitive prompting or an inner knowing about what’s important for the day ahead. Let your individuality self function clearly and be intuitively receptive. Let yourself be inspired with a sense of what the top priority for the day ought to be.

Of course, this is no magic incantation, and you can certainly reword the prayer if an adaptation fits you better. But no matter what exact words you choose, remember that it’s not merely a matter of saying the words by rote, just to get it over with. The power of the words comes when your mind sincerely feels their meaning. As you say the prayer, you’ve got to really mean it! A feeling of trust and surrender is required, a willingness to believe that God has a way that this very day can best be lived.

Notice something about the suggested format, “God what would You have me do this day?” These words are in the form of a question, so this morning habit doesn’t end with a sincere repetition of the words. The listening that follows is vital.

And what kind of a response can be expected? A few people have reported a still small voice that gives guidance for the day: an attitude to hold in mind, the reminder of a specific person to help, or a project to start. More often people who have tried this exercise get a different result. They hear no voice—audible or from within—but instead they receive a clear impression about how to meet the day. It may come as an intuition about the best way to face challenges that will arise. Or, it may come as an inspiration to take some initiative.

Other people have found that nothing comes to them in those early morning moments. They repeat the words of surrender and openness, they listen inwardly and outwardly, but nothing seems to happen. Nevertheless, these same individuals have found that something has qualitatively shifted by having started out the day this way. They find that the basic attitude of trust and openness carries over. Perhaps the guidance comes later in the day. Even though the personality self quickly asserts its agenda upon getting out of bed, still the day goes differently than it might have because of that questioning prayer—“God, what would You have me do this day?”

A STORY FROM THE CAYCE ARCHIVES

One of the best illustrations of this prescription from Edgar Cayce—to start the day right—comes from the story of a sixty-one-year-old woman. Agnes made the long train ride to Virginia Beach in the second week of May. It was 1943, and as they came into the Norfolk and Virginia Beach area it was evident that this was a center of wartime activity.

But it wasn’t to see mighty naval ships or watch fighter aircraft making practice flights that brought her on this lengthy trip. She had an appointment for May 16 with a most unusual man. Almost everything she knew of Edgar Cayce was from her friend Martha, who had invited her and two other friends to make this venture. The four women were coming to get psychic readings and personal advice from Cayce—hopefully with as much success as Martha had already had getting medical counsel from Cayce for her arthritis.

Agnes’ needs, however, weren’t related to physical health. She was troubled by the tensions of uncertainty. Recently widowed, she was confused about her life direction. She had made an appointment to get a special kind of clairvoyant reading from Cayce—what he called a “life reading” because it would describe the patterns of her soul and the deepest purposes for her life.

Agnes had been told that she could be present to hear the reading from Cayce, even though it was more customary for him to do his psychic work at a distance and have his secretary send a transcript of all he said from the trance state. She knew what it would take to begin to diminish her anxieties about the future. Already scribbled on a piece of paper in her purse were four questions she hoped to ask at the end of the reading:

• Where should I live in order to be of the most service?

• Toward what sort of work or endeavors should I direct my energies?

• Am I correct in feeling that I have some sort of writing talent to make use of?

• How can I discipline myself at my age to do what is mine to do?

On May 16 at four o’clock in the afternoon she got her chance. Seated comfortably in Mr. Cayce’s study, she watched the most remarkable series of events in her life. With his wife, Gertrude, and his secretary, Gladys, in the room as well, Cayce took a few short moments for prayer and then lay down on a couch. As Agnes watched, it looked to her as if he was simply falling asleep to take a nap. But no sooner had he begun to drift off than Gertrude recited a hypnotic-like suggestion aloud, words that instructed Cayce’s higher mind to find the records of Agnes’ own soul and its intentions for this lifetime.

For the next forty-five minutes, Edgar Cayce spoke from this trance state. His pace was slow and even, and it retained much of his own Southern accent. The tone of his voice had an extraordinary authority to it, but it was mixed with compassion for her and a sensitivity to the struggles that she now faced. Her key talents and skills were described. Then her weaknesses and faults were gently portrayed. And then near the end of this psychic reading, her special gift was outlined—the most creative kind of service that she could undertake to be helpful to others. This mission of her soul involved the publication of books and articles that would be useful and uplifting to men, women, and children. Her role, however, was not to be an author but rather an editor—one whose good judgment in selection and skills in reshaping words could make an invaluable contribution.

Finally, Cayce announced that he was ready for any questions. This was her opportunity. Opening the folded piece of paper in her hand, she read to him the first question: “Where should I locate myself for my best service?” Cayce’s response was Washington, D.C., because for the remainder of her lifetime it would be “the center of the world,” figuratively speaking. (3003-1)

Next she asked, “Along what lines should I turn my energies and interest?” Cayce’s answer went back to his previous recommendations and advocated the publishing field.

These references to the world of publishing hadn’t come as a surprise to her because she had already felt a pull in that direction. In fact, the third question she had prepared in advance read, “Do I have any ability in the writing field?” To this third inquiry, Cayce went into detail describing his vision of where her real talent lay. He clarified the role of editor, guide, and reviewer of the creative writing of others. It was to that kind of service that her soul was called.

Then came her final question. This was the subject that troubled her most. Even with all this good advice from Cayce, she wondered if would she be able to discipline herself, put aside her worries and doubts, and actually do what her soul longed to do? In response to this deep concern, Cayce offered his prescription. It was to start each day in the right way. She was instructed to repeat three times and then listen: “Lord, what would thou have me do today?” Cayce warned her against making this an empty routine. She had to mean it and believe that an answer would always come.

Apparently this prescription began to work for Agnes in the weeks that followed. She wrote to Cayce two months later, telling him how much his reading had meant to her. She was actively working on her meditative attunement with God. As she put it in her letter, Cayce’s advice and prescriptions had “added zest to living and living aright!”

Although this advice was given more than fifty years ago, it’s as applicable to us today as it was to this one woman to whom Cayce spoke. Our troubles, worries, or stresses may be somewhat different than hers, but there is a universal quality to this positive habit recommended by Cayce. This next story is an example.

A MODERN DAY SUCCESS WITH THIS POSITIVE HABIT

Alan is a middle level manager for a medium size company. He’s also a father of two children, and his wife has a full time job. Like so many families their lives are full and busy. There are ample opportunities to get caught up in the big and little stresses that arise daily at home and at work.

“Starting the day right” has become a regular discipline for Alan since he first read about this suggestion from Cayce. It’s become a positive habit that gets his life off on the right foot each morning. On those rare occasions when he forgets to make optimal use of the first minute upon awakening, he usually pays the price before the morning is half over. Here, in his own words, are his reflections and thoughts from one week of putting this creative pattern to work:

“Morning has come to be a very special time for me. Of course, there are some mornings when I don’t particularly want to get up and be about the day. But as I’ve practiced Cayce’s prescription for right use of the first minute of the day, I’ve discovered how I can set a wonderful tone for everything that will follow.”

Alan usually awakened rather gradually, and didn’t seem to need an alarm clock—making it easier for him to try this positive habit. “And when that moment comes in the early morning when I know I’m now awake and that the day will soon be starting for me, I turn my mind to the best use of my first minute. Because there’s frequently the tendency in me to drift back into the hypnagogic state or even back into sleep, I’ve found a way stabilize my clear, wakeful consciousness. I simply focus all my attention on my breathing, usually for three rounds of inhalation and exhalation. I make those breaths slow, full, and deep. It probably takes me about thirty or forty seconds.”

By that point he was ready to turn his attention to Cayce’s specific recommendation. In order to connect with his individuality, visualization was the technique that worked best for him. “First, I simply say silently within myself the phrase ‘my individuality’ or ‘my best self.’ The words are really an invitation to my inner self to come forth. It’s an invitation to remember a time in my past when I was deeply in touch with that individuality self. Having said silently the invitation phrase, I try to keep very still and let a memory surface. When it comes, I visualize it for about ten or fifteen seconds, as clearly and vividly as I possibly can that morning. I try to re-create the situation or scene in my imagination, and for that moment I let myself become the person I was back then.” And when this process was working well for Alan, he would actually experience the emotional flavor of what was going on inside himself in the event or circumstance.

Certain memories seem to come up frequently. For example, here’s one memory that he described as coming up several times. “It happened more than ten years ago. I had gone on a business trip to San Diego and I was staying at the home of friends. I arrived in the early afternoon, but the work I’d come for wasn’t until the next day. My friends had picked me up at the airport and taken me home to the suburb La Jolla, where I had the remainder of the day at leisure. After getting settled into the guest bedroom, I decided to take a walk through the residential neighborhood and enjoy the beauty of this warm February day. As I started the walk, I had lots of problems on my mind. There were worries about things from the office. What’s more, this was also a rather lonely time in my life, and I would easily slip into feeling sorry for myself.

“But as I continued on this walk—which eventually lasted for at least an hour—something began to change. It was as if all that stuff of personality began to melt away. I was shedding those worries and self-doubts. All those familiar stresses gradually disappeared for about thirty minutes. What came forth was a very centered and very peaceful me. I was in no hurry to finish the walk. There was no particular destination that I was straining toward, no goal to which I was compulsively fixated. Instead, I was simply walking mindfully and in touch with my feelings and my surroundings. What seemed particularly striking about this remarkable sense of myself was this realization: that very identity was always nearby, it was always right at hand even though my stresses and worries usually blocked it out.”

That experience of his individuality self was extraordinarily vivid. And whenever it came back to mind in his first waking minute of the morning, he could easily recreate in his imagination just the way he felt that day. He could visualize the scene and could reconnect with that part of himself for fifteen or twenty seconds while lying there in bed.

“Once I’ve used a memory of my individuality—the meditative walk or any other memory that arises that day—then I turn my attention to an inner question, just as Cayce prescribed. I ask, ‘ God, what would You have me do today?’ I usually pose the question about three times, staying attentive and silent for about ten seconds each time. I try to listen for a prompting, an urge, or an intuitive feeling about something that should be a priority for that day. Sometimes what comes to mind is not so much a specific job to be accomplished but instead a particular quality that it’s my task to live fully that day. It might be joyfulness or appreciation or persistence. On other occasions the inspiration that comes to me in that first minute of the day is the name or face of someone I know. It’s as if I’m being reminded that there is something very important for me to do in relationship to that person today. Rarely do I know immediately what that something is. My job is to pay attention to that person carefully enough that I can sense his or her needs and be responsive.”

But there were many mornings when he posed the inner question; and as he tried to listen, nothing came. It was tempting on those mornings to feel like he had failed, but he had to remind himself of the deeper purpose to this one minute positive habit described by Cayce. The real goal was to get in touch with a certain openness to being guided and shown the way. Even if the message or the guidance didn’t come in that first minute, he still had gotten in touch with his willingness to be directed. If he could trust that the direction would come, then often it did in the first few hours of day.

He reported one typical episode. “A good example of this process happened to me this week. Monday morning I followed the Cayce prescription for how to start the day, but at the end of that minute, no particular guidance came to me. I knew I had made a good connection with the part of me that is willing to be guided. However, at that point, no direction came forth. An hour and a half later I was on my way to work, ready for what was sure to be a very busy and demanding week of work. Within the first thirty minutes of being at the office, I received my guidance. It became very obvious what God wanted me to do that day.

“The message came as an event, a sort of synchronistic occurrence. I was surprised to suddenly confront in the hallway a fellow employee with whom I’d been having lots of trouble lately. He works in another building of our company’s complex, and I almost never see him in the building where I work. My surprise at seeing him was quickly replaced by an inner knowing: working through my resentments and frustrations with him was the number one priority for the day. I found it natural and easy to say to him, ‘ When you’re finished with what you’re doing, can you come up to my office for a few minutes?’

“Ten minutes later we were alone together. What followed during the next half hour was a healing experience for both of us. There were tense moments as we talked about recent situations in which we had misunderstood each other’s motives. One thing especially helped me during those times: I remembered my early morning one minute positive habit. I’d take one slow centering breath, try to remember my own best self and his, and then try to make as reconciling a response as I could. In the end he left to go back to his office, and I’m sure that we both felt that our relationship was now better than it had ever been before. And I’m just as sure that none of this could have turned out so well without that creative habit for starting my day right.”

APPLYING THIS POSITIVE HABIT TO YOUR LIFE

Make a commitment for one week to start the day right. Each morning of the test period, upon first awakening, dedicate the first minute or two to this positive habit. You may find it helpful to get yourself fully awake by focusing all your attention initially on about three slow, deep breaths. Then invite a memory of your individuality self to surface. Silently say the words “my best self” or “individuality self” and be still for a moment until a specific memory comes to mind. When one does, take about fifteen seconds to vividly recall the situation or event. Reexperience how it feels to be that part of yourself.

Finally pose the request for guidance. Use whatever version of these words works best for you: God, what would You have me do this day? Then be inwardly alert for an inspiration or intuition. It may come as a reminder of a certain person, suggesting that this relationship is a priority for your day. The guidance might come as a feeling about the importance of a certain task or as the need for a certain quality to be expressed often during the day.

If nothing specific comes, that’s OK, too. What’s important is having made a connection with your individuality self and having affirmed your willingness to receive direction. As you stay mindful and attentive, the direction is likely to come soon.