In reading Neale Donald Walsch‘s books, you will often run into the phrase “the grandest version of the greatest vision of your highest self.” At first, it may slow your reading because you think its an error….that words were repeated. After a while, you glide over it easily and you may even start making fun of it because it is repeated SO often. After a while, you settle into the phrase and really begin to wonder what it means – for YOU.
What is the grandest version of the greatest vision you’ve ever had of your highest self?
Maybe you’ve never tried to conjure up this vision? You may have a little bit of an idea of who you would like to be but have never taken the time to put together the entire package. For example, you may know how you want to be as a parent, or as a spouse, or as an employee who wants to climb the ladder of success. Those are all parts of the grandest version of the greatest vision of yourself. But you are much more than your job, your relationship, and your family. There is a YOU at your very core, and that’s the YOU that you may need to explore.
If you aren’t happy, it’s likely that you are not living the life of the grandest, greatest vision of your highest self. It’s the inner YOU that drives many of your emotions. So it makes sense that if the inner YOU aren’t happy, even if you have the best job, a wonderful relationship, a loving family…you won’t feel happy.
What can you do about finding this grandest version of the greatest vision of yourself?
Try one or more of the following and see where it leads. Eventually, you may want to write a creed or summarize your vision of yourself in some organized way to refer to as a reminder. But, for now, these activities can get you started.
1. Make a list of personal qualities that are important to you. (honesty, spontaneity, independence, etc.) These are qualities YOU want to have, not qualities someone says you “should” have. These are the qualities that make you who you are.
2. Take an honest look at your list. Are you living all of the qualities that are important to you? In what areas could you use improvement? Then get specific. What do you need to do in order to have the quality you really want to have? How would your actions need to change?
3. Make a list of all the issues, concerns, situations that are important to you. (the environment, world peace, personal freedoms, etc.) Only list those things that are SO important that you can’t imagine not giving these situations attention. They are simply a part of your being and you feel drawn like a magnet to respond. This isn’t a “should” list. Don’t write down things you “should” be concerned about.
4. Ask yourself, are you taking actions towards these issues/concerns/situations on your list? For those you are taking actions towards, does it feel like you are doing enough? Some situations call for only minor actions. Others may not feel good about unless you are taking greater actions. Here’s an example. Suppose one of your concerns is related to animal treatment. For one person, it may feel good to their inner self to volunteer at the Humane Society and/or boycott companies who do not treat animals humanely. For someone else, doing those things may not feel like they’ve done enough. Maybe their inner self needs to take a greater step and become a vegetarian or vegan. Don’t judge yourself on this. It’s just who you are. If one concern doesn’t attract you to take major steps, another one will.
5. You’ve made the lists. You’ve described ways you want to be and ways you are not quite the way you want to be. Now, write a bit about a day in the life of the grandest version of your greatest vision. What do you do when you get up in the morning? What type of job do you have? What are your daily habits? What people play active roles in your life? Where and how do you live? (Do you live in a cabin with very little possessions or on a mountaintop with a family of 5 and a minivan?)
Do not make any Judgments
Throughout this entire process, the most important thing to remember is to not make any judgments. Whatever feels right for you IS right for you. There’s a fine line between self-judgments and outside judgments. If your inner self doesn’t feel good after writing something, that’s something you should listen to.
But if you can hear the voice of another saying, “You don’t need that. You are being selfish. You shouldn’t worry about that.” Thank the voice for its opinion and dismiss it. Focus again on yourself and what your inner self is saying. Keeping that focus will connect you to your highest self.
