@Cameron A classic case of the lesser Jihad to avoid the Greater Jihad.
All cults create an evil "other" to fight against. This allows the ego to feel good about itself, thus avoiding self-reflection.
Self-righteousness is a dead giveaway of egoic behavior.
When you are deeply conscious of Truth and Being, you will not act self-righteously or judgmentally. Judgment automatically disconnects you from Truth.

@kieranperez You are being way too harsh on yourself. Go watch some Matt Kahn videos and practice some self-love and self-acceptance. You cannot change your life from a position of self-flagellation and self-hatred. Well, you can, but it's gonna be very ugly.
Being harsh with yourself just tends to heap ego on top of ego, problem on top of problem.
Slow down, collect yourself, find peace in the now, and slowly begin the process of assembling your life, brick by brick. All the resources you need are basically available these days online.

The ego loves to assume it is already fully developed. That conveniently means no more work is required. The ego loves to live in the world of ideals, abstractions, intellectualizations, and soothing fantasies.
You constantly have to give yourself reality-checks in this work. You must be brutally honest with yourself about your deficiencies, limitations, and lack of development. As a rule of thumb you are never as developed or as conscious as you think you are.
It's very easy to listen to advanced stages like Yellow and Turquoise and to assume you're already there just because you intellectually understand those stages or you can picture them in your mind's eye. But that's just imagination. That's not the actual level you're acting from on a daily basis. Most of your daily actions probably stem from much lower levels like Red, Blue, Orange.
A very helpful exercise is to monitor all of your thoughts on any given day and analyze what percentage of your thoughts are stemming from which color stage? How much time do you spend thinking about money, sex, power, fear, selfish needs, dogma, judgment, anger, etc? Probably 90%+ How much time do you spend in systems thinking, metaphysical contemplation, unconditional love, or solving global problems? Probably less than 1%.

Man, for now, I would say just forget about that. Your mind is filled with fantasies of being some crazy Buddha. Don't worry about that for now. Spend the next 5 years just learning how to survive and thrive in America. Then revisit the Buddha issue.
Remember, Buddha was 27 years old when he left behind his life of luxury, success, and family. He had a wife and child. He was experienced with the ways of material living. And then it took him another 6 years to finally get enlightened. So you've got plenty of time. 23 year olds are basically babies. You have virtually no life experience or survival skills. So build those up.
This is not unique to you. Most 23 year olds these days are like this. As was I at that time. You'd be amazed how much can get accomplished in 10 years. Way more than you could image.

@Mada_ When all of reality collapses, yes, it will feel like you're going insane because you are unable to distinguish between real and unreal any more.
Most of what you used to think of as "reality" was just a thought-based fantasy. Including your own birth and the existence of other people.
Hang in there. These kind of insights can be rough. Truth requires acclimation.

It’s goin to sound counterintuitive, but keep going deeper. I was at this point very shortly ago. I thought I was going completely insane. You are on the verge of coming into the infinite intelligence and love Leo talks about.
Nihilism goes full circle into unbelievable and completely mind blowing beauty and sense of purpose. Keep contemplating on this thing. When the word nihilism is spoken, there is some kind of “thing” that arises... what is that thing? You will find that you will never actually come to nothing. Well you might, but it won’t be the nothing that you currently believe to be nothing. It will be the higher self, the real you.
 

Yes through a Stage Green lens. The degree of his understanding I think is to miss the point. We'll honestly never know that. Just like you can't know what enlightenment is so long as you never had an enlightenment experience. I think Ram Das did a great job playing the role pushing the envelope with spirituality in the 60s & 70s and the influential role he's had on so many other influential people like Steve Jobs.
For those that may be discouraged by Ram Das being Green, I don't think we can really ask for more. He was living in a very strict Blue/Orange world and he really helped lead that demolition and bring forth Green and allow Green to flourish more in the states which has allowed and paved the way for further evolution and development. 

@Leo Gura People are blind to their own issues, and magnify others at times. Nothing can be done about it, but if you truly desire growth. You should put the magnifying glass you put on others on yourself.
You know your intentions are good amd see the good in yourself better than anyone else, but some of the bad, the delusional parts of you are also harder to see for that reason.
Life is a good teacher though. The pain encountered on the path brilliant. We all learn. It is when we demonise others, and put ourselves above them that we stagnate.

@smd I received various private messages from people who were hurt by Rali's cult.
It's very easy for stuff like this to get out of hand, so don't take it for granted.

If you have to ask then no it is not safe at your current state of consciousness. These things are inner/higher-callings. They are known and called from within when some type of deep connection/cleansing/purification is required. Some people out there live without eating but they also live in a completely different way than we do thus can transfer and conserve energy efficiently. Some people are far more evolved and have mastered energy mechanics to do so, when you get to that state you will just "know" and "understand" how things work and what needs to be done.
If you are still questioning things, then it may not be wise. If you are passionate, study and experiment with fasting and see where you go from there. Its usually during these experiments and processes that we tap into the awareness to see and understand more of what we need to do.  Hope this helps

There are post-logical and nonverbal states of being, communication and explanations. Yet most of society has not evolved or developed those levels of consciousness.
I've found that trying to explain the post-rational in rational terms to rationalists is not very effective. A mind needs to be open and willing to explore post-rational areas. 
Most minds are conditioned to focus on the pointer, not to relax into the direct experience of the ineffable nature of what is being pointed to. The words and concepts are the arm and hand - most minds get immersed in trying to make sense of the arm and hand. Human minds become fixated on the arm/hand pointer. The more words and concepts used, the stronger that fixation becomes. I've found it more effective to use the minimal amount of words and concepts and at times sprinkle in some post-rational essence to throw their logical mind off it's game.

That is not masterful teaching. That kind of polarized teaching style does a disservice to students, as it makes them ideological and emotionally reactive. Teachers who teach like that are themselves not fully developed & conscious.
I myself have had to back off that style as I become more conscious. It is a disservice to you guys. Because in truth, there is no one to blame for anything. Everyone is doing their best, even terrorists, Nazis, psychopaths, and cult leaders. They cannot help being who they are and the proper response to their situation is understanding and compassion, not hate or ridicule.
For example, I've wanted to shoot a rant video against JP for a long time now. But I hold myself back because I would rather take the high road. Even though a rant video against JP would get me lots of views and clicks and approval -- it would also make you guys more ideological against him and distract from doing the inner work. So I bite my tongue.
You see, the ego's whole game is to get you to avoid doing the inner work by any means possible. So ego loves to externalize the problem and make it about something "out there" -- some teacher, some teaching, some other group of people, some culture war issue, some political scandal, some latest outrage -- anything to avoid self-reflection.
I have no interest in getting into public battles with anyone or defending my work. I just want to work on myself and be creative without any justifications for my work. My work speaks for itself. If you find my work useful, then use it. If not, then leave and pursue other things. Telling me you disagree with my work is unnecessary. I know better than most of you the flaws and limitations of my own work. I don't need guidance from a random cocky Youtuber who does not know anything about me. I get my internal guidance from a much higher quality, non-human source.
And in the end if you feel my guidance is bad or wrong, don't follow me. I am not here to be right, or perfect, or the Buddha, or your daddy figure. From the very beginning the only function of Actualized.org was to catalogue various insights that I have that I find interesting. That's all this is. There is no pretense to Truth in my teachings since all teachings are concepts and by definition partial and untrue.
Anything that you hear me say is ultimately nonsense. It was that way from day one, and it could not be otherwise. From the very beginning my work is was meant to be self-effacing. Like a snake eating its own tail, such that in the end, nothing remains.

Unfortunately it's just not that simple.
Anyone who teaches personal development will tell you that you must control your influences. Just like a group of toxic friends can bring you down to their level, the same thing goes with this forum.
Beliefs and energy are contagious.
It's one thing to stomp out an opposing view because you're close minded or it conflicts with your agenda. It's another thing to realize that a certain perspective doesn't help and to distance yourself from it.
I've thought about locking many threads for just this reason. When I see someone just spreading fear, complaining, conspiracy theories or other nonsense, my instinct is to stomp it out. Because I know it won't help people to be infected by that stuff.
Still, I usually don't because I know it doesn't look good and that I need to be able to give people the freedom make their own mistakes. But it's always a gray area.
For anyone who doesn't like how this forum is run, I would challenge you to actually try and run your own organization. There's a lot more challenges that go on behind the scenes than most people realize. And you'll have a lot more empathy for why things are done the way they are.

Not in the slightest.
But I did have a powerful vision for my life, I was very ambitious, and I was following my heart. Which is really all that matters.
You are young. You've got many years to put all of those things in place. Obviously don't waste time sitting around on your ass, but don't panic either.
Right now what you're missing is hope and faith in your vision.
Vision is useless if you don't have rock-solid faith in it. You need to train yourself to believe in it. Visualize it every day with a hopeful vibe. Do not visualize it pessimistically, negatively, full of fear. That is terrible. That is counter-productive.
Holding a big vision is not easy. It is scary. Your mind will not believe it is possible. I used all sorts of mind programming techniques to reinforce my vision and overcome various doubts. But the most important thing is HEART! You must have HEART! That is what carries you through everything. Your life purpose must be non-negotiable. You are doing it no matter what. There should be no option for failure because you already know there is nothing else you'd rather do.
There will hundreds of doubts in this journey. You have to really cultivate hope. Not in luck, but in your hard work. Your vision will get actualized through honest labor.
And remember, a big vision requires lots of patience. You don't need to be Buddha by next month. Recalibrate your exceptions and split your vision up into smaller chunks, so you are not evaluating your progress based on whether you are like Ralston or Buddha. That may not happen for 40 years. And that's okay, you don't need that to enjoy your life.

Source: https://de.spiritualwiki.org/Hawkins/Recommendations
 

There is escape from suffering. But the irony is that to escape requires lots more suffering so most egos don't want to do it.
The ego will settle for pleasure if it can. And these days society makes that very easy.

@andyjohnsonman  
Try a practice of with every arising thought, think of the opposite thought, this helps to realize not believing or identifying with arising thoughts / seeing the meaninglessness. This is how One/You convinces itself it is Twoness/Thinking/Maya/Illusion. The concepts aren’t removed so much as realized to have been added, and when unbelieved, and rendered useless. The hilarity of thinking.   Wu! & “Alan Watts gong” point to this, as does every thing sensed.
After a while, there is less and less to be resolved (monkey mind), all thinking is duality, all beliefs are falsity.     No mind is there all along. 
“Presence” Is “no mind”.     Physicality, your talking, their talking, your thinking, their thinking, communication, language, objects, sounds, identities, practices, etc, etc, all things appear in no mind, but are duality, illusory, always in twoness. What is not two is one, so that One must therefore be you, so “it” (twoness/illusion/duality) can not be spoken.  No mind just is. 
Even more practically speaking, you probably already notice when your’re talking with someone, there is also an inner monologue running about what you and they’re are thinking and talking about. Initially, label the inner monologue “thinking”, and the conversation “conversation”. You’ll begin to be aware thinking is not as much part of the conversation, it just seems like one has to think of what to say next. But counterintuitively, what is next said is authentic, without the “preparatory” thinking / inner monologue / over thinking. 

No
You do not need to think to understand language. The mind handles that automatically already.
In fact, you could be in a conversation with someone, speaking to them, while simultaneously meditating.
Even speaking does not usually require thought.
Thinking is far less necessary than most people think.

There's no magic pill. You must slowly build one good habit at a time.
By trying to solve everything at once you end up not solving anything. Significant change takes months and years of work. You must build healthy, sustainable infrastructure in your life.
Maybe start by moving to a healthier environment. Then build up from there.
If you try to change too much too fast you'll just experience a terrible ego backlash. It takes time and patience to rewire the brain in a sustainable way.

@benny
in my opinion, i would just go with leo's approach. leo is incredibly comprehensive with his approach
the parts from that book that i would take are the skills building part. being world-class, building career capital etc. 
however picking your domain of interest will come from exploring your interests and building from your values. there's a process of understanding of who you are, what you want to see in the world and what you want for yourself etc. etc. basically his course. 

A video game could give an architect a new idea for their building. A powerful story can change your perspective on life. A quality documentary can teach you so much about a given subject. Youtube offer dozens of channels like Actualized.org that can benefit you. Listening to music, podcasts or a talk show while driving can improve your mood and stimulate your mind. Social media can offer you countless connections for your career. I think it's a good idea to make a structured time during the day for media, but media itself isn't the problem, it's just how you use it.

@FredFred It's all relative. Importance hinges on what is important to you at which time in your life.
Enlightenment is most important for me. But that's me and I already resolved my life purpose a long ago.
For some people, paying their mortgage is most important.

The “I” wants to control the narrative. It wants to retain control and keep the game going. It will use lots of tricks to frighten, allure, distract. 
What you are going through is a step every self-actualized person goes through - including Buddha as he sat under that tree. 
There comes a point when one needs to place Truth higher than security and comfort to go deeper. This is when most people turn around.
Pschedelics are the most potent self-killers out there. Truth is an acquired taste.

There are many ways to enter Green, and you'll just have to find your own (if you want). As someone who resisted Green for a long time, all I can say is that it really clicked when I stopped judging and objectifying myself, and when I realized that I indeed had feelings (but could not access them). Connecting with feminine people and trying to understand their perspectives helped in this regard, since they tend to have a more nurturing energy.
Orange is a stage of owning up to ones shit and taking responsibility, but often it can go too far and become judgmental and too calculating. It's easy to blame people for things that are not their fault in Orange. This is part of the dissonance between Orange and Green.
I would start by trying to bridge the gap between you and these women the same way you do with anyone in any other stage: discuss things in terms of direct experience, instead of concepts. Talk about how such-and-such thing feels to you or talk about your experiences as literally as possible without editorializing, judging, or turning it into an opinion. Do things that are not useful (draw a shitty picture, write a shitty song) and show them to the stage Green people. Get personal. Stage Green at its best is about radical honesty about your feelings and being vulnerable.
To someone deeply entrenched in Orange, that vulnerability is scary, but it's the way to connect with Green people, women especially. To a person in Green, an Orange person can seem fake, artificial, robotic, soulless, or like they're putting up a front. Think of a used car salesman. When I was deep in Orange, I didn't think I was any of those things, but eventually I realized that I could have easily come off that way because these were coping mechanisms to dismiss my emotions, which I saw as useless distractions.
So I guess I would just say to get curious and try to connect on Green's level.

I find myself wanting to watch low consciousness television sometimes like reality shows or the news (petty shit)...or listen to music that is rapping/singing about low consciousness things like hoes, drugs, partying and some dumb shit...
I feel like when I do engage with these things - that I feel some sort of relief at the moment but then not so good afterward.  
Has this just become an addiction?  I mean - I don't feel great afterwards and sometimes find myself wishing I'd have spent the time on something productive.  Is there a need for this type of rest and what other kinds of "rest" can I replace these activities with?  Relating this to frolicking through life...the idea of play is interesting to me..
Wondering if anyone has some valuable insight into this?