16 Years Old, Where To Start?

[Guest Hristi]

Hey guys, I'm a 16 year old from Macedonia and I found about Leo just now. I watched a few of his videos and decided to join the forum. My goal, like everyone else here, is to become self-actualized, but personal development and the process of self-actualization is too broad and I really don't know where to start. I will continue to watch Leo's videos and take notes, but for now I can't buy the course. Can you guys recommend where to start?

[Czarkovsky]

I think that you should start with developing meditation practice. It's fundamental habit for any REAL growth. Watch Leo's videos about Do-nothing, Strong Determined Sitting. Then you can dig into enlightment stuff, there is whole playlist about this topic. If you like to read: The Book by Alan Watts and Freedom from the Known by J. Krishnamurti will be good starters.

[Guest Hristi]

Thank you for your response and for your recommendation. I will look into it. Isn't Do nothing and determined sitting described in the addiction video?

[charlie2dogs]

2 hours ago, Hristi said:

Hey guys, I'm a 16 year old from Macedonia and I found about Leo just now. I watched a few of his videos and decided to join the forum. My goal, like everyone else here, is to become self-actualized, but personal development and the process of self-actualization is too broad and I really don't know where to start. I will continue to watch Leo's videos and take notes, but for now I can't buy the course. Can you guys recommend where to start?

At 16 years old, your understanding and ability to grasp new ideas is limited by the level of your own consciousness, but if the desire is there and you can pursue it, your consciousness will expand more rapidly, it will awaken faster, and that is what this is all about, your own consciousness awakening to its true state of being.  It is not normal for a 16 year old to have these interest, so by you having these interest is a very good sign. Czarkovsky mentioned Alan Watts, Watts is great to listen to, i remember years ago, i recorded Watts and would listen as i would hike for miles most days. you cant go wrong there, and there are others, the real objective here is to discover who and what you really are.  At this point you may think you are the body but you are much more than the body and that is what you are seeking in becoming self realized is to realize your true nature and state of being versus being a human being with a body, and being able to function from the real you, rather than the body with its desires and ego.  Spending time contemplating this one thing will cause your consciousness to expand much faster than many of those around you.

Spend time with your inner core being, the real part of yourself,  if the desire is there to awaken it will take you where you need to go.  One thing i would caution you on, dont just become programed by other peoples ideas, thoughts, methods, practices, don't form beliefs about things, keep it real, beliefs are nothing more than building walls around you that might take ages to overcome. allow your core being to guide, educate you, and give you security, it can provide all you need to achieve self realization.  Also there are many here on the site that can provide new ideas and help about things and issues that may arise.

Edited April 29, 2016 by charlie2dogs

[Czarkovsky]

6 minutes ago, Hristi said:

Thank you for your response and for your recommendation. I will look into it. Isn't Do nothing and determined sitting described in the addiction video?

They're listed as most effective techniques to get rid of addiction. There are plenty of topics about this duo on Meditation subforum, be sure to read @Arik and @Isle of View posts, they have deep understanding about meditation and enlightment work.

 

Good luck!

[MarkusR]

Hey whats up man! Fellow 16 year old here. So sick to see more young people developing themselves. Ill tell you about my journey so that you can get an idea on how to change your life, and get yourself on this roller coaster ride of amazingness toward self-actualization! My journey began not by watching any videos or reading anything, but a sudden realization and mind state shift. I dont know exactly what I was doing but for some reason I realized that Im going to die one day, and that this earth, everything thats around me truly is life. It is not here to be judged, fought for or anything in between but to be experienced. It is not the first time I have been faced with my own mortality, but this time I had looked at it from a different perspective, not through the eyes of fear but just knowing.

I suggest for you not to get confused because there are a lot, and I mean A LOT of ideas and philosophies that try to explain life, human nature and meaning. In the end it is only up for you to decide these things.

Where to start? Well, I started by reading a bunch of self help books and listening to speakers. I suggest you do the same, if you dive too deep too soon I fear you will be too confused and doubtful and you may run into complications because you have not handled the lower level problems like low drive, procrastination, confusion about life in general and what you should be doing.

Take baby steps! One by one start implementing habits that you believe will improve your life, for example; doing more homework, reading books, socializing more etc. Then after you handle those simple things the engine will hopefully have started and there is no way to stop the drive. You will find out soon after that there is a lot more to learn and understand here, and at this point you can begin to look at the more deep, abstract problems that you must face in order to become self-actualized. 

Hope this helps to begin your journey, lets lead this generation to victory! 

[Guest Hristi]

@Czarkovsky @charlie2dogs @MarkusR Thanks everyone for the advice and for being so friendly  . I sure will take into account everything you guys said. 

[Guest Hristi]

@MarkusR That's how I started too. One day I realized that I will die, that it's bound to happen one day, that it's the biological process of every organism. So far my accomplishments are quitting gaming for good because my family actually opened my eyes that it doesn't lead to happiness, that it's a waste of time and that I can use my time doing something better, more useful (improving myself, learning a new language, practicing guitar etc). I have never been happier.

Edited April 29, 2016 by Hristi

[MarkusR]

@Hristi Awesome! Great that you have already made those improvements, im also learning the guitar . Seems like you are well on your way man, think the next step is just meditation, for real it will give you the greatest and most powerful growth over anything else.

[Corte]

Hi @Hristi , I'm 21 now but I can tell you a whole lot of things I wish I was able to do at 16. It's great that you want to pursue a more meaningful life. 

Don't be afraid to do what you know is healthy and positive for yourself. My friends always made fun of me for "acting like a seventy year old man" because I would decline partying or doing drugs, and meditate and go to bed early. Know that the truth you know is inside, don't let other's limiting beliefs hold you back. Don't think you must date or have sex before you feel the need and/or are ready to. Be aware of all of the "traps" people fall into (some mentioned above) . What I'm saying is, you will save much time by just staying true to yourself and not falling for negative acts appealing to lower conciousness. So many teenagers fall victim to all of this, and it takes that much longer to get out of it. Find subjects that fascinate you, whether it involve spirituality, science, anything, and do everything you can in the name of growth and development. Most importantly, have fun! 

I'd recommend developing a simple meditation practice to get in touch with your mind on a deeper level. Don't feel the need to go all out in search of self actualizing. Keep things simple and have fun exploring consciousness and the world around you! Just take time to detach from electronics daily. Get more in touch with your dreams. 

By doing this for only the last six months, I have found a huge passion for this life that excites me more than anything. I hope you find the same for the journey ahead of you! 

PS: life never stops. When you reach a new awareness, you might have mixed feelings. My first awakening lead me into a deep depression because I stopped there. The journey is endless and if you become depressed know there is always something more to improve and love.

Edited April 30, 2016 by Corte

[Gmork]

Start simple because you will do more in long run.

• 5 min meditation ( some kind of mindfulness )
• Workout ( Can be easy 10 min but every day every day)
• Watch some videos and try to get something from it every 7 days. But dont stress it!
• If you can try to revisit your diet, again dont go deep just tiny patch.

Start with meditation and ego videos.

Edited April 30, 2016 by Gmork

[Guest Hristi]

@Corte  Thanks for the advice! I'm definitely not the type to get carried away with alcohol and drugs or any type of stuff like that. Not the type to crack under peer pressure, tbh peer pressure never gets to me. I decide what I'm going to do regardless of what everyone else is doing. I'm trying to make the right decisions, but I sometimes feel resistance and have to go with the decision of my 'lower self'. I watched Leo's video on resistance and found out about the Sedona method which really helped me out. Like someone said above, it's about making baby steps.

[Guest Hristi]

@Gmork Thanks for the advice, I've already started watching Leo's videos on meditation and yesterday I started reading about the ego. As for workouts, I workout almost everyday. I play a lot of basketball and my absolute dream career is to be a professional basketball player, but I sometimes feel resistance to working on my skills. I would say that I want to focus on that (already watched Leo's videos on Sedona method) and meditation. Again thanks for the advice!

[Corte]

7 minutes ago, Hristi said:

@Corte  Thanks for the advice! I'm definitely not the type to get carried away with alcohol and drugs or any type of stuff like that. Not the type to crack under peer pressure, tbh peer pressure never gets to me. I decide what I'm going to do regardless of what everyone else is doing. I'm trying to make the right decisions, but I sometimes feel resistance and have to go with the decision of my 'lower self'. I watched Leo's video on resistance and found out about the Sedona method which really helped me out. Like someone said above, it's about making baby steps.

Sounds like you are taking all the right steps! There is a ton of great advice here. All of this will help you to live a much more meaningful life WAY earlier than most people can. It is so worth it. 

Just out of curiosity, do you bring any thing of this topic up with your parent(s)? Do they support you or just sort of let you do your own thing? Mine are pretty closed-minded about this, so I usually keep my progress to myself, unfortunately. 

[GeorgeLawson]

Pursuing Enlightenment is the most advanced, difficult stage of psychological development so I wouldn't recommend starting there. You can, and some people do, but like people here have said you want to take baby steps by starting with things like productivity, relationships and life purpose. 

If you find your consciousness expanding then let it, but don't force it. I'm 21 and have an active interest in spirituality (reading up on it, etc.) but I know its not something I'll want to seriously pursue until I'm about 30 because I want to work on my life purpose first. Having a daily meditation habit though is really useful for things like concentration and general happiness, health and well-being.

I'd really recommend you watch Leo's video on advice for young people: 

 

[GeorgeLawson]

21 minutes ago, Corte said:

Sounds like you are taking all the right steps! There is a ton of great advice here. All of this will help you to live a much more meaningful life WAY earlier than most people can. It is so worth it. 

Just out of curiosity, do you bring any thing of this topic up with your parent(s)? Do they support you or just sort of let you do your own thing? Mine are pretty closed-minded about this, so I usually keep my progress to myself, unfortunately. 

That's a really interesting question and one I've had running through my mind a lot recently. I think the case with my parents is that they love me and only want the best for me but are stuck in various unconscious patterns (like most people) and so don't have the drive to pursue self-actualisation themselves. 

I'm completely fine with that because I just get on with my own personal development and tell them about it if they're interested. My advice would not be to pressure your family to join you on your self-actualisation journey, however tempting it may be!

[Corte]

@GeorgeLawson couldn't be more true. its interesting to know its similar for you. I was about 17 when I first learned lucid dreaming and meditation, I was so excited that it was all I talked about with my mom and dad. My mind is blown regularly, but one thing that I will never be able to understand is how my two parents are 54 years old and have never experienced a minute of meditation or minute or awareness in a dream. Even further, they have no interest in even trying. Ugh! 

[Guest Hristi]

@Corte @GeorgeLawson My parents are just like yours. They don't know that I've joined the forum or that I'm trying to do something. They have no clue about personal development and stuff like that. Like George Lawson said, they are stuck in unconscious patterns and don't have the drive. I notice these mistakes-or flaws let's say in their behavior(e.g. my father lacks the discipline to work out and to diet) and try to fix them in my life, in other words to not have them. I will probably talk to them after I do some more research and I will have to prepare like a text or a speech because I don't think that they will understand me fully.

[GeorgeLawson]

1 minute ago, Hristi said:

@Corte @GeorgeLawson My parents are just like yours. They don't know that I've joined the forum or that I'm trying to do something. They have no clue about personal development and stuff like that. Like George Lawson said, they are stuck in unconscious patterns and don't have the drive. I notice these mistakes-or flaws let's say in their behavior(e.g. my father lacks the discipline to work out and to diet) and try to fix them in my life, in other words to not have them. I will probably talk to them after I do some more research and I will have to prepare like a text or a speech because I don't think that they will understand me fully.

Haha I'm not about delivering a speech, although you could try it! Yeah i love my Mum and Dad but they're very lazy and would certainly rather slob out in front of the tv most evenings than meditate. 

I think the best thing we can do is become self-actualised ourselves then when other people see the results in our lives they'll naturally want to learn more and try it for themselves.