"Do you want ego or answers?" I had to ask myself that question once, years ago. I was having a bad time, in the midst of a painful breakup, and in emotional overwhelm on a daily basis. I was really struggling, but not on the outside.
Sometimes I am very independent and stubborn...to my detriment. My astrological sign is Taurus, after all, so having a propensity for stubbornness is one of our traits. All you Taurians out there know what I'm talking about! Moving myself past that type of energy—the hooves in the dirt, horns pointed in defense, I don't need any help stance—took quite a bit of work on my part.
Now, many, years later, I wonder why I ever resisted. Golly, healing and evolving is just so much easier, less painful, and more profound with the right help. So, do you want ego or answers?
A long time ago, the genius Albert Einstein spoke to this. He said something like, "You cannot solve a problem with the same mind that created it." Today I recognize just how profound this wisdom is.
Consider what it means, that a new perspective from outside of our own mind's parameters is required to truly resolve our suffering. Otherwise, we continue to swim in a narrow, ego-validating, echo chamber that allows us to stay in our comfort zone. It also provides nothing new to 1) challenge our limited views 2) elevate us out of our current suffering, 3) move us beyond the blocks created by our fears, or 4) elevate us out of the useless default habits and strategies of our ego.
This is why seeking the right mentor is essential for personal evolution. On our own, we may be able to gain a more clear understanding of what created the conflicts we struggle with, but we can't necessarily access anything new with which to resolve them. That's because, as Einstein said, nothing new comes from the same old limitations of our mental conditioning and structures. True evolution takes an impact from the outside, something that challenges our perspective to the core.
We have to step out of our own mind and also (generally) our comfort zone, to access new pathways for genuine healing, awakening, and evolution. Yet, the pathways are already here for us. We don't have to bushwhack our way through the muck. Someone has tread this ground before us. All we need to do is seek the path and follow the overgrown trail that's already there. It's so much easier to do so, but first we must finally surrender our ego's dominance, and just ask for help.
I've come to believe that our soul ensures that we connect with exactly what's needed for us to evolve, once we surrender. And what a gift it is to have a knowledgeable guide ahead of us with a big flashlight as we trudge our way through the darkest parts of our psyche. I can tell you that the beauty and inner peace beyond the mysterious darkness is totally worth it…