The 4 principles for conscious transformation

Several psychological guidelines to facilitate personal growth from Mindfulness.

When we are able to see that there is something in us or in our life that does not fit 100% to our needs, we can choose between two options: to leave things as they are or to develop strategies so that what we are not satisfied with improves and transforms.

If you choose the second option, that of taking action and carrying out measures that help you to improve and evolve, it means that you are choosing to to carry out a conscious transformation.

I want to change and I do not know where to start: the conscious transformation

The conscious transformation simply refers to the decision to want to change something in a deliberate manner, and relates directly to your personal growth.

Sometimes we say we want to change something but we don't know where to start. For this, Mindfulness psychology proposes four fundamental principles that will help you to walk the path of change and personal growth. These principles for transformation are: Recognition, Acceptance, Inquiry and Non-identification. Together they form the acronym RAIN (Rain), something that may help you to remember them.

Below I briefly outline each of the principles of mindfulness of mindfulness (RAIN) transformation. These can be taken as steps to carry out a process of change.

1: Recognition

Recognition is the step that from denial of our reality to acceptance of what is occurring..

Denial refers to the lack of an internal statement that something is really happening. If we deny and do not recognize, then we will never be able to make a change, because our denial will be undermining our freedom to choose whether or not we want it for ourselves.

It is important to understand that denying something does not make us suffer its consequences any less. I can deny that I have a problem with food, but I will not stop suffering from it by relating to it in that way. That is why this first step is so important, because if we deny things we will never be able to take care of them.

Recognition opens us up to observing ourselves and our world in a conscious and liberating way, taking us from ignorance and illusion to freedom.

When we find ourselves stuck in life we need to start by having a predisposition to observe and ask ourselves What is going on? That is why we need to start by admitting our truth, we need to start by admitting our truth.

Example: a frequent drinker who denies the cost of his unhealthy lifestyle to his health gives way to recognizing that this recurrent drinking habit is something that causes him discomfort.

2. Acceptance

The second step is that of acceptance. Acceptance is a complex concept to explain as it is often associated with resignation.. Quickly and in order not to make a mistake, I explain the differences in the way it is expressed: resignation is expressed as "Ok, this is how it is, I can't do anything" and acceptance, however, as "Ok, this is how it is, what can I do with it".

After recognizing our reality and opening ourselves to observe it, we need to do the deep work of acceptance. Acceptance is the openness to be able to include whatever is in front of us in our life, from the acute understanding that it is so, what can I do with it?From the keen understanding that things are now as they are, without judgment.

The step of acceptance requires practice, time and constancy and a lot of courage but it allows the crudest problems to become amenable to work through. Mindfulness work can be the key to this step.

We can summarize this principle as embracing our reality whatever it is in the here and now..

Example: I have already acknowledged that I have a problem with alcohol, now I accept it, I do not run away from it or reject it even though this hurts me.

3: Investigation

The investigation step follows recognition and acceptance and is the step of inquiry. In this step enter the questions of How, Where, Why, In what way, etc.... It is the step of observation of our reality par excellence..

We have recognized and accepted our dilemmas, now we need a broader inquiry into all the senses and areas in which they are present and what they involve.

To carry out this process sometimes we need guidance, because we can get lost in the process. It is what allows us to understand why and/or simply to see in what way that something we want to change is present in our life at all levels.

The research that we carry out should be done in the body, mind and emotions.. It will also be necessary to explore the patterns that constitute the experience, i.e., the learnings adjacent to it.

Some of the questions within this principle are: How do I feel this in the body, how do I notice it and where? What do I think? What do I feel? Is this experience constant or inconstant over time? When does it arise over time?

4: Non-identification

This step is paramount in order to bring about a transformation. St means to stop talking about this experience as "I" or "my".. That is, we stop identifying ourselves with all the labels related to the experience, becoming independent of it. We go from "my disorder" or "my problem" to simply "problem". This step is the culminating step for transformation.

In this step we can understand the transience of things, seeing them with a greater perspective and perceiving how they are constantly changing. and perceiving how they are constantly changing. We detach from our idea of what "I am" and allow ourselves to construct a more fluid "I am".

When we understand this principle in depth, we become free to let go of the whole issue and begin to approach it from a state that can be described by this question Am I really this?

Example: from the identification "I am a failure" to, I may at times have behaved like a failure, but this is not always the case. I do not identify with the label of failure and allow myself to let go of it as I do not want it for myself.

It is at this point in the process that we we understand that our conscious self can take in millions of changing experiences, and then we begin to choose which ones we and then we begin to choose which ones we want to build ourselves with.

These principles can serve as a guide on your path of growth and conscious transformation. It is not always easy to walk this path alone so take your time and if you need it, ask for help.

To conclude...

Did you know these principles? I hope you have learned something new today and that this article will be helpful to you when you decide to consciously change something. And if at any time you need professional psychological help, please contact us.