The White Belt

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Everything posted by The White Belt

  1. Heyyyyy. So when I watched my first movie as a young boy, I wanted to be an actor, and that always stuck with my mind. I took an acting workshop but because I was so young it was all confusing and I didn't want to go back, so my parents didn't make me, but the dream stuck with me, so about four years ago I signed up for some other acting workshops and it was an incredible feeling. For somebody who changes his mind all the time on what he wants to do, I actually stuck with it for quite a while, and managed to pull in some acting jobs. Then self-doubt crept up, I got anxious in classes, on sets, and now I keep telling myself that it's a shitty, superficial, self-chershing thing to do, and I keep changing my mind on what I want to do, yet keep returning back to acting. Any time an acting job comes my way, without me seeking it out, i'm all about the acting, and then I drop it again like a bad habit. Yet, even when i'm into it I can't make my way through an acting book, I can't get the work done, or be proactive looking for opportunities, yet I can read a personal-development book very easily, which tells me I don't want it. I can go cold on acting for months and then I start dreaming about big actors. I'm trying to convince myself that I shouldn't do it because it's chasing money and fame but it might be deeper than that. I dunno :/. Please help! Thanks.
  2. What I did today to edge me closer to being one of the most impactful actors of this generation :- - Spent one hour studying Stanislavski's 'Building a Character'. - Read through and took notes of a play I will perform, 'The Threepenny Opera' for 30 minutes. - Watched and joined in with a 15 minute voice exercise on YouTube Other Success Habits I completed today:- - Today I looked at my Dreamboard - Today I expressed gratitude. - 15 Minute Meditation - Went for a 15 minute run followed by a 15 minute stretch. General notes/Notes of improvement/Affirmations :- - Sort out monologues and application for submission to drama schools by the end of December. - Begin a five minute affirmation daily routine 'I am a world-class actor'.
  3. What I did today to edge me closer to being one of the most impactful actors of this generation :- - Took a tour of my local theatre for inspiration. - Saw a play (The importance of being Earnest) at said Theatre and took notes after of things I noticed in the actors, good or not so good. - Spent one hour studying Stanislavski's 'Building a Character'. - Read through and took notes of a play I will perform, 'The Threepenny Opera'. Other Success Habits I completed today:- - Today I looked at my Dreamboard - Today I expressed gratitude. - 20 Minute Meditation General notes/Notes of improvement/Affirmations :- - Stop looking at the lives of people who don't get shit done.
  4. Hey guys. I had a thought, and I thought it would be good to write it here whilst opening up a discussion. Shakespeare wrote his most famous sonnet, 'Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?', a very short time after his son died. Picasso's renowned 'blue' period came after his friend was shot in the head in front of him. Vincent van Gogh cut his ear off. Almost every decent musician has a painful personal life. The film 'Apocalypse now' was so difficult to make, everything seemed to go wrong, that they made a documentary just about all the bad stuff. Both Health Ledger and Phillip Seymore Hoffman died from drug overdoses. So what's my point? From all of this suffering came immense beauty! Art that has raised our consciousness, made us aware of the issues around us. Art is beautiful and it all came from a place of suffering. If we all became enlightened and transcended suffering none of this would exist. You could say it would be better if these people were enlightened, but I don't buy that at all, they sacrificed themselves for us. You could also say we wouldn't need art, I don't buy that either, art makes a life worth living. "We don't read and write poetry because it's cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. And medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for. To quote from Whitman, "O me! O life!... of the questions of these recurring; of the endless trains of the faithless... of cities filled with the foolish; what good amid these, O me, O life?" Answer. That you are here - that life exists, and identity; that the powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse. That the powerful play *goes on* and you may contribute a verse. What will your verse be?" - John Keating (Dead Poet's Society, 1989) So my question is, do we need some suffering in the world?
  5. @Frogfucius Agree with everything you said. With recycling, car sharing schemes and green emissions I'd say we are a lot more conscious, without all needing to be enlightened.
  6. Heyyy! I took a class on compassion recently at my local Buddhism centre. Great. But what I couldn't understand is why add things to the ego, if even positive, when we want to let the ego go? Why do personal development? Is a healthy ego easier to let go of really? This is confusing to me. Thanks guys.
  7. @cetus56 @Prabhaker @Neo This opens up an interesting question. Do enlightened people use the illusive ego that they built up even though they are liberated from it? Do they use it to interact from a place of no-mind?
  8. @Azrael Thanks. So I wouldn't be creating more attachments?
  9. @Neo Heeeeeeeeeeeeeey. Thanks man. I've just watched the shocking truth about enlightenment video. So many paradoxes running through my mind. You're right. I need to be patient. I guess I'd rather live with a wholesome, healthy ego until it's time to let go.
  10. Hey all! I've been to a couple of yoga classes previously but can't currently afford them. I was wondering if I could do it alone at home (with the risk of not having my postures corrected), and if there are any online courses that will enable me to do it? And also can somebody briefly tell me, where the common exercise of yoga that you can find in multiple places in any city and the spiritual practice, if at all, correlates? Thanks!
  11. When people say 'I Stopped Myself' Who is I and who is MYSELF? Are they saying my higher consciousness stopped my ego? Or my inner being stopped my ego? Etc. What are good words for this paradox, the I and I (I was going to but I didn't)? Thanks in advance guys. Sorry if it seems vague.
  12. @Scholar So by that logic it's best to develop a healthy ego?
  13. Helloooo. The question explains itself. When I have a burning question and something that happens in my dream that sort of relates should I try to decipher it. Does it hold any wisdom? Or is it just all the be taken lightly and life decisions not to be remotely based on it? Thanks!
  14. @iago iriarte arhatha Ego? So not very noble?
  15. Hi all. Down at my local Buddhist meditation centre they did a technique in meditation that I am unaware of involving a mental objective. After a body scan, a couple of deep breaths and following the breath for a while, they told us to find the points at the tips of the nostrils where it feels cold with the breath going in and feels warm with it coming out. We focused on this for maybe a third to a half of the session. They said this was an object and we could choose another but I don't really understand what kind of mental objects they are referring to? Can anybody tell me if they do this, and also what the point of it is? Thanks!
  16. @Frogfucius Interesting, thanks. I think I get distracted with my busy mind even when focusing on the breath. So perhaps an object in my minds eye would be good.
  17. Hey all. So, I recently, unfortunately, gave up my meditation practice. I'm finding it really difficult. I was doing twenty minutes daily and it drove me nuts. It was uncomfortable, my back hurt a lot, my mind was going crazy with its constant chatter, I kept looking at the clock without really meaning to, my legs would go so numb I would have to stretch them out during the meditation and it would make me generally agitated. I was thinking about just doing 5 minutes for a few months but is this really enough? Let me know your thoughts on it all. Thanks - BeginnerActualizer
  18. @Ry4n Thank you. I think I will go back to five. @Prabhaker Should I disipline myself to sit perfectly straight in order to have a more effective meditation better down the line? Or am I better off slouching a little bit and actually doing it, lol. @Azrael Sit on the couch normally or cross legged on the couch? @SaynotoKlaus If I sit on the chair am I also depriving myself of getting a better meditation in the future or can you go all the way with a chair meditation? Thanks all.
  19. So I'm just thinking about mastering something. Forging it into a career. I've just started this venture and I feel quite passionately about it. But i've felt passionate about other things. So what if I don't feel passionate about this after a week, month, a year? Surely passion is like a synonym for motivation and one shouldn't just rely on passion to get by and push through once the passion is dissolving or has dissolved. Thoughts please?

  20. Tension In Learning

    The White Belt replied to Ire's topic in Personal Development -- [Main]

    Dude I'm the same but a little different it's like I sit down to learn and it's 'oh hi, balls. Itchy?' And my body just feels so irritated.
  21. So I posted about confidence issues before and I've had a bit of a realisation. I'm nowhere near selfish enough. I don't strive to make much money because I know there are so many unfortunate poor people out there and as long as I can get by I'm fine with that - extreme I know. I don't contribute to conversation much because I think people deserve to speak more than me. If something's bothering me I won't speak up in a situation or to a person because I don't want them to feel uncomfortable I don't express myself because I don't feel like I deserve to be seen or heard how I'd like to. I don't feel like I deserve a special life because nobody around me is leading a special life. I don't know how this all came about in my life - but just telling myself I deserve this. That I can be selfish - is helping a great deal. Am I on the right path? Is this a true realisation? Thanks
  22. Look at Arnold Schwarzenegger. Leo has studied him. He can't be far off being self-actualised. Apart from the spirituality. But in the original hiarachy of needs there isn't a point on spirituality so going of that he must be actualised. And he was the most selfish person out there!
  23. @vizual Elaborate?

  24. Confidence Issues

    The White Belt posted a topic in Personal Development -- [Main]

    Hello. So I'm currently travelling SE Asia and although not all the time I'm not speaking to as many people as I'd like and having pretty dry conversations. My self-actualizing journey seems to be alienating me somewhat and less enjoying my travels. I see people on here saying things like confidence is an illusion and not real and that's just messing me up more because then I don't try I just be natural but naturally I feel shy and unconfident. I'm trying to not sell myself for approval like Leo says in the 'how to stop caring what people thing about you' video but this leaves me out of conversation a lot. I'm better in one on one conversation but in group conversation I only speak when asked a question and then let everyone get on with it. Please help, thanks.

  25. Confidence Issues

    The White Belt replied to The White Belt's topic in Personal Development -- [Main]

    Thanks for the reply guys. @Quizzer I especially like what you said. Just to fake it til I make it. If I have the choice between naturally being shy or forcing a bit of confidence to get results in self expression then I will do that. No idea what you were talking about sexual energy for though. That's totally unrelated.