BY EVE DELUNAS
As we enter the Age of Aquarius, our human family is going through a time of accelerated spiritual evolution. More and more of us are consciously choosing to disconnect from our ego selves—the “little me” within each of us that is all about judgment, comparison, separation, and fear—and align instead with the light, love, and infinite potential of our true selves, our divine Essence.
This is easier said than done. We are naturally programmed to have our egos “run the show,” and there is good reason for that. After all, our egos specialize in keeping us physically and emotionally safe. And they excel at doing so through the use of carefully curated “fear tactics” and other forms of distraction and self-deception.
The problem is that the ego’s strategies for keeping us from experiencing failure, embarrassment, injury, humiliation, loss, uncertainty, abandonment, or heartbreak, end up creating greater suffering in the long run.
What’s more, they wall us off from the very part of us that can bring us the joy, love, peace, wisdom, and wellbeing we are seeking—our spiritual Essence.
The more our egos are “running the show,” the greater the likelihood we will end up feeling stuck, miserable, hopeless, and unfulfilled in our lives.
So, what does this have to do with the four temperaments?
Your temperament is one predictor of the kinds of tricks your ego may use to attempt to maintain control and dissuade you from opening to the wonderment, beauty, and expansion that is your true nature.
For example, Janelle, a “Get Things Going Stabilizer (ESFJ),” is miserable in her excellent-paying job as a data clerk for a shipping company. All day she sits alone in a cubicle at her computer and tabulates critical information for her organization. Recently, she was offered a job at Google working in human resources. Although the pay is slightly less than that of her current job, she would be utilizing her Bachelor’s Degree in HR, and coordinating the screening of new applicants with various departments throughout the company.
Although every cell in Janelle’s body is exploding with excitement over the possibility that she could be doing something that would be fulfilling, challenging, growth enhancing, and the opportunity of a lifetime, her ego sees this potential change as a threat to the status quo. And so, while Janelle’s inner guidance is urging her to move in the direction of her heart’s longing, her ego begins to work overtime to convince her to remain at her present job.
Hence, Janelle finds herself repeatedly entertaining thoughts that changing jobs is far too big a risk to take with no guarantees that it will work out. She is flooded with memories of all of the times in the past when things did not go the way she would have hoped. She begins to envision “worse case scenarios,” in which she loses the new job, and ends up homeless. She recalls her mother often telling her “You are always trying to be too big for your breeches.” And Janelle concludes that she is better off staying where she is and declines the job offer.
Like Janelle, each of us is likely to encounter internal roadblocks capable of derailing us from our path of personal and spiritual growth. And each temperament is more vulnerable to certain of the ego’s mind tricks than others.
Once you are aware of the mental thought traps most often associated with your temperament, you can avoid getting ensnared by them by strengthening your connection to the courage, clarity, inspiration, wisdom, and higher guidance of your spiritual Essence.
In this session in the BAPT conference, we will address the following:
- What it means to align with your spiritual Essence and how it can be helpful;
- How to discern the voice of your inner guidance from that of your ego;
- Which ego mind tricks are most likely to derail someone with your temperament preferences from a path of spiritual growth; and,
- How someone with your temperament preference can enhance your capacity to align with and express the highest and best within you.
About the Author
Eve Delunas, PhD (ENFJ) has been applying psychological type theory to catalyze positive changes in clinical and organizational settings for 40 years. She is recognized internationally for her work on the relationship between personality and dysfunctional behavior, as presented in her book, Survival Games Personalities Play. Eve first became interested in type and temperament as a student of David Keirsey and Marilyn Bates, while pursuing her Masters degree in Counseling. She went on to work with David Keirsey for 10 years. Eve’s newest book, New Science, New Brain, New You, is a do-it-yourself guidebook for clearing subconscious limiting beliefs, igniting your goals, and moving out of the “survival mode.” In addition to offering workshops internationally, Eve conducts virtual classes and individual sessions to identify and dissolve subconscious limiting beliefs, increase self-love, awaken intuition, and attract greater abundance of every kind. She can be found online at: evedelunas.com. Email: evedelunas@gmail.com.