An Epic is a long poem that tells a narrative of the deeds and adventures of a hero or legend. How epic is your life right now? Who could you influence with your deeds and adventures?
I’ll let you in on a little secret- being Ethical, Powerful, Intelligent and Compassionate is the way to have an E.P.I.C life.
E.P.I.C. is a great tool for adults and children. As a homeschool mother of 3, I realize that children often know the difference between right and wrong without us needing to lecture them. In fact, the lecture rarely changes the behavior. The only way to change the behavior is to upgrade the pattern of thinking with questions and guidance. Once children and adults can learn and think thoughts that are beneficial, they have beneficial behaviors. E.P.I.C. thoughts lead to E.P.I.C. behaviors.
Ethics: “Is what you’re doing right or wrong?”
Most of us would define ethics somewhere along the line of having good morals, and we would be right. Webster defines ethics as the study of standards of conduct and moral judgement. I love this definition because the use of the words “study” and “judgement” shows that ethics can be observed, and we can decide for ourselves if something is right or wrong. A way to know our personal ethics is via our values. For example, if we value human life, to see someone abusing another human would go against our values and we would find the behavior unethical. Once we study and set standards we develop ethics. This allows us to set boundaries for peace within our inner circle and maintain space for what we truly value.
Power: “How can I use my personal power in a positive way?”
The scientific formula for power is work done over time. Work is using force to push or pull something from point A to point B. When we push or pull for the things we value, we are using personal power- even if it’s in a negative way. We are all probably aware that the only person we truly have power over is self. To take someone's power would be unethical. Growing in power alongside building and maintaining healthy ethics is the part of our narrative that makes us the hero and legend because of our deeds and adventures that happen over time.
Intelligence: “What is the most intelligent way to move forward?”
Intelligence is the ability to learn and acquire information followed by understanding and retaining for the use of knowledge. Knowledge alone doesn’t make us intelligent. It’s our ability to learn and grow that produces intelligence. How you use your intelligence to change your life, community, or even the world is what makes you powerful. Knowledge is the information gathered and retained over time, usually with experiences. So as long as you never lose your ability to seek, learn, and understand information, you will forever be an intelligent person. Your style of seeking, learning, understanding is what makes you unique or as Jesus might call you, “the salt of the earth” (Matthew 5:13).
Have you ever said or done something without thinking and totally embarrassed yourself? Knowing if you had paused to think, you probably would have spoken or acted more intelligently. Here is another secret to help you avoid that frustrating mistake: pausing 5-7 seconds before responding is the difference between acting and reacting. Acting is from a place of higher thinking aka intelligence. Reacting is doing again or repeating what someone did to you. For example, something as simple as “how are you” and having a reaction response of “I’m fine” without actually scanning if you are truly ok. Pausing a few seconds allows time for the mind to power up and bypass the auto-responses of the brain. If you are having an emotional moment that needs to pass, allowing yourself 45-60 seconds allows the moment and emotions to settle. If someone rushes you, make them wait longer. These seconds of micro-meditation stop us from saying and doing things that we may regret. Instead, let us become the people who have an intelligent response for almost everything because we have given our brain a moment to access the mind. Intelligence is the difference between surviving and thriving.
Compassion: “How can I show compassion?”
This final piece is what makes the difference between an egopath and an empath. Empaths have compassion and empathy for others, egopaths (commonly known as narcissists) don’t. The truth is we need both ego and empathy in order to have balanced compassion. People with too much ego take advantage of empaths, who lack a strong ego. Having a balance of ego and empathy allows us to have compassion for ourselves and others. It’s the “how-to” for the second greatest commandment: “love your neighbor as yourself” (Mark 12:31). Balance allows our standards, power, and intelligence to be used for the good of ourselves and others. Compassion is the fuel that empowers us to choose intelligent behaviors that could change our lives and the world for good.
Make the story of your life E.P.I.C. by observing how to use your personal power to create an intelligent and poetic narrative for your life. Do the deeds. Have the adventures. Be the legend.
Natasha Bennett is a veteran and homeschool mom of three, who is currently stationed in Nevada’s Oasis with her husband of 15 years at NAS Fallon. Natasha is also a Specialist for healing symptoms of mental and emotional trauma, receiving her training with Adapt Masterclass through MindFreed founder Roman Zanoni.
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