One of the many things I have learned as a result of being on a spiritual path is that when you are looking for an answer or guidance, the answer usually will be revealed in ways that you could have never imagined.

During the past two weeks, I came across blog posts or had talks with people that reminded me that many things in life happen without any force on my part.

The sun rises and sets without any help from me. Many things that have happened in my life that were of great significance occurred without me trying to force the result that I wanted.

When I turned thirty, I gave up on the idea of ever getting married. I was so tired of the whole dating game and figured I wanted nothing more to do with the issue. Two months later, I met the man who would end up being my husband and we were married ten months later.

I have known of this concept for years but every now and then, when I want something really strongly, I almost always feel inclined to do something to make it happen. We live in a world where we are taught that in order to get anything, you have to go get it. Or as the saying goes: grab the bull by the horns.

Grabbing a bull by the horns is not a very smart thing to do. I have seen bulls and they are not too friendly when someone is trying to control them. The same goes for life. You can try to make something happen but if it is not meant to be, there is nothing you can do about it.

As a former “Type A” personality, there are remnants of that past in me where I am full of drive to do what I can to achieve the outcome that I want.

Now this is where things get interesting. I am a big believer that we create our reality but the timing aspect of when everything comes together usually occurs without any doing on my part.

When we are in touch with our inner voice (and we all have an inner voice), we are better equipped to know how to proceed in any given situation. The key to accessing that inner voice is silence — and allowing yourself to truly listen to what your heart is telling you.

We all can be guided by our intuition if we choose to listen to it. So often we look to experts and those who have achieved what we want for guidance. But the reality is that each life path is different, so to expect the same exact results or outcome is very limiting.

The best way to be silent is to simply sit somewhere that you feel really comfortable and have no noise around you and just listen.

Actually, when you allow yourself moments of silence, you enable yourself to be open to whatever may cross your path during the course of the day.

Many times, thoughts have crossed my mind which appeared to hold no significance at that moment but ended up being much more important than they seemed hours or days later.

I do realize that to many in the world, the concept of honoring and listening to one’s intuition may seem naïve or not intelligent. However, in numerous cultures, religions and belief systems, the concept of signs, dreams and inner guidance is very abundant.

Jesus, Buddha, Moses, Abraham and so many others, were guided by their inner voice. These men accomplished great things. Their lives represent what is possible within each one of us.

We each have a special mission in life and no one can tell us what that mission is. Only our heart and soul know the details. However, those details may not be so obvious due to all that is around us.

For many years, I used to wonder why some people seemed to be better able to access those details and others were not. I came to see that the company we keep plays a huge part in how we choose not only to see life but how we choose to see ourselves.

Sounds fairly obvious, but for some reason, I always used to lose sight of that reality. This was one of my own issues for most of my youth. I believed that people saw what I saw and often I was reminded that not everyone has the same set of eyes.

This bothered me for years because I felt that my set of eyes was the proper set of eyes to have. That came to an end about five years ago when I had a dream where a wise man told me that I needed to get over my arrogance. He showed me how I would get a job that would help me in that respect.

Two years later, I ended up with a job that was similar to that in my dream. I worked as a secretary in a church and had to put up with all kinds of put downs from people. Not everyone is nice to a secretary and many treat you as if you have no brains.

That experience was one of the greatest teachers ever. My arrogance in thinking that my view was the right view came to an end. I came to see that so many people view themselves based on how they see others.

About a year into that job, I had a dream where I had to go back to being a lawyer and so I decided to sit for the bar exam again. I passed and that is how I ended up being where I am now.

Each day at work is like going to another planet. It is such a great teacher, consistently showing me that life is what we choose to make out of it. A fancy title or degree really does not mean much. I know that may be easy for me to say because I have those things; but I also know that in the eyes of spirit, titles do not mean a thing. What matters more is what is in your heart.

Your sense of self is not determined by others, it is determined by you and you alone.