“When you know what you are not, then you are able to know what you are. The impersonal (awareness) is real, the personal (identity) appears and disappears.” — Nisargadatta Maharaj
At a point in every human’s life, sometime in childhood, they spontaneously realize they exist. This is a miraculous moment of pure wonder when they discover their own being. This profound realization, what Nisargadatta Maharaj calls “the Child Principle,” holds the key to our inner peace and professional clarity.
The Dawn of Awareness
In early childhood, a remarkable transformation occurs. There comes a moment when the pure awareness of existence dawns within us – the simple yet profound recognition “I am.” This is consciousness in its pristine state, before any labels or definitions. Just the raw knowing of being.
This awareness is natural, effortless, and complete. The child doesn’t think, “I am this or that.” There is only the innocent recognition of existence itself.
Where Confusion Begins
What happens next is where our troubles begin. That same pure consciousness becomes entangled in the mind’s creations. The simple “I am” transforms into “I am this” or “I am that.” We become identified with our thoughts, roles, achievements, and problems. The simple and pure “I am” becomes “I should”, “I want”, “I don’t want”.
In your life, this shows up as:
- The executive who can’t separate her worth from her title
- The team member who feels threatened when his ideas are questioned
- The project leader who can’t sleep because she’s consumed with future scenarios
- The golfer who feels anxious over the ball because he wants to avoid embarrassment in front of his friends
- The Mom who snaps at her child because she is feeling her quality of motherhood threatened
The pristine present moment awareness becomes confused, putting on masks that seem necessary for survival in the workplace and beyond. Forcing us to become “posers”, imposters wanting desperately to be seen as such and such, this or that.
Returning to Source
The key insight Nisargadatta offers is breathtakingly simple: stay at the source. Return to that child-like awareness of “I am” but go no further. See the ego’s call to put on a mask, to pose for the others, to live to a concept set by a lifetime of conditioning. See it clearly, know you are not that. Stay prior to all that thinking. Stay in the “I am” only, the present moment awareness that provides all that is needed.
Imagine sitting in a high-stakes meeting. Beneath the presentation slides, strategic discussions, and office politics lies your fundamental awareness – the simple knowing that you exist. This awareness is watching the entire show unfold. It remains untouched by outcomes, unburdened by expectations.
The Practice in Professional Life
The next time you feel overwhelmed at work:
- Pause and notice you are aware
- Feel the simple fact of your existence
- Recognize this awareness is what you truly are
- Allow thoughts about projects, deadlines, and relationships to be seen as objects appearing to this awareness
- Realize you are not in control, trillions of variables work to make things happen, you don’t even have control of what your next thought will be
- Make decisions from this grounded place
If you are a golfer, do your thinking during set up, club and shot selection, then let go of control. Allow the present moment awareness, the “I am” only, adding nothing more to it. This will help your body perform the swing you know is within you, the swing that happens when the interference of the thinking mind has subsided. Why else do you think you can make great shots, but wish you could be more consistent. The mind’s interference is the only variable between you best shots and the rest.
When you join a video call feeling anxious about your performance, notice the awareness watching both the anxiety and the performance. During difficult conversations with colleagues, sense the consciousness that witnesses both your reactions and theirs.
Beyond Concepts to Direct Experience
This isn’t philosophy to believe in or theology to have faith in. It’s an invitation to direct experience. Don’t take my word for it – try it yourself.
When facing a challenging decision today:
- Step back from the mental chatter
- Rest in the simple awareness that precedes all thoughts, be “I am”, nothing more
- Notice how clarity naturally emerges from this space, this present moment awareness
- Act from awareness rather than reactivity, if you are considering actions, remember where there is a feeling of a need for control or validation, the ego is at play and will only cause more suffering.
You are the one asking questions about your mind’s patterns. You are the one sensing something essential is missing in the midst of achievement. That very recognition is pointing to your true nature – be the childlike dawning of awareness and nothing more. Stay there.
This understanding transforms not just meditation sessions but meetings, decisions, relationships, and every aspect of your professional journey. The peace you seek in retreats becomes available in the boardroom.
Try it today, right where you are, and witness how returning to your essential nature brings both inner peace and professional effectiveness.