What Lights You Up? The Art of Reading Aliveness

So, what is What Lights You Up all about? What does it mean and how can it improve your life?

Basically, discerning what lights you up is the ability to read your own, or someone else’s, aliveness.

Do you remember when you learned how to read? I don’t know what impact this had on your life, but for me a whole new world opened up. All of a sudden I could open a book and delve into adventures and mysteries that were unavailable to me before. Instead of being trapped in a small village in the Black Forest I was able to visit other countries, meet new friends with strange but fascinating cultures, and experience different times and foreign worlds. It was pure bliss and changed my life forever.

The same is true when you discover the skills of reading aliveness: A whole new world opens up. Instead of relying on the spoken word to understand someone, you now have the perception to read between the lines and to pick up on clues that you did not realize before. This gives you a much deeper understanding, not only of who a person is, but also who that person wants to be.

I would even go to the extent and say that reading someone’s aliveness can tell you their life purpose and dreams. It is very powerful.

Why is this important? Imagine you are a parent trying to help your child in making an important decision about her future. Wouldn’t it be helpful to read your child’s innate intelligence and understand her on a deep level rather than trying to figure out conceptually what steps she should take? It will mean the difference between you convincing your child of what you think she should do or guiding her to do what’s in her heart.

Or, imagine you are giving a speech. Have you ever gotten so wrapped up in what you had to say that you lost your audience in the process? Being able to read a group of listeners can help you to stay connected and keep your content fresh.

I find that the ability of reading aliveness is the ultimate service. It enables you to support others in finding and following their dreams. Learning the craft isn’t hard. Instead of listening with your ears you learn to listen with your senses and your heart. Once you know the difference, all it takes is practice.

Exercise:

The first step in reading aliveness is observation.

I posted the pictures of five people below. Look at the faces and observe what you see. What is the expression of each face? How are they different? What emotions do you see?

To help you, I posted a list of possible visual clues. If you prefer, come up with your own ones. Be as objective as you can and avoid making interpretations.

For example, in picture 1 you can observe big open and curious eyes, rosy cheeks, a fuller lower lip, calmness, and a very balanced face. An interpretation would be the statement that this is a happy baby. We can’t know that. You can see happiness in someone’s eyes, but you can’t really know how the person feels.

Picture 1

Picture 2

Picture 3

Picture 4

Picture 5

Some observation clues:

If you feel courageous, step in front of a mirror, relax your face and observe your own expression. What do you see in your face?

Hope this little exercise is helpful to you in getting a start at reading aliveness and getting a deeper understanding of yourself and others. Please let me know if you have questions about the process. I am happy to help.

Photo Source: apdk via Flickr under a Creative Commons License

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Related Posts:

Want to Help Someone Get What They Want? Don’t Listen to Their Words

Not Sure What to Do With Your Life? Follow Your Light

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Do you want to find out what lights you up? Take our ‘What Lights You Up - Questionnaire’

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