 A Blog about Sensory Processing Sensitivity from the Worldview of a High Sensing Male Years ago, a young Gregg Allman penned a song, one of the best blues tunes of that era, about a man being abused and used by an amour. The song was aptly called Whipping Post. He cried out in the song, that the anguish and pain felt like being tied to a whipping post. The gritty blues song belted out with his gravelly, bluesy voice and masterfully played by his fellow bandmates, epitomized the pain of emotion gone wrong. HSP men, often easygoing, gentle men, sometimes find themselves on the brunt end of emotional flak from insensitive men and women. The criticisms and put-downs are often related to our sensitive nature, which is in sharp contrast to theirs. Perhaps, we are criticized as well for our insights and intuitions or because of the ups and downs of our emotional makeup. It sometimes feels like we are tied to an emotional whipping post to be flogged and humiliated in public displays of pseudo dominance. Why all the hate? Lesser men often attack those they think are weaker. This bullying is nothing more than internalized insecurity, probably from an early childhood background of abuse and neglect. They are wounded, you are not. You, as an HSP, express the things that they repress -the emotion, the feelings, the empathy that they lack, but secretly crave. They resent you for your ability to express these things that make us human – the ability to care, to nurture, and be supportive. Even some women get into this game, often because they have unrealistic fantasies about men as superheroes, saviors and warriors, white knights to save them from their core insecurities. This, again, brought to them by poor socialization and self-esteem learned from their parents. These women put you down because you don’t live up to their projection of what a man is supposed to be. They chain you to the whipping post and try to humiliate you—another example of insecurity. Don’t internalize the negativity. Whatever you do, don’t internalize this negativity. Walk away from this crap. Confrontation does not lead to resolution. Don’t take the comments to heart. They are not a projection of you, but rather the “other” projecting on you their fears and insecurities. This is a life lesson for all HSPs, don’t let your sensitive nature absorb the toxicity of others. Let go of the attacks. So what to do? Unleash yourself from the shackles of the whipping post. Don’t be a target for these weak people. In a real power move on your part – walk away. You hold the power of the chains that bind you. Keep your head up, move on. Your strength lies within you. You are, in the end, the better man for disengaging. Remember, you tie yourself to the whipping post by any inaction on your part. The whipping post, by its very definition, is a tool for humiliation and pain. Never let anyone denigrate you for who you are and what you are. We, as HSPs, are done with this. The tide is turning. 
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 A Blog about Sensory Processing Sensitivity from the Worldview of a High Sensing Male
Sensitivity in men is often criticized, sometimes by well-meaning but misinformed individuals and sometimes from those who have a distorted view of what constitutes masculinity. Boys are often socialized not to be sensitive or to play their sensitivity down. This causes many young men to shy away from the acceptance of their sensitive traits. When telling others, especially other men, about your sensitivity, you will find you that you will have to defend yourself against criticism. I listed a few of the more common areas you will find yourself having to defend and how you might approach this defense. # 1 – Not Being Tough Enough – Premise: Because of your sensitivity, you are not seen as being tough enough. What does tough enough mean anyway? This overused criticism of sensitive men is often used to put HSMs in a category that is decidedly non-masculine. Being tough means the ability to handle difficult and trying situations stoically and without emotion. Fine. But, to do so under all circumstances is rather stupid. Emotion is a human trait and one in which suppression is counterproductive. What is the hidden message behind this criticism? For one, sensitivity is seen as a weakness in men. Any man that displays emotion freely or is intuitive or nurturing is seen as being effeminate and thus non-masculine. It is a form of emotional suppression in men and an attempt at subjugation to an archaic man code. Defense: Emotion is a human quality, unless you have transcended your humanity, you will experience and show emotion regularly. Suppressing emotional expression is harmful to humans, and therefore unhealthy and unproductive. The notion that men are to always be in control, unemotional, and never wrong is not acknowledging that we all have our weaknesses. Not seeing weaknesses-- is a weakness. Allowing emotional expression has an evolutionary purpose, and therefore is a good thing. Doing so does not make you weak, effeminate, or untough. #2 – Taking Criticism – Premise: Not being able to take criticism makes you weak and wimpy. HSPs have a rough time with criticism, especially if it is personal and unconstructive. We take personal criticism to heart mainly because we are thoughtful and conscientious creatures. However, criticism is a natural part of life; it is a feedback mechanism that, when done correctly, can be constructive and useful to help us grow. When receiving criticism, we need to evaluate and compare the criticism, evaluate it for valuable nuggets, and compare the criticism to useful criticism we have received in the past. Learning to accept constructive criticism, however painful, is a path to personal growth. Consider the source of the criticism and note whether they have your best interest at heart. If it does not appear constructive, reject it, and realize that there may be another agenda at play. Defense: We HSMs have a right to reject unsupportive or destructive criticism, personal attacks, and insults. At some point, we have the right to push back. We need to learn to distance emotionally from the attacker and not assimilate the negative emotion. By not accepting the destructive criticism, we are rejecting the attacker, depriving them of the paltry emotional benefit of momentary dominance. #3 – Toxic Masculinity – Premise: Because of your sensitivity, you are not man enough, and therefore are subject to dominance by other Toxic Masculines (TM). Current adherence to the toxic masculinity culture that pervades our society has become a social disease. Look around, it is everywhere, in social media, sports, politics, business, and entertainment. Reject that definition of masculinity and don’t incorporate that into your self-image. Toxic men will look to single you out and subordinate you, either through intimidation or faux dominance. They will challenge your masculinity and try to call you out as a lesser man. Don’t take the bait. These TMs are the ones who are insecure and have doubts about their masculinity, which often can be traced to early learned development models, typically from a dysfunctional parent. It does not matter their station in life, corporate robber baron, elite athlete, bullying boss, or authoritarian leader; they will all have this underlying insecurity. There is nothing inherently superior about them over you. Defense: Masculinity is a culturally defined characteristic. You are a man by biological definition. You can define your gender role. Masculinity can be many things: strong, protective, assertive, or nurturing, compassionate, and emotional. All these traits are human. Don’t allow TMs to define who you are. Strive to be human first. You owe no allegiance to an ill-fitting definition of masculinity. You do owe it to yourself to be yourself. Stand and be resolute. #4 – Sensitivity – Premise: We HSMs are often criticized for being too sensitive, which generally translates into too emotional. Some men are emotion averse. They see emotion as a bad and fickle thing, especially in men. Sensitivity is a multi-faceted trait. It’s not just about emotion but equally about the quality of sensory processing and the depth at which it is processed internally. This spurs insights, intuition, compassion, and yes, emotion. Modern men are evolving, our roles are expanding, and some of the long-held roles men have held sacred are now being challenged or shared with females. We should look at these old models for men and rethink them, considering our current times. I do believe that we are moving towards more androgynous times, which by my definition is that we all males and females should strive to be more human, less gender-specific, and more in line with our personal preferences. Defense: Explore your insights. You have great intuition due to your sensitivity. This is a gift. We can nuance more sensory information from the environment, and that makes us valuable. Externalize more of your insights. Allow your depth of processing to bring you creative ideas and solutions. The world values sensitive creation from adroit thinking and the crafting of novel ideas. Realize it takes a lot of diversity to make a healthy world. You are part of that. #5 –Focus on the Positive Aspects (see the good qualities) – Premise: See your sensitivity as a positive, define it as such and share that with others. This is a proactive step and one that doesn’t require defensive posturing. Remain adaptable to fit uncomfortable situations, yet, never abandon your core values. Highlight with others your empathy and compassion. Be patient with those that don’t understand the complexity of sensitivity. Use humor and gentle kindness to make your points; all humans respond to that. Finally, show and be awareness for others that criticize you. Criticism often comes from a place of fear and misunderstanding. Be the light.  A Blog about Sensory Processing Sensitivity from the Worldview of a High Sensing Male
You don’t have to look very far to find negativity around everywhere. Highly Sensitive People seem to have a unique sense of picking up negativity in the environment. Perhaps, it is a keen nuanced sense of emotion floating about us, or maybe a collective receptor for sensing people’s moods, but we always seem to know when an environment is harmful or toxic. The problem with that is that we tend to internalize the negativity and hold it inward for too long, causing us issues emotionally and physically if we don’t find ways of detoxifying quickly energy that will alter our internal moods. Here are some hacks for releasing and letting go of negativity – something every HSP should know and be adept at doing. # 1 – Mindfulness Practice – Some of our emotional reactivity is learned behavior and can become automatic at the trigger of negativity inputs. To prevent this automatic loop from running on autopilot, you must first become consciously aware of the triggers and the subsequent behaviors that follow the triggers. One way of breaking the loop is to become mindful of your mind/body reaction to the trigger. You will feel the response in your body as well as in your mind. This should be a clue to the intensity of the negativity by the reaction in your mind/body. By being aware of the trigger, you can “thought lock” the response by consciously overriding the reaction with a calming reaction. This takes practice and time, but in time will rewire your brain for a more neutral reaction to the stimulus. Remember, mindfulness is awareness. And awareness provides choices in blind spots you had before. #2 –Isolate the Rumination – Once you find yourself in a rumination moment, where you continuously rehash the event/trigger needlessly and incessantly – you by way of awareness, can isolate the feelings associated with that trigger. Consider it like fencing off a rogue bull from the herd. Instead of allowing these repetitive thoughts, to spread around your consciousness, wreaking havoc, you can isolate and fence off the negative ones. You can even use the imagery of fencing off the negative thoughts if that makes It more real for you. By isolating, you are now managing the negativity directly. Isolation of these thoughts is the first step towards releasing them. HSPs are prone to emotional reactivity, and this must be channeled into constructive action, i.e., from overwhelm to resolve. #3 – Release the Emotion Underlying the Negativity- Releasing negative thoughts or emotions is an active process and somewhat of an art form. There are many activities, I have suggested in the blog over the years, that are excellent at helping you become mindful and allowing release. Meditation practice is perhaps one of the best. Finding a meditation practice is an individual choice, but there are many information options online that can help you in choosing. The practice of yoga and Tai Chi are like meditation in motion; the quiet fluidity of careful body movement with breathing installs a calm and peace that is both active and still. They both create a flow state condition that empties the mind and is a perfect place for release. Other activities such as neurofeedback training, aerobic exercise, or even digitally enhanced mood-altering music are great ways to prepare your mind for release. Your body will reward you with mood-enhancing endorphins that will help you pass the negativity outward from your mind and body. Releasing is not an act of vulnerability but rather empowerment. Releasing does not mean you have to resolve the negativity; it is merely the act of letting go. This will return to you a state of flow. #4 – Retreat, Rest, Rejuvenation – In extreme cases of overwhelm, when the above doesn’t work, then downtime is in order. Quarantine (as if you’re not doing enough of that lately) yourself in nature or a special sanctuary that you have created for yourself for a retreat. Surround yourself with self-soothing artifacts and distractions – movies, music, books, hobbies, or passions and indulge yourself in silence. The goal is to seek peace and calm in your soul. Most HSPs know how to do retreat natively, so this should be a familiar activity or non-activity. Rest and recharge. Self-isolate. You have permission. #5 –Talk with Empathetic Souls – Do not hold this inside you! There is a time when talking to an empathetic soul is imperative. Externalize your thoughts with trusted family and friends and seek a measure of validation of your assumptions and concerns. You may be blowing the negativity way out of proportion, so seek some confirmation. This will help you confirm or refute your feelings and help you formulate constructive actions. #6 – Practice Peace and Calm, Serenity Living – Quieting the mind for HSPs is work. I mean real work. Yet doing so via practice and repetition will teach you to discipline your mind to manage erratic emotions, which often lead to overwhelm. This practice will train you for dealing with negative onslaughts, the kind that is quite common these days. Imagine that you are becoming a mental Aikido master. You fend off negative attacks by flowing with the energy that is opposing you. You take that energy and let it flow through you, not at you. Imagine you move in mindful motion with the attacker and disarm this energy by using that momentum to pass by you. You disarm it with mental Aikido, steps you learned above. #7 –Be Selective in Your Environmental Choices – The environment we choose to be in, is highly reflective of how much negativity we must cope with. Choose your companions wisely. You may not always be able to avoid negative people, but you should not consciously seek them out. It is real work to deal with negativity in people and will drain you of your resources. Additionally, be where you are most energized and feel flow. The places you allow yourself in can make a huge difference in your productivity. Be where you are most natural. Finally, surround yourself with peace and calm emitting amenities. A pleasant environment means a mind/body calm. #8 – Recognize that You are Different in a Good Way – We HSPs have different sensibilities. It comes with the territory. Some of it is sensory, some of it is intuitive, and some of it is HSP logic. We all need to learn to accept ourselves and embrace the gift of high sensitivity. Use it to enlighten, educate, and to uplift others. Spread positivity to negate the negativity. Refuse to believe or see sensitivity as a weakness.  A Blog about Sensory Processing Sensitivity from the Worldview of a High Sensing Male
There are many excellent books on raising HSP boys – Dr. Ted Zeff’s book The Strong, Sensitive Boy, and Dr. Elaine Aron’s book The Highly Sensitive Child: Helping Our Children Thrive When the World Overwhelms Them are just two that come to mind. You should find them and read them if you have an HSP boy. Don’t think because you are an HSP; you will always have intuitive guidance on this subject. Those of us who have raised HSP boys at some time will make these same mistakes, in spite of our high sensitivity. The following mistakes are from my own experiences both as an HSP parent and as an HSP child. # 1 - Trying to Normalize HSP Boys This might be a mistake many fathers make with their HSP sons. I suspect some mothers may do this as well. HSP boys are never going to be like the “normal” non-HSP boys. They will go against type from the get-go, so trying to shoehorn them into a typical set of boy traits will only frustrate the HSP boy and make them feel inadequate or inferior. Instead, you should allow them to experience life through their unique lens. Be supportive and nurturing to their sensitivity. #2 -Not Teaching HSP Boys to Regulate Their Emotions Emotional reactivity is a big thing for HSPs. Emotions very often run high in HSPs, and HSP boys are no exception. Emotional overwhelm can be at times challenging to deal with and be frustrating for you and your HSP son. Teach them to flow their emotional highs and lows, ride them like a wave, experience the emotions but not drown in them. Our emotional abilities can be a gift, but only if we have some sense of control. Teach them meditation, mindfulness, visualization, and calming techniques that will quiet down their minds when overwhelm kicks in. #3 – Not Providing HSP Boys with Gentle Challenges for Growth HSP boys are not glass objects or fragile rice paper. They can and should be handled gently but must be provided challenges to expand their comfort zone. What they learn now about overcoming challenges will follow them into adulthood. Encourage them to push boundaries outward and be there when they fail or stumble. Gentle but firm guidance will give them confidence to face life and its challenges. #4 – Not Celebrating Their Differences Help your HSP boys to celebrate their uniqueness. They are inherently different- acknowledge that. Show them that this characteristic is a gift. Then show them how to use this gift by encouraging them to step out into the world and be themselves. Being genuine and authentic will help them live their best life. #5 – Not Teaching HSP Boys Confidence Confidence is not innate, it is learned. Teach your HSP son to have confidence. Encourage life experience, then show them that failure is simply feedback. Applaud success but dwell more so on effort. Show them that curiosity and persistence will be their greatest teachers. These are the seeds of a confident boy who will turn into a confident man. #6 – Not Helping HSP Sons to Understand Their Gifts All humans have unique gifts. HSP boys have their unique gifts as well. These include insight, intuition, deep emotions and feeling, empathy, an ability for deep thought, and inherent creativity. Point them out early and often and give HSP male role models for them to emulate. If you are an HSP male, be the hero. #7 – Not Being Emotionally Supportive and Nurturing Studies have shown HSPs do best in supportive and nurturing environments. This is the HSP key to happiness. Provide that environment to your HSP boy, and he will thrive. Deprive him of that, and he will wilt. It may be more work, but remember you are raising an Orchid in a world full of Daisies. #8 – Questioning Their Masculinity Never put your HSP boy down for not being masculine enough. Understand that masculinity is a cultural construct that is learned from birth. Your boy may not exhibit what might seem to be classic western cultural definitions of what a young man is supposed to be, yet I assure you he is still a male. Gender roles are very fluid and are becoming more fluid all the time. The human genome and individual personalities express gender roles in many ways. Teach all boys that masculinity is not devoid of emotion or vulnerability that some characteristics we deem as feminine are indeed human characteristics, such as nurturing and intuition. We want our boys to embrace their humanity fully. #9 – Thinking This Trait (sensitivity) Is a Disorder or a Phase Your HSP boy is not going to outgrow their sensitivity. It is a lifelong trait that will shape them and their world. The sooner you understand this, the more helpful you can be to your HSP boy protégé. It is also not a disorder. There is nothing wrong with your child because of their sensitivity. They are normal along a human spectrum of sensitivity and sensing. It is possible your child may have some other disorder, i.e. autism or hypersensitivity, but high sensitivity is not one of them. #10 – Not Giving Your HSP Boy His Space All HSPs need space at some time or another. It is our nature to retreat, recharge, and rejuvenate. It may seem quirky or anti-social, but it is not. It is the HSP way. Make sure your HSP boy gets that space; it may be alone playtime or time to read or time to reflect and rest. Regardless, do respect it. He will thank you for it and will thrive because of it. HSP boys will be the next generation of HSP men. They will be poets, artists, counselors, religious leaders, visionaries, and political advisors. Letting them grow up to be the wise and sensitive men they are destined to be, will benefit all of us.  A Blog about Sensory Processing Sensitivity from the Worldview of a High Sensing Male
Socrates: Everyone wants to tell you what to do and what's good for you. They don't want you to find your own answers, they want you to believe theirs. Dan Millman: Let me guess, and you want me to believe yours. Socrates: No, I want you to stop gathering information from the outside and start gathering it from the inside. From the Peaceful Warrior In spite of the fact that I truly believe that high sensitivity is a gift, it does come with a downside. All the capability for absorbing and processing sensory input comes at a price. Overload and overwhelm are quite common in HSPs (Highly Sensitive Person), and the result can lead to anxiety and depression and other mental and physical health issues. There are social complexities that many HSPs face around interpersonal issues. The world at large does not value HSP traits and certainly doesn’t accommodate our needs. Many people misunderstand sensitivity, see it has a personality problem, which comes with many pejorative terms to describe the trait, i.e., high strung, tightly wired, too sensitive, whiny, drama queen/king, etc. This can be especially vexing to HSPs, and we are all subject to being adversely affected by the criticism. For the record, the list of “negatives” I am listing here are all based more on my own personal HSP traits and my experiences. Yes, they may be shared by other HSPs, but those listed are ones I hear from many HSPs. So, take them as fairly accurate generalizations.
We need to start educating ourselves about reframing the whole HSP meme and associated mythologies and start making it more useful and seeing it as the productive gift that it is and allow ourselves the leeway to experiment and make mistakes, to be hurt, to grow and wield this mighty sword for good. So, don’t despair your uniqueness and your special talents, nor despair about those times when all seems too much. Learn to recover, learn to bounce back, learn to use your tools. Use it wisely. Thrive. Socrates: Sometimes you have to lose your mind before you come to your senses. From The Peaceful Warrior  A Blog about Sensory Processing Sensitivity from the Worldview of a High Sensing Male
Prem Kumar: Final question for twenty million rupees, and he's smiling. I guess you know the answer. Jamal Malik: Do you believe it, I don't! Prem Kumar: You don't? So you take the ten million and walk? Jamal Malik: No. I'll play. From Slumdog Millionaires Why do HSPs seem to struggle with making money? Is it because of our strong spiritual sides and not understanding the spiritual foundations of money? I have written before about how difficult it is for HSPs to adopt the persona of a modern capitalist. Our thinking is not predatory, and our energy makes it difficult for us to be aggressive, without overstimulating or overwhelm. We are not creatures of capitalism, but money isn’t necessarily about capitalism either. Capitalism is an economic way of dealing with money, but it isn’t the only way. What do we know about money? Money in its material physical form is a verifiable record accepted as payment for goods, services or debt. It is a medium of exchange, a unit of accountancy, a store of value, and a standard of deferred debt. Money in our culture is represented by paper notes issued by the Federal Reserve Bank on behalf of the US Treasury. These notes are promissory notes to pay upon demand a certain figure of said money — we use this for exchange for goods and services. Our money system is based on fiat money, which is money not backed by a valuable commodity, like gold or silver. The government backs the money and requires it’s acceptance. Most of us work for money so that we can live, eat, and do activities that bring us pleasure. Money can be earned and given away; it can be hoarded, invested and used to pay taxes. If you think about it, money flows from one individual to another often without the physical paper being exchanged, like an electrical current it flows, is seldom seen and is a powerful energetic. That’s right; money is really energy. Energy can neither be created or destroyed. Countries come and go, currencies come and go, but money is always there. Money energy is really quite invisible, but the energy behind money provides the vehicle for our material creations. Without our material side, money is without use. You’ve heard the saying, “You can’t take it with you, “ well, you can’t. We use money as a conduit to express our creative side. It is the spiritual currency that manifests in material form. I like to think of money like a river. The river generally flows unimpeded from an infinite supply source of “water,” or energy. The river flows downstream where it touches all material beings, manifested spirits if you will. We are all trained early to believe that money is scarce and should be protected. We guard it, we protect it, invest it, measure and treasure it. This mentality about scarcity drives our economy and our lives. Instead of seeing the river, we see a lake or a pond. The notion of a lake or pond promotes the idea of storage of a scarce commodity. The energy is changed from flowing to stagnant. Lakes and ponds don’t flow like a river. They serve more like a battery a place to store energy. It holds and confines the energy not allowing it to flow freely. Hence, the resource is seen as scarce and not plentiful. I believe that we all have access to this energy as long as it is flowing. We each carry buckets, which reflects our self-worth. Some of us see ourselves as carrying large, generous buckets, others are smaller , perhaps, inferior buckets with leaks and holes. The reality is that the bucket we carry is the belief we have about the availability of money, and we are often taught this by our parents and family. For some, poverty and scarcity is an inescapable reality. They can’t see how to escape their plight. On the other side of the spectrum, those with plenty, carry large buckets to the river. In fact, because they also believe in scarcity, they tend to channel off the river, create temporary dams, and ways to hoard the energy, to stockpile in private pools the money they are afraid will disappear on them. But, what if the money is infinite? What if there was no scarcity? What if the supply could never run out? What then? How would that change your mind and view about money? What if you could request a bigger bucket? What if you only took out of the river what you needed, always knowing that you could go back and get more at any time? How would that affect the way you live? The choices you make. Could we not live a bolder, freer, braver life, knowing that you couldn’t run out of energy (money)? Money is in many ways a creation of our minds, and our limitation is our mind’s limitations. This energy is not limited. Money is a representation of energy potential, can it not be abundant? Can we not do things with money, if we know that the resource is not scarce. Great things for all mankind. Great humanitarian projects that would benefit all of humanity? And at a personal level be able to live more fearlessly, able to make decisions, make mistakes and know that our mistakes are not irreversible or tied to a lifetime of hoarding our own private pool? How liberating would that be? HSPs would be great advocates for this type of money vision. There is some substantiation for this idea in Modern Monetary Theory, an economic policy advocated by progressive economists. It is in a very brief nutshell -- a fiat system like our own current system, that subscribes to the notion that government creates the supply of money out of thin air. When it needs more money, it simply prints it, creates money and uses it. This is, of course, is oversimplified but seems to support the notion that money is like energy, it is simply channeled into notes then distributed into the population. The energy is simply transferred and allowed to flow into the economy. It moves from a position of scarcity to one of abundance. Interestingly, banks do this all the time, by creating money via loans to customers. The money flows into the economy, and the economy grows. Understanding a detailed picture of economics isn’t necessary, the idea is that the money supply or our river, is out there. The energy behind it is waiting to be used. It’s all in the perception. Are you a scarcity person or an abundance person? If you adhere to scarcity principles you see: scarcity, lack, you are ultra-competitive, you hoard your money, don’t offer help to others, you are suspicious, dog eat dog, fearful, gloomy, see resources shrinking, avoid risk and fear change. If you are an abundance thinker you see: plenty, brighter horizons, you collaborate, share, help, trust, welcome competition, see growth, are positive, take risks and own change in your life. Sharp contrasts, but do you see the difference in perception? Do you realize how that perception shapes your life? It is classic reptilian thinking versus mammalian thinking, selfish survival thinking versus sharing the abundance thinking. Can we be new advocates for abundance and not scarcity, where the limits of scarcity determine who gets money and who doesn’t? Not everyone wants to be or needs to be wealthy. The definition of wealth would certainly change. What wealth means need not be about accumulation to excess but about how much happiness we have? That would change the game entirely and free us from the power of gold. Christopher Gardner: [after playing basket ball] Hey. Don't ever let somebody tell you... You can't do something. Not even me. All right? Christopher: All right. Christopher Gardner: You got a dream... You gotta protect it. People can't do somethin' themselves, they wanna tell you you can't do it. If you want somethin', go get it. Period. From the Pursuit of Happyness References:  A Blog about Sensory Processing Sensitivity from the Worldview of a High Sensing Male
Forrester: No thinking - that comes later. You must write your first draft with your heart. You rewrite with your head. The first key to writing is... to write, not to think! From Finding Forrester One of the four main attributes of Highly Sensitive People is the tendency to and the ability for deep processing. HSPs routinely process emotional and environmental content more deeply than others and dwell on a topic for a longer period of time. We HSPs are prone to deep thinking to what others may term as extreme lengths at times which requires alone and quiet time. Sometimes this seems to be a curse – leaving those around us to question why we “overthink” things. The appearance of overthinking is true, yet, it is our nature and certainly a benefit for the most part, but can it be overdone? Can deep thinking be our worst enemy? Does deep thinking inhibit action – in effect holding us back? HSPs do more deep thinking using parts of the brain that are associated with deep processing, and higher use of the part of the brain called the Insula – an integration tool that connects more of the brain in synchronicity. The myth that we are slower thinkers is not supported . Research shows that HSPs have stronger, faster reaction times exhibiting our faster brain processing. Our natural startle reflex would support that idea. The fact that we often process more data than Non-HSPs may give the outward appearance we process at slower rates, but in fact, we are processing more data at higher rates with more outcome options analyzed. What is deep thinking? Is it something only intelligent, philosophical types do? Is it complex thinking? Or, is it simple thinking that is overly processed? Most deep thinkers display characteristics that seem good fits to what we consider HSP traits. They often are, introverted, observant, humorous (albeit quirky), voracious readers, forgetful, curious, planners, problem solvers, socially awkward, and independent. A lot of the psychological studies involving deep thinking suggest that it is a part of the definition pertaining to levels of thinking. A lot of this relates to how memory works, the deeper the encoding, the deeper the processing. That makes sense, much like a hard drive on a computer stores data for later retrieval, deeper encoding makes the data available for later processing. Shallow encoding would lead to more short-term processing, which would effectively come and go quickly. Another factor for enabling deep processing would be -- the more emotional the content, the stronger the encoding. Most HSPs are emotionally charged creatures. Much of our input would likely be highly charged and stored effectively in long-term memory, where it could be drawn and processed for longer periods. Because deep processing often involves the use of semantics; language helps to encourage the analytics of deep thinking. Many of the brain areas associated with memory and depth of processing: the hippocampus, amygdala, and neocortex are areas often associated with HSP brain processing. Whether HSPs as a whole have more powerful hippocampal areas (memory) or more active amygdala (emotion) might give additional credence to the idea that we are naturally wired for this type of processing. Since the Sensory Processing Sensitivity characteristics seem to occur across species, not just humans, you have to wonder if this quality is not evolutionarily ordained and functionally important for survival. But when does deep processing become overthinking? Overthinking is not considered to be a positive attribute. In fact, there are distinct health consequences for persistent overthinking. Two main outcomes of overthinking are rumination and worrying – both having stress consequences. Rumination is a process where the past is relentlessly rehashed with no productive outcome. Sometimes rumination involves circular recursive logic that leaves the individual feeling helpless and hopeless. Worrying, the polar opposite of rumination involves deriving negative predictions about the future – utilizing previous unsuccessful outcomes as input. Neither strategy leads to positive outcomes and can drive negative thought patterns deeper down. An infusion of emotions almost always energizes this exercise and can lead to anxiety, stress, and depression. If you find yourself in this loop and recognize it, then challenge your thoughts; focus on active problem-solving. Give yourself time for neutral reflection and mindfulness. Or, give yourself a consuming distraction to break the cycle and if that fails to work, seek help. Needless to say, the consequences of overthinking are much different than deep processing. I’m not sure that deep processing can spawn overthinking, regardless of what non-HSPs may think, but it would behoove us HSPs to be mindful of where our deep processing is leading us. Overthinking can lead to real mental health issues – anxiety and depression. It certainly can inhibit the benefits of your deep processing ability causing analysis paralysis and with that added stress can contribute to sleep disturbances. Our HSP ability to rely on deep processing of inputs is certainly one of our shining characteristics. It doesn’t’ lend us to making hasty decisions or staccato-like shotgun decision making. But our ability to deeply process and forecast outcomes is what makes us good advisors, counselors, and teachers. At some point, you have to accept your conclusions and go with them by taking action or risk treading into the realm of overthinking. Trust your gut, as an HSP your instincts are generally right, in large part due to your deep thinking capabilities. References:
 A Blog about Sensory Processing Sensitivity from the Worldview of a High Sensing Male
Morpheus: Neo, sooner or later you're going to realize just as I did that there's a difference between knowing the path and walking the path. From The Matrix I recently watched an old video, of the British/American philosopher, Alan Watts talking about Moksha. He relayed a story about an Indian man, a prosperous businessman that left behind the business and his family to set out into the woods to seek Moksha. Watts described Moksha as, “…at the center of Hinduism is an experience called Moksha – liberation, in which through the dissipation of the illusion that each man and woman is a separate thing in the world consisting of nothing but a collection of separate things, you discover that you are, in a way, on one level an illusion, but on another level, you are what they call self, the one Self, which is all that there is.” In simpler terms, Watts described this concept of Moksha as forsaking what is known and pursuing what is not. Moksha in Hinduism is a term which refers to various forms of emancipation, enlightenment, liberation, and release. It could also refer to self-enlightenment, self-realization or self-knowledge. It is a part of a quadruplet of stages that Hindus strive to achieve. One of these is Dharma, the striving for a virtuous, proper life. Another is Artha, the pursuit of material prosperity, used to support oneself and family during the middle stages of life. Then there is Kama, the pursuit of sensual pleasure which certainly makes sense in a material, sensual world, and finally striving to receive Moksha – liberation.All of these interweave throughout life, I’m not sure there is a firm chronology for each stage, but Moksha would be the crowning achievement. Moksha is the final release and emancipation of self and the realization of the true self. It seems this realization of the earthbound ego, not being the true spiritual self, in order to obtain Moksha would require the abandonment of the ego-self on a path of self-development. As we find out who we truly are, reducing our negative attributes that limit our happiness would bring us an appreciation of the qualities of love, balance, and growth. Certainly, happiness comes from within and not from the outside. It seems that many if not most HSPs are contemplative and spiritual creatures. Our intuition and empathy bring us insights into the connectivity we all share. Our ability to intuit information from the environment, helps us understand and interpret the world around us. It would seem natural that HSPs would follow a path of self-development and spiritual growth. A walk towards Moksha. But, what would a practical path be for a modern, Western HSP man or woman to strive for with Moksha in mind? If the true self resides within, this would seem easier for most HSPs to explore. Yet, I see more and more HSPs lost and distressed over the external world and not being able to handle the overwhelm they bear. It is often recommended that anyone walking a spiritual path seek a meditative practice. How does that compare with what HSPs naturally do introspectively? Lets first set a definition of meditation that is not solely about mindfulness, used often in Western terms. Meditation is a quieting exercise, an effort to quell the constant bombardment of incessant internal chatter – the monkey mind. It is not a practice of drilling down to the source of thought and mining it for truth. Rather it is a quieting of the mind so that truth can bubble up from within. I like many HSPs do the opposite. We drive down thoughts to a place where they are processed under our active, watchful minds. This is not meditation. This is rumination, a deep thinking cycle; that regurgitates thought over and over; often with no productive conclusion. It may be a good analytical practice, but it’s not a spiritual one. It seldom leads to a place of peace or liberation. It can at times, produce insights, but it also can produce discomfort and turbulence. Yet, HSPs see this as a superpower or a curse. Most of us are never taught how to harness this power, and therefore we subsequently let our minds run amok, a mental firehose thrashing about in our minds, causing us to be overwhelmed and reclusive. This is sad because I do believe our capacity to process all of this extrasensory information if handled properly can be beneficial not only to ourselves but to the world. So what should we do? First, I think we should learn to manage our thoughts and all that overthinking. One way to do that is to learn a meditative practice, learning to calm the mind. Learning to slow down the mind perceptually to single thread thoughts for proper processing. This is like a quarterback in football slowing down the game in his mind to see the whole field at once in front of him -- watching the play unfold in slow motion. Good decisions can be made when one can see all the options clearly.Slowing down perception to allow the mind to bring up from within the needed direction or thought. This is like bottom-up processing. We HSPs tend to do top-down processing, which overflows the system. We get overwhelmed easily, which is our kryptonite. Avoiding overwhelm is in some ways like the Hindu achievement of Moksha. Avoiding overwhelm is liberation, letting the true self (bottom-up) override the ego (top down), which allows clarity and insight in a calm, confident way. This will allow us to focus on what matters, letting the superfluous detritus of thought slide off and out of range. Achieving this will help us, be grateful, learn to forgive, learn what love is. It will help us to learn what we as individuals need to be happy. By finding our spiritual path; we more easily connect with others. Giving freely of ourselves, finding our right livelihood and connecting with the tribe we belong to (not necessarily family). You can then be more calmly alone with your soul, understanding your ego’s role and not being a slave to it. Recognize that you are a creative spirit in a physical body. Your job is to learn and grow and create. Stay on the path to your own personal Moksha. Don’t be static. Continue to advance through your own personal evolution, realizing that every experience, both good and bad is an opportunity to grow. Morpheus: This is your last chance. After this, there is no turning back. You take the blue pill - the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill - you stay in Wonderland and I show you how deep the rabbit-hole goes. From The Matrix References:
 A Blog about Sensory Processing Sensitivity from the Worldview of a High Sensing Male
Peter Klaven: So what do i do? How do i make friends? Robbie Klaven: If you see a cool looking guy, strike up a conversation and ask him on a man date. Peter Klaven: Ok. Robbie Klaven: You know what i mean? Peter Klaven: No. Robbie Klaven: Casual lunch or after work drinks. You're not taking these boys to see The Devil Wears Prada. Peter Klaven: Ohhhh god i love that movie. No I wont. From I Love You, Man Every man needs friends. Males need a network of people that can serve social purposes, act as confidantes, and as a peer feedback group, providing emotional support. Highly sensitive people often are perceived as quiet loners that draw strength from their own company. That downtime, the alone time and the time to process the day are important to all HSPs, and in the context of the HSP behavioral model, it’s a necessary health consideration. But having a male counterpart to share with and experience life in close proximity is as important as having a partner for romance and companionship. For Highly Sensitive Males, who are typically a little different than other males, finding the right guys to hang out with might be challenging. Being an HSM means it’s important to find peers that we can identify with, and it’s important to find men who share or appreciate our unique qualities. First, it’s important that all men have male friends who can be your touchpoint for sharing feelings, concerns, and issues. Not just for watching a football game or playing golf, or going fishing or camping or partying. Men need male bonding experiences complete with emotions. Social interaction is critically important to men’s health and longevity. Strong social networks correlate positively with overall health and long life. You are more likely to die earlier if you remain solitary and isolated, all things considered, such as health habits, lifestyles, etc. Social isolation ranks with high blood pressure, obesity, lack of exercise, and smoking as a high health risk factor. To be blunt, the consequences of not being at least somewhat social may be heart disease, autoimmune issues, high blood pressure, and cancer. Social interaction also means lower levels of depression and anxiety. The upshot of all of this social interaction is the support network that humans need contributes to overall wellbeing and contributes to health. We are pack animals. Social connection is a fundamental human characteristic. Under stressful conditions, it even aids in emotional recovery, which benefits the body. The key to good social interaction is allowing a certain degree of vulnerability for social bonding to take place. The recognition that one can’t always do it alone is a difficult concept for some men and often prevents them from attaching themselves to other males. Their fear is that they will be perceived as dependent and weak. Ironically, the more social interaction, the more oxytocin is released to create the bonds, which in turn produces a certain resiliency to stressors in the environment. The very thing men need is to be able to bond to others to make them stronger. It’s also important for HSMs to bond with non-HSP men, this is a networking opportunity to reach out to the other side and interact. Mutual influence is a good thing. It’s also a good opportunity for educating other men about what sensitivity really means and correcting the perjorative narrative about what it doesn’t mean, i.e., weakness, frailty, emasculating. There then would be more opportunities for teaching other men how to express feelings in a meaningful way and for teaching non-HSP males in the finer points of raising HSM sons. Men natively interact with other men, based in large part on social conventions and activities like sports, fraternities, veteran’s groups and competitive venues, which are more active than intimate, more casual than deep, more transactional than emotional and more side by side than face to face. Perhaps, some of the lack of attachment comes from a homophobic fear of close connection with another male. This often gets discussed in the recent spate of Bromance movies, which seem to have replaced the older genre buddy movie. Recent notions becoming radicalized by extreme male groups promote fearfulness about the increased feminization of men. Modeling female like friendships between men fly in the face of western traditional male values. Yet, male bonding is simply the actualization of a human social interconnection that leads to the formation of personal relationships between males. Perhaps, the more recognized ideal of camaraderie suggested in the military, of bonding under mutually egregious conditions, make it more palatable for some men to embrace this concept. Nevertheless, all men need allies. The male bonding dynamic has been observed and studied for years, yet culturally we struggle with this idea of the need for male bonding at an intimate and emotional level. Are men really solitary creatures? When given the opportunity, would they prefer to go it alone? Are men less communicative and only band together for tribal and communal purposes? Is this trait amplified in HSP males? Do HSP males have more difficulty in bonding with other men? Because HSMs are different and know our differences -- by associating with other males, do those differences stand out and make us uncomfortable? Do HSP men find it easier to bond/ befriend females for close personal friendships just for the intimate emotional contact? How do we overcome this? Why is it imperative for HSP males to form a “bro” network? While there is nothing inherently wrong with males having platonic friendships with females, the age-old question posed by the movie When Harry Met Sally, suggests that true friendship, without the romantic element, is nearly impossible to achieve between males and females. These types of relationships have been studied, and that question has been asked, “Can men and women have non-sexual friendships?” What we have learned is that men and women have somewhat opposite views on platonic relationships. Surprisingly, the men tend to screw this up, more than the women. Men overrate romantic involvement in platonic relationships more so than women. Women, once it’s established that the relationship is platonic there is not a romantic shift seen in the female friend, whereas, the male begins to drift into a more romantic appraisal of the relationship more often. This, of course, leads to more complications and if there is an incongruity in the assessment of the relationship may end the friendship in disappointment. Perhaps this is because men are less familiar with forming close personal, non-sexual relationships, and when presented with an attractive female friend, the dictates of sexual attraction blur the lines between friendship and something else. Interestingly, there are others studies that suggest certain intimidation of males, when around women. In one particular study, men appeared to be cognitively impaired in doing a mental task, when they were told they were being observed by a female. Perhaps, there was more pressure, when trying to please the female observer, but the point being that men find it difficult to be more relaxed and themselves, when around females. Now, of course, this doesn’t mean that men and women cannot or should not be friends. I have many female friends, where the relationship is platonic, and the boundaries of interaction are very clear. Some of these friendships have been spawned from failed romantic attempts, but now, have found a comfortable and rightful place in each of our lives as friendships. The overall view, however, is that men can often be more comfortable and open with male friends and it is this openness that promotes well-being and should be encouraged. So, how to build your bro network? Reaching out is important, even when it’s uncomfortable. It’s important to have a confidante this is the same sex as yourself. It helps in my mind, to promote the yang energy within your psyche. It is important, however, to find those men that are supportive of your nature and appreciate your insights and intuition. Perhaps, to begin, we need to find like-minded HSP males. This isn’t just about joining online groups but keeping your eye out for men that share HSP characteristics. Some may be the same age; some may be younger or older, so it may require the stretching of your normal social circles. Engage them in conversation and let the process of getting acquainted be organic. Once established with some HSP bros, then reach out to other men, those that share a common value or activity and allow friendships to grow. Be discerning for sure, but don’t make the mistake of picking only friends that are exactly like you. Growth takes place when we expand our outreach. Consider them to be like your council of advisors, your board of directors, people that you trust and will give you honest and useful feedback. I like the way the author Napoleon Hill described his coterie of advisors as his Mastermind. Your bro network can serve a similar function but in a more intimate and emotional way. For most HSM’s I suspect that a few good friends are all that is needed, so this shouldn’t be a ponderous task, but maybe a lifelong endeavor. On a personal note, I recently reconnected with an old high school friend. We were the best of friends back in the day. When we reunited a few months ago, we literally picked up where we left off forty years ago. It’s been a great experience to have him back in my life. While we were sharing, I told him about my blog and about the characteristics of highly sensitive people. After some quick evaluation, we determined he was an HSP, too. Amazing. No wonder we have been such great friends and allies. References:
 A Blog about Sensory Processing Sensitivity from the Worldview of a High Sensing Male
Gordon Gekko: The richest one percent of this country owns half our country's wealth, five trillion dollars. One third of that comes from hard work, two thirds comes from inheritance, interest on interest accumulating to widows and idiot sons and what I do, stock and real estate speculation. It's bullshit. You got ninety percent of the American public out there with little or no net worth. I create nothing. I own. We make the rules, pal. The news, war, peace, famine, upheaval, the price per paper clip. We pick that rabbit out of the hat while everybody sits out there wondering how the hell we did it. Now you're not naive enough to think we're living in a democracy, are you buddy? It's the free market. And you're a part of it. You've got that killer instinct. Stick around pal, I've still got a lot to teach you. From Wall Street A fairly recent article in the Washington Post highlighted a study that suggested that wealthy people tend to be more immoral, unethical and less empathetic than people who don’t have great wealth. Recent studies support this hypothesis. Wealthy people are more likely to cheat on taxes, on spouses, shoplift (really?), and cheat at games of chance. They even give less a proportion of income than poorer folks do. Are rich folks inherently like this and does this make them more likely to become rich because of the entitled attitude? Power effects behavior and money brings power. Studies show that wealthy individuals feel above the law. The power of money strips people of inhibition increases risk taking and risky behavior and feelings of entitlement and invulnerability. People with money are more likely to follow and execute on their desires, because they have the means to do so and that sometimes means acting unethically and immorally. What types of characteristics do many of the wealthy have that lead them into this deficit of empathy and scruples? Interestingly, evidence of psychopathology is four times greater in the ranks of CEOs than in the general population. Presumably, these CEOs, are representative of wealthy, entitled types. The similar traits they share with psychopaths are quite alarming. There is a definite lack of empathy in their interactions with others. One could say that this is just dispassionate business their practicing, however, could we assume that at some point simple human kindness would prevail? Apparently not. It seems reasonable that wealthy individuals would have massive egos with all that power and would exhibit behavior such as self-centeredness, self-promotion and a die-hard strategy of vanquishing competition. In order to accomplish this, these individuals often display a superficial charm and élan that is manipulative and endgame oriented. The ends justify the means and with that comes lack of remorse at their mercilessness and machinations over others. Selfishness, coupled with unethical behavior and a tendency towards easy boredom, lead those at the top to often live on the edge: lying, cheating and stealing their way to success. With increased power comes increased feelings of entitlement and a separation of sorts of the privileged ego from those in subordinate roles. It’s difficult to determine if power and wealth corrupt the ego or if the corrupt rise to powerful and wealthy stations in life. I suspect that both apply. Rich kids or kids of entitled families tend to be indoctrinated early in life to their entitled thinking. Yet, with the entitlement comes enormous pressure to succeed and excel at all things. Pressure comes from the parents, teachers, coaches, and peers and is relentless. Many parents value success over personal decency and kindness. Relationships suffer as a result, and fewer intimate relationships form increasing a sense of isolation and lack of empathy towards others. This bad start at home leads to instances of crime, drug and alcohol abuse to combat the stress. The privileged status is a protected status and gives the child a feeling of invulnerability to repercussions. Thus, the pattern begins. I often wonder if the drive to wealth is a predatory instinct, more reptilian and less mammalian in nature. The love of material things and the love of the hunt may be two different things, but they often seemed to be paired together. Acquisition and accumulation have no inherent utility value for the super wealthy, as they generally have more than is necessary to exist and live a comfortable if not opulent life. You would think at some level, that a feeling of satiety would set in, and that increased wealth would produce a bloating of sorts. Like carrying more weight than is comfortable. But there is a type of narcissistic drive in sequestering all the toys in the room into your own private toy box, that depicts metaphorically a small child mentality that says, “ love me now, I have more than you, I’m better than you.” These narcissistic wealthy have a self-centered agenda that sucks the life out of the world around them, making them feel omnipotent and imperial. We are seeing a resurgence of this today, as wealth consolidates to those at the top. I realize that this is not true of all wealthy individuals. And it’s easy to generalize evil characteristics to all rich folks. Maybe a little sour grapes here. Perhaps, it's more recognizable in the Nouveau Riche, who tend to be more conspicuous with their money. The established wealthy are less conspicuous and harder to observe. They like the cloak of their wealth, which hides them from public view, but nonetheless, makes them even more prone to their machinations without public scrutiny. The traits that garnered their wealth were no doubt, present in their progenitors. Maintaining and preserving wealth is a much different game than acquisition and accumulation, but the same characteristics would be useful for both. Contrast that with the natures of highly sensitive people. Are we the naturally the antithesis of those that strive for wealth? Is it harder for HSPs to acquire wealth because we lack the predator qualities needed to advance above and beyond the common? Do our traits of empathy and kindness, which we often wear like weights, prevent us from taking the necessary steps to rise above in matters of money and wealth? Making money is fundamentally about taking the money out of someone’s pocket and putting it in yours. Of course, you could argue for the barter model, but we live in a society where upward mobility requires one to go beyond simple tit for tat trading and focus on exploiting profits. This takes cunning and somewhat of a killer instinct. Cue the language of business. This sordidness is just not what HSPs are largely about. Most HSPs are less likely to be interested in the troubles of making money and acquiring wealth. High wage work is exhausting and can tax the HSPs’ systems. HSPs tend to be focused on nonmaterial matters, spirituality, and quiet, contemplative endeavors. This would suggest that we do not have the fundamental characteristics of our personalities to become the kind of entrepreneurial or capitalist types that are driven by financial success. Would that explain why HSPs are less likely to be wealthy or powerful people? Do we not have the chops to be financially adept? Is it possible for us, who enjoy creature comforts, and are HSPs, to override or reprogram our HSP nature in a thoughtful way and still acquire wealth or at least succeed financially? Or, maybe, I’m wrong, maybe it’s just not that important to most HSPs. I think it might be of interest to more HSPs if it could be managed within our HSP framework. Part of the aversion for many of us may be fear or dread of some of the draconian measures used by the wealthy to become rich. For the average HSP or for the average person, there are a couple of ways I can think of off the top of my head to approach this. Certainly, this is not exhaustive. One, you adapt yourself to the system using HSP characteristics instead of predatory ones. This requires some skill acquisition and a willingness to push some boundaries but doesn’t’ require you to sell yourself out. The second is longer term, broader and even more fundamental. That is changing the way you play the system, working a different angle and being creative. In the first strategy, one must adopt some of the positive characteristics of wealthy individuals. Creating a positive and optimistic outlook means modifying the overthinking quality most HSPs possess. It might mean abandoning the uber-cautious attitude HSPs tend towards and employing calculated, optimistic risks (business development, investments or employment opportunities). Perpetuating a strong ability for resilience is necessary, not just for wealth but for life. Adaptability and recovery are traits that can be learned and are key to surviving in wealth-building. HSPs could actually be quite good at this, because of our capacity for rumination and review of our experiences. Learn to remove the powerful emotions, and this leaves raw experience, which can be reframed and repurposed with new vigor, and sent back out into the world. Staying connected and developing the skill of networking helps build social capital. To assuage the urge not to socialize, HSPs can do this like Ninjas. Develop a purpose for networking with a clear objective. Laser in on the target individuals that will provide value, and reach out to them. Of course with our HSP nature, we also should look to reciprocate the value gained. This keeps our empathy quotient high and makes us good people to network with. Firing up a passion for objectives, without flaming out is important. Passion is fuel, and burns brightly and quickly, use it wisely. Make sure you stock up with fuel before you go out to face the world – exercise, sleep , diet, and meditation, will aid in moderating your passion against your energy stores. Learning and practicing good financial habits are necessary to maintain what you gain. Let your innate conscientiousness and attention to detail prevail. Finally, express and show gratitude for success, learning from mentors and showing empathy, compassion, and appreciation for all that aid you. The second system is more about changing how you play the system than changing you. This system would be to use your HSP characteristics to create a value proposition, and then let the market multiply it for you. You need not start a business per se or become a capitalist to do this. Many artists, authors, and musicians have employed this method. My best example would be to create an artistic product or creation. For example, write a book. The idea of writing a book is the type of task that an HSP would be likely most comfortable with. Expression of thought, quiet time to write, creating an imaginary world, or expounding an idea, and then letting it go into the world to seek its fortune. This is a solitary task, done once. Your intellectual property then is sold, by various means, then replicated for distribution, whether in print or in electronic format. The scale is up to you – large or small. Paying you over and over for a single effort. Not everyone is going to have the success of J.K. Rowling, a famous HSP, but, yet a decent life could be made with this model. The economies of doing this allow you to multiply the effect of your work, without draining you. You have played the system to your strength. Yes, I know, granted it must sell, granted that you have to do some promotion work, but the idea is to use the multiplier effect in a single endeavor, a very HSP kind of thing. Maximum efficiency, with minimum effort. My point is that making money is not inherently evil or greedy. If you can produce something of value and sell it, the world can beat a path to your door. Money is power, but its also energy and energy potential. Energy is a neutral force, neither good or evil. It can be used both ways — the beholder of the energy colors the result of using that energy. Money is like the genie in the bottle; it merely does what you command it to. Money can be used for a lot of positive things in life. And HSPs would be good stewards of large sources of money. In an upcoming blog, I will be talking about our presuppositions of money – either scarcity or abundance. It may surprise you to learn that all rich people don’t think in terms of abundance. It makes a difference. More on that later. Maybe money isn’t your thing after all. If so, perhaps, you are the luckiest of us all. Live simply, with what the Universe has given you, work on spiritual matters and rest in your thoughts. As for me, I’m going to work on the money proposition. I think we can turn this thing around. I’ll let you know how I do. Be happy. Gordon Gekko: The point is ladies and gentlemen that greed, for lack of a better word, is good. From Wall Street References:
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AuthorBill Allen currently lives in Lutz, Florida. He previously lived in Bend, Oregon. He is a certified hypnotist and brain training coach at BrainPilots.com. He believes that male sensitivity is not so rare, but it can be confounding for most males living in a culture of masculine insensitivity which teaches boys and men to disconnect from their feelings and emotions. His intent is to use this blog to chronicle his personal journey and share with others. 
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