Surrender

For the last few weeks, I’ve been getting the same message over and over again: surrender. In yoga class, on a podcast, on a homemade sign over the freeway, “SURRENDER” has been coming through loud and clear. The concept of surrender isn’t an easy one for me. I like to plan and prepare, typically coming up with a Plan A to Plan C. Then once I’ve thought through all of the details, I can sit back and let one of the plans fall into place.

But lately I’ve been finding myself in situations where I’m powerless. Whether it’s something at work, a project that isn’t going as planned, or any of the other things that can go awry in a day. I used the word “powerless” on purpose because it can feel like that when power, or control, is taken away. But I started thinking about it in a different light. What if I surrendered to the situation?

So the more I thought about surrender, the more I thought about how it’s a cornerstone of all major religions. In theistic religions you surrender to a higher power. In nontheistic religions, you surrender to being, existing. In philosophy, the Stoics, Existentialists, and many others espouse the idea that we have no real control, so don’t worry. Brene Brown unpacks it well: “Surrender is not about giving up, but about letting go of counterfeit control.”

You may have heard the saying, “Man plans, and God laughs.” That’s speaking to counterfeit control. When we think we’ve got something buttoned up, that’s just counterfeit control. Any number of things can change in a second.

Eckhart Tolle also has some wisdom about this: “Surrender is the simple but profound wisdom of yielding to rather than opposing the flow of life.” Resistance is heavy, surrender is light.

So this week, how can you be 1% better by surrendering? Where can you let go of counterfeit control? Can you make the conscious choice to go with the flow?

With gratitude,

Natalie