How The Shadow/ Not Self Works in Human Design

Have you been indulging in your Not-Self recently?  Maybe negotiating with the stories that have been created within your mind.

"What exactly do you mean by that?" you may be wondering.

The "Not-Self" can be seen as your shadow-state. Like a shadow may be yours, yet is not you, so too are the adaptive strategies derived from the white areas of your Human Design. This is not just the centres but also the undefined (white) gates & channels.  Conditioning happens here, and these are places where your mind can cause you to make decisions that are not in alignment with your true nature.  This can cause great suffering & resistance in business, work, & careers.

"Not-Self" may seem incredibly sinister or “bad”, however it simply means “not you”. Sometimes people get confused and think that anything coming from the openness is bad—as if the openness is not part of the totality of you.  The reality is conditioning is not bad.  Anything you take in through your openness has the potential for you to take it on as YOUR identity or to use it as a source of wisdom, not identification. 

My role as a consultant & coach leveraging Human Design & BG5 is best described by Ra Uru Hu:

“The whole point of our work is to take the tendency of the shadow area and transform it into a positive (wisdom) that is genuinely productive for the client.” ~ Ra Uru Hu

Openness is not bad nor negative.  This receptivity is an integral part of you. It is where you experience life, where experiences nourish you. Here is where you can learn, grow, and develop wisdom. Here is where you have the flexibility to experience life in many ways, and even learn to master making money in these places, depending on your overall design.  In business you sell through your openness by attracting those that activate you.  The ability to do this with flow & receptivity requires that you are not identifying with the energy you bring in through your openness- which also requires deconditioning not self patterns, beliefs, identities, & self sabotage behaviours that have become ingrained in your life.

A note worth mentioning as well:  The defined centres, gates, & channels also have an unhealthy expression that is a potential.  Simply because something is defined does not mean the energy is working correctly.

Let’s have a look at how the undefined ego not self works:

• Saying you will do something when you aren’t quite clear that you can, then not being able to keep a promise and ending up feeling like crap.
• Thinking you have to go above and beyond what is needed, constantly overcompensating to prove your value.
• Not stopping at the specified time for a session, for example, even if you are tired and it was enough.
• Poor boundaries around time, emails, DM, etc. 
• Not feeling good enough about a piece of writing, proposal, sales page, etc & spending ridiculous hours stressing over perfectionism.
• Issues around pricing or asking for a raise.
• Settling for whatever (or whoever) comes your way & settling for less than.
• Generators trying to DO more to prove their value.
• Projectors trying to  think of the right things to say or do to prove their value as a guide.
• Manifestors trying to figure out how they can make people see their value as a ____ (Healer, employee, coach, etc).
• Reflectors trying to make promises & over deliver to avoid disappointing others.

From mothers/fathers to entrepreneurs to athletes to people working in the corporate world, approximately 65% of all humans are dealing with this Undefined Heart Center conditioning in their lives. How much of an effect does the open Heart have on the professional landscape where so many of us are trying to prove ourselves all the time? At a basic heart level it has large repercussions including stomach ulcers, gall bladder issues, heart conditions, and immune system malfunctioning as symptoms of misusing your willpower, whether you have it defined or open.  As someone with a defined heart/ ego I can tell you the first sign I am misusing my will is stomach ulcers.

In business & work the incessant not self chatter of the undefined ego creates massive energy leaks which then create burnout, bitterness/ frustration/ disappointment/ anger, can cause someone to pivot unnecessarily, and even resentment towards their team, coworkers, or business itself.  AND this isn’t even taking into consideration how it compounds with the other centres into a monkey mind that does nothing but create more resistance, pain, & suffering in business, life, & work.  From this place no amount of external success is enough because you are always comparing yourself to others & trying to prove yourself.

Enter: Hamster wheel.  Exit: Freedom.

The first step to this process is being open to questioning everything you know to be “true” about yourself so that you can begin to differentiate who you are vs who you were conditioned to be.  The majority of our ingrained patterns are the not self theme & drivers which create patterns of self sabotage & self censorship which then snowball into resistance in business, career, work, & sales.

BG5 2 hour Power Session times for JUNE are now available!  Spots go FAST!

I also have spots open in mid June for 1:1 coaching, beginning at 3 month packages.  This package will be going up in price at the end of June so now is the time to secure your spot!  3 spaces are available for a June start!

ashley