5 Life Lessons From The Matrix: Warrior Mind Podcast #433
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In this episode of the Warrior Mind Podcast I’m going to go over five life lessons from the movie The Matrix and how to use them for peak performance.
Life Lessons From The Matrix
When Matrix was released in 1999, it took the world in a storm thanks to its philosophical splendor, innovative action sequence and supernatural implications. As a matter of fact, it is one of the movies you can watch over and over again and react like you’re watching for the first time and if you’ve never watched it, you’re surely missing out.
The movie revolves around Neo (Keanu Reeves) who is anxious about knowing what the matrix is. He believes that the most dangerous man alive Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) can answer his question. Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss) takes him into an underworld, a place where he meets Morpheus. In their conversation, Morpheus tells Neo that there’s truth he knows nothing about; that he and everyone else is a slave born into a prison for his mind.
Neo gets into trouble but he is given an opportunity to change his perception about the world. He must make a choice between blue and red pill. One pill will give him an opportunity to go back into his current reality while the other pill will open his mind to something bigger, something that could never have crossed his mind.
Well, I don’t mean that we are all slaves but the truth is that we are living in a created reality. Since the day you were born, you developed different perceptions about the world and yourself and thereafter, you created your own realities, experience, responses, and eventually your life. With that in mind, our world is based on our own beliefs and that could make it difficult to achieve the results we desire in our external world. Are you still wondering what we are talking about? Well, relax as we present the life lessons from the matrix.
Enjoy this podcast on the five lessons from The Matrix
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Life lesson one – Our ‘truths’ have various layers and the deeper it is, the greater the revelation
It is without a doubt that there are a series of truth in the Matrix. First things first, Neo realizes that The Matrix is actually a computer program and humans are being enslaved and used as food for the machine. Again, he realizes that he’s the ‘chosen one’ to free the humans from slavery but he later understands that the ‘one’ is controlled by the machine and finally, he discovers that the only way to beat Agent Smith is through surrendering and not using force as he first thought. This unveils that there is both surface and deeper truth in the movie;
Surface truth – Neo is the ‘chosen one’ to save humanity
Deeper truth – “The One’ is actually controlled by the machine
Surface truth – The only way to become victorious is by using force
Deeper truth – The only way to become victorious is through surrender
When it comes to real life, the truth of each and every person has multiple layers and when you try to understand the deeper truth behind the surface truth, you’ll be in a better position to understand your psychology as well as behavioral patterns. Similarly, when you try to examine what causes your undesirable behaviors, you understand your limiting and self-perpetuating beliefs.
For instance, let’s look at the following example to have a clearer understanding;
Surface truth – I am angry with my dad
Deeper truth – I really love my dad
Surface truth – I have to be independent
Deeper truth – I don’t like relying on other people as I don’t trust them
Life lesson two – We tend to create vicious cycles in our lives as a result of surface level mistruths
Jane has had complications in her relationships and as she fears to fall in love again, she decides to concentrate on one thing that brings happiness in her life; work. She becomes workaholic and even though she is lonely, she has already made herself unavailable for love. In other words, she wants to get into a relationship but she evades the fact that she needs someone because she thinks that when she does, she will end up being heartbroken. And just like the way Trinity believes that the Matrix cannot tell who you are, so are our mistruths; they can’t tell us who we are. If you want to know who you are, focus on digging the deeper layers of yourself.
Life lesson three – Human beings can create new realities only when they choose to see the truth
As mentioned earlier, Neo was given an opportunity to choose between a red and blue pill. Similarly, life gives all of us opportunities to choose between the red and blue pill and when we unveil the truth, it’s upon us to decide whether we want to overcome our struggles or leave in a dream world as before. Neo is reluctant at first but he later comes into his senses and chooses his destiny in the real world. On the other hand, Cypher experiences the real world but chooses to get back into the matrix.
In real life situation, you can see the truth and realize your limitations but it’s the decision you make that depends on whether you’ll overcome them or not. For instance, if you realize that you have separation anxiety, the best thing is to speak your heart out and seek help.
Life lesson four – If only we can overcome our inner selves, we can definitely overcome the external world
Did you know that what you create externally is a reflection of your inner state? Well, I hope you now know. In reference to Neo, his power in The Matrix revolves around his ability to relinquish his limitations. In the same way, our ability to change ourselves depends on how well we can let go of anything that’s limiting ourselves to move forward, or simply the surface level truth.
Back to the movie, Neo has a tough time believing that he is the chosen one to save humanity and in fact, he can’t jump across two skyscrapers. However, things change to his advantage when he starts believing in his power, and he starts to stop the bullet and fight Agent Smith with only one hand meaning that his psychological strength is manifested in the outside. Similarly, what you have in your inner state is manifested in your outer state and if you let go of your ego, you’ll have a better opportunity to open to the inner truth, overcome it achieve your life dreams.
Life lesson five – Interestingly, the biggest fight you have is with yourself
The Matrix movie is all about Neo. When he realizes that he is “The One’, he tries to overcome disbelief, doubt, and fear and as soon as he starts to believe in himself, he gets into a fight with Agent Smith which is like fighting with himself. However, in every fight, he has a choice. Without a doubt, Neo is beaten by Agent Smith and instead of giving up, he chooses to keep fighting and between rebuilding Zion and saving Trinity, he chooses Trinity.
In the same way, as a human being, you have numerous fights going on within yourself and when you want to make a decision, you have different options to weigh from. For instance, you may hear the voice at the back of your head telling to keep safe and stay in your comfort zone, while another voice may tell you to take a risk and explore what life has in store for you. Also, one voice might tell you to be yourself while another one might tell you to trust other people’s opinions. All in all, the most important thing to understand is that regardless of the circumstances you are in, you have the power to choose and you can do anything as long as you believe in yourself.
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