Can You Be A Nobody? Instead Of Trying To Be Somebody

How does this make you feel? Deflated? Sad? Empowered?

Now what if I said:

“You Are A Very Special Somebody.”

How does this make you feel? Better, happier?

Well like most of us, you’re probably suffering from somebody-itis. This is the need to be a special somebody. You may think, ‘Isn’t that what life is all about? Striving to have some sort of impact on the world, add something of value, achieve great things.’

What if I told you your ego will always need you to be somebody special and that it will never be satisfied?

Being somebody is always going to be a future thing. The mind is not content with the present moment and so strives to be somebody. The thing is your true self is nobody = no-body.

The inspirational teacher Mooji knocked my socks off when I first heard this idea. In response to a question he told the questioner:

You Are A Very Special Nobody

He said it in such a way, like all great teachers do, to wake people up. He woke me up. Before that moment, the idea of being a nobody brought me deep feelings of despair. I’d been wrestling for a long time with feeling like a failure, comparing myself with others and resigned to being a ‘negative’ nobody – not a ‘positive’ nobody. I was listening to my mind, the dramas going on and not allowing myself to be fully present.

What Does Being A ‘Nobody’ Mean?

Being nobody means you are much more than your body, your mind or the story you tell yourself about who you are. It means you don’t feel the need to compare your value with anyone else or compete anymore You’re satisfied and appreciate who you are. And, you know who you are, beyond the body and mind.

Being nobody doesn’t mean you sit on a meditation cushion chanting OM all day. It doesn’t mean you never achieve anything, or you don’t make an impact in the world. It simply means that you’re present, you accept who you are, and are a witness to the ‘thinker’ and by simply being, not striving, life naturally expresses itself through you. You’re no longer attached to being somebody. You’re simply alive.

Your choices and decisions come from an inspired place – not needing a specific outcome to occur.And you don’t try to be nobody, you simply are nobody.

Can You Be Satisfied Or Okay Being ‘Nobody’?

The mind and the ego will never be satisfied with being ‘nobody’. But your true self does not separate who it is from everything else in the world, so no competition, but deep surrender and flow.

Is It Easy?

Err.. no. I am just beginning to understand this through my intellect; my mind is working with the knowing that is true for me. Emotionally, embodying being ‘nobody’, I haven’t embraced yet. But I want to. For me it will be a relief, to stop trying to be ‘somebody’ and simply be ‘nobody’.

Do you feel you could embrace being a nobody?

How does this thought feel to you?

What would stop you letting this in?

To watch the video from Mooji click the image below

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Kelly Martin

Kelly Martin, author of ‘When Everyone Shines But You’ is a dedicated writer and blogger who fearlessly explores life’s deepest questions. Faced with a decade of profound anxiety and grief following the loss of her father and her best friend Michael, Kelly embarked on a transformative journey guided by mindfulness, and she hasn’t looked back since. Through her insightful writing, engaging podcasts, and inspiring You Tube channel Kelly empowers others to unearth the hidden treasures within their pain, embracing the profound truth that they are ‘enough’ exactly as they are.

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6 Comments

dream109
June 25, 2013 / 7:22 pm

Love this post. It's so relevant in today's competitive society. I've never heard that expression before, but I like it alot. I think it might be hard to accept that you are a nobody, but can still give or do as much as anyone else. The ego is a funny thing and I try to love it with all my heart. I think this would take some time to embrace x

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Kelly Martin
June 25, 2013 / 8:27 pm

Thanks Rach, my mind gets it, but I hope in time my emotional body will too. As you know the issues I am working through right now it is good timing. It is great you are able to love your ego, I am still unfolding on that one.

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Kelly
January 31, 2014 / 12:17 am

Emily Dickinson's poem is so apropos here! I know it by heart.

I'm Nobody! Who are you?
Are you – Nobody – too?
Then there's a pair of us!
Don't tell! they'd advertise – you know!
How dreary – to be – Somebody!
How public – like a Frog –
To tell one's name – the livelong June –
To an admiring Bog!

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Kelly
January 31, 2014 / 9:03 am

Oh I love it!!! Thanks for that you brought me an early morning smile 😀

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Kelly
January 31, 2014 / 11:15 pm

I'm glad. 🙂

Emily herself was quite content to live out her life as a "nobody," writing her poems and caring for her family home where she lived with her father. Few of the poems were published in her lifetime; they were too different from the conventional poetic forms of the day. After she died she became a famous poet. Just goes to show the power of being a very special nobody. 🙂

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Kelly
February 1, 2014 / 9:55 am

I did not know that about Emily, thank you. Yes it does show that being a very special nobody is a powerful thing 😀

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