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Acknowledge the Shadow
What is it that you do not tell yourself?
Control, the brain’s Inner Guard protects the id, ego, and superego from harm.
The Id, ego, and superego collude to prevent awareness of uncomfortable truths about ourselves which prevent us from acknowledging the role we play in that search which contributes to what we find lacking about ourselves.
It is only when we drop the inner guard the Id will let us know what it is we are not telling ourselves.
Best Friends, For Example
Mythology of the best friend, as in the broadest stereotypical definition, includes stories, songs, dances, and movies that put on a happy face to portray best friends as, pals for life, the normal arrangement for a functioning human being.
Best friend fables reinforce the notion that people are destined to have a “best friend,” a true confidant to ensure survival or inclusivity within the herd.
Definition of Best Friend
A best friend is someone
- whom you value above other friends
- with whom you enjoy sharing common interests, (hobbies, food…)
- you can trust
- in whom you can confide
- you call to share good news and bad
As a child, our Shadow had a best friend. Although she was our best friend, we were not her best friend. The category “best friend” fulfilled a category within our Shadow’s friend’s sphere of friends.
The category “best friend” fulfilled a category within my friend’s sphere of friends.
This arrangement puzzled us. How one person could consider another as a best friend who was not a best friend in return.
The absence of identical, reciprocal friendship created a life predicament.
Life Problem:
- We do not have a best friend
- People are supposed to have a best friend.
- We don’t, therefore we are deficient, lacking
Rule of Two
The nagging doubt which informs of this deficiency in personality is the inner guard protecting the Id from acknowledging your role in forming relationships.
- Existence vs Relatedness
- Survival vs Thrill
- Deficient vs Capable
Either or choices provide ‘do or die’ arguments with little room for growth. Do or die arguments take place in the emotional realm, where devils and angels, ethics and morality, battle for control of the self.
Relatedness (Chaos), Existence (Control), Growth
Predicament:
Before we can increase our number of friends, we must determine whether the need, indeed, exists to obtain a friend or a “best friend”.
Break down the qualities of a friend through determination of need based upon the ERG theory:
Existence, Relatedness, Growth
What is a Friend to Control (Existence)?
What is the meaning of a Best Friend to Control, the survival quality of we?
A safe friend ensures our continued existence but in order to locate a safe friend we must take risks.
- Existence (Control) keeps us safe, protected, comfortable within the status quo.
- Relatedness (Chaos) thrives on risk, rebellion, challenges to the status quo.
You see the quandary.
What is a Friend to Chaos (Relatedness)?
What is the meaning of a Best Friend to the Relatedness quality of me?
- Relatedness is Chaos.
- Chaos is open to every and any potentiality.
- Chaos is the target of everything and anything.
- Chaos cannot/ will not say NO to anything or everything.
- Chaos desires many friends and no friends.
You see the quandary.
Conflict between Existence and Relatedness
- intensifies depending upon intensity or immediacy of risk vs survival decisions.
- relies upon prior memory, reactions to prejudge the conflict for quickest resolution.
A best friend to Existence is the friend who helps us survive.
Friends to Existence and Relatedness ensure status quo.
What is a Friend to Growth?
What is the meaning of a Best Friend to the Growth quality of we.
- The Growth friend encourages improvement to our continued existence.
| Existence: Safe Friend Qualities of a Safe Friend 
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Relatedness: Chaos Friend Qualities of a Relatedness Friend 
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Growth: Friend Qualities of a Growth Friend 
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Desired Qualities of a Best Friend
Now that we have gathered and compiled all criteria necessary to determine what a qualified, bona fide, paterfamilias friend is all about, where do we find such a perfect being who fits snugly into our carefully balanced friend mold?
Why do we not attract a perfect friend, a best friend?
- Chaos questions: why? why? why? why? why? why? (Not unlike a dog begging its master for scraps)
- Control: Protects the Id, not telling why, not explaining
- Chaos Makes Desperate Promises
- We will be the best friend in the whole world
- Just once, please
- We need
- We want
- We love
- We will call
- We will write
- We will go shopping
- We will go to the movies
- We can share clothes, makeup
- We can have facials
- Blah,blah,blah is what control hears
- Control: Not telling why not explaining
Diagram Power Imbalance
Control (Existence) and Chaos (Relatedness) becomes 2-way power struggle, impossible resolution.
Because the arguments originate from Chaos (Relatedness), Control (Existence) offers no resolution.
Because Control (Existence) provides no answers, Chaos (Relatedness) punishes self. Because Chaos (Relatedness) punishes Self, Growth becomes deprived, lacking.
How to Regain Power Balance
| Growth intervenes. Self asks Control the questions: Why?
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Control allows Chaos to reveal hidden, repressed knowledge
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Chaos reveals what we already know but have refused to acknowledge.
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Chaos reveals
- Would not be an attentive friend
- Enjoy solitude
- Enjoy quiet
- Friends have issues we are inclined to “fix” things, take charge
- Wouldn’t call, write, go shopping, movies, share clothing, do makeup
Growth (Self)
Realizes perfectly OK not to have a “Best Friend” and perhaps stories, songs, dances, movies which portray best friends, pals for life is an ideology to promote social cohesiveness within a society for the greater good of a community but not necessarily for the greater good of the individual (self).
That one “best friend” is not necessary for growth.
Why have one “best Friend” when you can have hundreds or more. Not the ravaging hoards on Twitter or facebook sort of friends but real friends in specific categories within your mind based upon criteria of need.
Now that the baggage of doubt, insecurity, deficiency and lacking are resolved in this particular sphere of existence, we may concentrate upon what qualifies a good or bad person.
We assume people are good within our paradigm of what constitutes a good person in our sphere of existence.
What constitutes the sphere of existence depends upon our accumulated experiences, memories and learning which we utilize to determine basic safety, survival, social skills in order to continue our existence.
