Adrian, could you start by sharing a bit about the inspiration behind writing TaoTuning?

As a youth I wanted to build a better world – one in which people were happier in their lives and more successful. I studied extensively over many years exploring the various narratives, paradigms and belief systems that humanity employs to explain what life is all about.

I also studied psychology and personal development, particularly the positive psychology movement, eventually developing my own counselling technique that I called TaoTuning, as it is a personal process of spiritual attunement to ensure your life is ‘on-track’ and meaningful to you.

I discovered the importance of understanding your ‘Why’ or what gives your life meaning and purpose for you as an individual. It ties it all together and gives you that resilience in hard times. Your why becomes your joy and your friend.

How does this book build upon the concepts introduced in your first book, Personal Sovereignty?

These two books are part of a trilogy called The Temple of Understanding. Personal Sovereignty teaches you how to be sovereign as an individual, how to make your own decisions free from the influence of external forces, how to be captain of your own ship and chart your own course. How to be your own navigator and determine your own destiny.

But having chosen a path, one then needs to be able to execute those decisions successfully. TaoTuning is the ‘how’ that comes after the ‘why’. Otherwise, decisions become lame, and we are crippled in our personality. We become prisoners of our own weaknesses.

It is essential to be successful in achieving one’s goals if one wants to be truly happy and fulfilled. Failure does not lead to contentment.

You emphasize the importance of making sovereign decisions in the first book. Can you explain how this foundation is critical for mastering the flow in life as discussed in the sequel?

You have to be authentic, congruent and sincere. It has to be your life that you live not one bestowed upon you by another, whether that other is parent, teacher, society or tradition. You have to be true to yourself. So, learning how to listen to your own inner voice is essential.

It is by this means of going within that one ‘generates’ the wave. You can only truly ride your own wave if you want to be in the flow. If it is someone else’s it will not last. It will not have duration over time.

So personal sovereignty is the essential starting point or foundation for building a happy and successful life and living in the zone of flow.

What do you mean by the "zone of flow" and why is it so essential for optimizing life's potential?

In modern psychology, being in the flow is associated with peak performance states which only last so long and then you are back to your ‘default setting’ whatever that is. It may be rock climbing, an elite sport, being a musician and so on that gets you there, but once it is over you return to your normal psychological space.

I believe we need to live our lives that way and spend as much time in flow as possible. I believe it is our natural state of being and our birthright. So, we need to learn to live in what I call the zone of flow.

You may not always be in that peak state, but you can live your life in the zone. You must be in that zone for a flow experience to happen. Being in the flow must become the way one lives on a daily basis, so that one optimises every aspect of one’s life not just one’s chosen peak sport or hobby.

Being in the zone of flow is a way of living.

You mention becoming a master practitioner of TaoTuning. Can you explain what TaoTuning Is and how it helps in riding cosmic waves?

TaoTuning is the discipline of living one’s life that way. It is an art and a science. It is very much like a martial art or a spiritual discipline. One must be acutely aware of the flow and its nuances. Life is a constant process of change, and one must become extremely sensitive and agile to the almost imperceptible changes happening in one’s life before they become tsunamis.

We want to be abreast of the wave not getting dumped by it because we are asleep at the wheel. Life is an incredibly exacting skillset. One must be aware, awake and mindful 24/7 – all the time.

Being a master practitioner means anticipating and negotiating change before it manifests as a danger in your life. It is a constant dialogue or conversation.

Discovering one's sole/soul purpose is a key theme in your book. What strategies or practices do you recommend for individuals seeking to find their purpose?

Each of us is totally unique – that is the true gift of life. We all have unique talents. To be authentic and to express that authenticity with joy and boldness is absolutely essential for happiness.

Your why is your purpose. It does not need to be grand or famous, but it does need to be congruent and authentic. It has to make sense to you. It is your story. It is the plot and the moral of your story. It is what joins the dots together into a meaningful and comprehensive whole.

Without that rudder you are adrift on the ocean of turbulence and self-doubt. Your life wanders all over the place. You very easily get influenced and lost.

You talk about living a life filled with joy, wonder, and ease. How do you reconcile this with the inevitable challenges and hardships we face?

One of the key characteristics of flow is being challenged. One cannot achieve without challenge. One must be stretched to become more, to arrive at a higher personal best. This is what flow is all about – this personal stretch.

We must face adversity, obstacles and hardship and turn them into stepping stones or opportunities for growth. This is the process of personal development. Otherwise, everything becomes inert – stuck in the mud of insignificance. Time passes you by and you lose all significance as an individual spirit.

Adversity forces you to stop, turn within and grow. As you grow, you overcome the challenge and become victorious. There is no victory without adversity.

How do you envision the final book of the trilogy building upon the themes discussed in this book?

BeComing One is the final step. Once one is sovereign and then executes one’s life diligently, one arrives at mastery. The separation between individuality and universality ceases to be a burden or a problem. It becomes an infinite joy. One can move effortlessly between the two without losing one’s sovereignty but one is no longer alone or isolated because one has reached home. One belongs!

Mental illness, depression and loneliness are the new pandemic as declared by WHO. Humanity needs to come home, to reconnect to universal brotherhood and sisterhood. We need desperately to find this sense of belonging. We are one species. All life is One.

Is there a final message or piece of advice you would like to share with readers who are just beginning their journey towards personal sovereignty and mastery flow?

Yes, remain vigilant and confident. Do not give up or falter. It is definitely worth making the journey and it does get easier. The hardest step is step one. Every step after that gets easier and more fulfilling. The reward in terms of personal happiness, contentment, joy and serenity is profound.

Life does become a blessing and immense fun. Having fun is important. Life is a gift and it is meant to be enjoyed.

Where can readers connect with you or learn more about your work and upcoming projects?

The best place to start is my website: adrianemery.com. I do a monthly blog which guides people to look at global events a little differently and to live their lives authentically. We need to regain critical thinking and get outside of the false narrative being pushed by the media.

Also Instagram: adrianmoranemery and Facebook: adrianemery.author. I will also be publishing videos on Youtube: Adrian Emery

About Tao Tuning

In this intriguing sequel to Personal Sovereignty, Adrian Emery, author, philosopher and mentor, takes this all-important discussion a step further. In book I of this trilogy, we learnt how to become masters of our own destiny by making those sovereign decisions that are in our best interest.
Decisions determine destiny.

Yet, once we have decided upon our personal life journey, we need to know how to get to our chosen destination. This requires that ability to live one’s life successfully and to become a master of manifestation in the here and now.
We need to learn how to flow with the all-powerful currents of the universe – the Infinite Tao. We all want to live in the flow. Yet it seems so elusive!

In this book, you will learn how to:

live in the ‘zone of flow’, optimising life’s potential
master the mechanics and metaphysics of flow
discover your sole soul purpose for this lifetime
ride the wave of your destiny to success and happiness
align the 3 essential forces of fate, destiny and daily life
become a master practitioner of TaoTuning – to surf the cosmic waves
lead a meaningful and fulfilling life filled with joy, wonder and ease.

We all want to go with the flow, to experience that ease and simplicity that comes from giving up resistance and vaingloriously trying to swim upstream. But how exactly do we do this? Why are we so resistant? Why are our lives filled with friction, tension and conflict?

Learn the secret and simplicity of just being yourself and allowing the universe and your inner compass to be your guide. Once they work together, in harmony, your life will never be the same. You will live the life of your dreams and your dreams will become your daily reality.

There will be no more inner opposition! You will enter the zone of flow. You will live fully and consciously truly enjoying your creation.

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