“When you have a choice to make and don’t make it, that is in itself a choice.” ~William James
I have been single for most of my life; sometimes it would seem by choice, and sometimes not. In that time, I have learned and experienced a lot. Some of the things I had thought I wanted changed, and some of the things I thought I didn’t want have become things I do.
Over the years I have tried various forms of meeting people, including the “bar method,” online dating, and approaching random strangers in public places. It’s not that I was desperate to find someone; I just find dating interesting and meeting new people thrilling. Nothing is really off limits these days, and no one really knows a concrete method for meeting “the right one.”
While I don’t think there’s any “right” way to meet people, I can say this about relationships: our consciousness is everything.
It is so complex and profound that science can’t even measure it. Think about that. The one thing we use to experience and create every aspect of our lives is not remotely understood or measured.
As someone who has been exploring his own conscious potential for years now, I am simply blown away by what we as humans are actually capable of, and I am learning more every day—not by reading, or hearing from others, but by experiencing.
Our thoughts influence our emotions, and our emotions affect the health of our body. If everything is connected and influenced internally by how we think and feel, why is it such a stretch to think the “outside” world—the world made up of the same atoms we are each made up of—isn’t just as influenced by these thoughts and feelings?
This is not about The Secret or simply attracting what you want. It is about consciousness, free will, and choices in this life.
In my experience with dating, I have learned that:
1. Like attracts like.
As human beings, we are here to learn. We attract people with the consciousness that closely matches ours at a given time, but most importantly, people that will bring about the greatest lesson—mainly because both need to learn the same one, though sometimes in opposite ways.
Simply put, the more you work on bettering yourself and raising your consciousness level, the more likely you are to attract someone who is healthier, and healthier for you.
If you are living out of your inauthentic self, you are going to attract someone who mirrors that. We have all been there.
Understanding this concept and applying it to your life really helps you make sense of relationships and move forward positively, if you choose to. Once I realized there were lessons to be learned from the people around me, I could find them, learn them, and let those people go when it was time to move on.
2. Understand who you really are.
To get to this place of clarity and understanding, you need to recognize which of your regular choices contribute to what you decided you don’t want.
When you understand who you really are behind all of the fears, addictions, and ego, you begin to understand what you really want and need in your life. When you understand this, you can put yourself in situations with people who closely align with your real interests and level of consciousness. It might sound like common sense, but it isn’t.
For example: Drinking heavily or doing drugs aren’t healthy or genuine soul interests. So trying to meet people while drinking to excess at bars is not likely to lead to a healthy relationship.
As soon as I stopped putting myself in situations that contributed to an addiction process and started spending more time doing the things that were healthier for me, I found I began losing touch with certain people and meeting new, healthier ones.
Put yourself in more situations with people who like the same healthy things you like, and that make you a better person, not less of one.
3. Decide what you really want.
If you have commitment issues, then that probably means you bounce back and forth between wanting love and fearing it. If you—the consciously empowered, self-authoritative, and free human being—won’t decide what you really want, how can you expect to attain it?
I found that no matter what I tried, when I wasn’t sure what I actually wanted, my results were confusing and disappointing. It’s not just about where or how you meet; it’s about knowing yourself and what you really want and then making the conscious choice to open up to it.
When you make this choice, firmly and consciously, your subconscious can stop resisting. It is important to affirm the intention of what you do want, not what you don’t want.
Soon after I decided firmly and consciously that I wanted something real, something long-term, and as soon as I began healing my “unworthiness,” I opened myself up to a new relationship that reflected this new-found consciousness, but only after years of confusion about what I wanted and deserved.
I recommend getting a journal and writing your goals. It not only puts that energy out there and sets your intention, it also helps you understand what you really do and don’t want in your life at that moment.
4. Know you are worthy, and love yourself.
Do whatever you need to do to heal negative energy, emotions, and thoughts that are holding you back from moving on and loving yourself for who you really are—not who someone made you think you are.
Before you can have a healthy relationship, you have to first remove old stuck energy from situations where people have treated you poorly or led you to feel unworthy of self-love, happiness, or respect.
Unfortunately, you cannot think, rationalize, or talk these blocks away. There are many ways to heal: meditation, energetic healing, therapy, and so on. Do whatever resonates best for you. Sometimes a simple daily affirmation, like “I am worthy of love, I am worthy of a healthy relationship” is enough to spark a healing journey within.
If you don’t feel worthy, then find the source of that feeling. If you spend some time and do some hard “me work,” you will uncover the people and situations tied to those emotions and thoughts holding you back.
We have all heard the saying, and it is true: you have to love yourself before someone else can. The only way to do this is to clear other people’s voices from your mind and emotions.
I, like many, have spent years dealing with worth issues: I felt unworthy of love, success, happiness, and so on. If you struggle with the same thing, consciously choose to work through it.
Working on these issues frees us to attract healthy, loving relationships—and know that we deserve them.
Photo by Christopher Michel

About Jeremy Scott Lambert
Jeremy Scott Lambert is a Coach + Psychotherapist that works with couples and individuals all over the world. He has a passion for helping people create conscious relationships and their best lives. Check him out at JeremyScottLambert.com.
Jeremy- Well written. “you have to love yourself before someone else can” is the key
Great! I can really feel what you wrote here… sometimes it’s conforting to read post such as this written by a man, like myself: it’s important for us to be what we really are, even if it means showing our vulnerability to the world. Thank you Jeremy 😉
Acceptance promotes change
Love this Jeremy! I particularly liked what you said about spending more time on the healthy things you like, rather than hoping to meet people in bars. Drinking for fun is something I’ve been trying to move away from for a while now, as I’ve been focusing on more productive activities and things that will help me grow. It can sometimes feel like I’m leaving ‘old’ friends behind though, which can be hard, so it was good for me to read this; reminds me that I’m on the right track!
The quote reminds me of “Freewill” by Rush.
“If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice”
That song really shares the message this wonderful blog delivers 🙂
GREAT post!! Thank you for sharing your wisdom, and excellent advice!! 🙂
Thank you for this…just what I needed to read at this moment, almost spookily so
thank you for writing this 🙂 you hit the nail on the head for where I am right now
Great article, thank you. I am working through just these issues at present. It isn’t an easy journey but very much feels worth it.
Lovely post. It inspires me to hang in there 🙂 Thank you.
So much truth
candidnation.blogspot.com here. Great post! And all is true in the post, I especially agree with how we have to stay true to ourselves 🙂
Thanks for sharing your story and your insights. I came to the same conclusions!
Love yourself before you love others. I wish I could drill this into every friend’s head–including my own. That journey is by far the most rewarding, and the love you have on the inside will radiate out. Thanks for the great read, Jeremy.
Wow it takes a lot for me to feel the urge to comment on something I read but this post was just too perfect to not say so…Thanks for the insight Jeremy. Spot on!
What do you think is a good way to begin the overwhelming amount of work/change/growth there is to be done on improving ones character? I am very positive about change, and want to be proactive about my growth but need a way of overcoming one hurdle at a time rather than constantly thinking about the multiple things I want to change/fix about myself.
nicely written loved it. 🙂
Thank you so much for this. exactly what i needed to read.
Great read!
I agree completely with your insight. In dating, it is more important to be conscious of ourselves than to focus on all the “options.”
I love this article! I’ve been on a similar path, finding my values, deciding what I want, removing myself from situations that were holding me back, and I noticed myself changing and feeling “more like myself” but I’ve also noticed changes with how I connect with people who I had been “hanging out with” before. That was making me a little anxious feeling like I’m losing “friends,” but reading this is showing me that that’s normal as you grow and its affirmation that I’m on the right path for ME and people who are a better fit for my authentic self will come into my life. Thanks for sharing!