In the 1990 film Awakenings, Dr. Malcolm Sayer administers L-Dopa to Leonard Lowe, a man who has been catatonic for decades. 🎬 For a brief, transcendent window, Leonard returns to the world—fully present, articulate, and alive. But the miracle is fragile. The drug loses its grip, the effect fades, and I watch as Leonard slowly slips back into his silent prison. 📉
To me, this cinematic tragedy is a profound metaphor for the human drive toward self-empowerment. I often feel like Dr. Sayer when I try to inspire the people around me to take their lives into their own hands. I see that “L-Dopa moment” take hold: they become super animated, high on the possibility of a new direction. But then, I watch the energy leak. The spark fades. Suddenly, there is only silence.
In our modern world, I call this Ghosting. 👻
Why I See Intent Disappear
I’ve realized that ghosting—the act of abruptly ending communication without explanation—isn’t just for dating. It is rampant in the world of personal growth. I’ve seen it time and again: I light a fire in someone, they embrace their Purpose, and then—they vanish. 🔇
When this happens, I’ve had to learn not to take it personally. As I explore in this episode on Emergence, I’ve come to understand that this silence is rarely about me; it’s about that person’s internal battle with the “unpreparedness” for their own awakening.
My War with the Guardrails 🚧😴
I believe we live in a world obsessed with standardization. We use processes and “playbooks” as safety blankets to ensure we never fall off the rails. But I’ve seen how these very guardrails eventually turn into a cage.
When I motivate someone toward self-empowerment, I am asking them to step out of their “ho-hum” routine. I am giving them a mental dose of L-Dopa. But I’ve noticed that the older we get, the more we fear the unplanned and the spontaneous.
I see people ghost their own progress because stagnation feels safer than the unknown. They find excuses to return to their catatonic comfort zone because true Emergence requires a level of vulnerability they aren’t ready to sustain. They retreat into the “Nothingness” to avoid the “shocking or unexpected.”
My Antidote: The Path of Serendipity 🌿✨
I’ve found that there is a way out through Serendipity—relishing in the joy of discovery. To combat the ghosting of our own purpose, I believe we have to weave a new approach into our lives:
I Open the Window: Much like a room needs air, I’ve learned that my “cerebral” ideas—those thoughts captured and festering in my brain—need to be tested in the analog world.
I Embrace the Detour: We are obsessed with efficiency, but I’ve found effectiveness is often found in “going to B via C.” I have to allow myself to be “derailed” from predictability to see a different outcome.
I Practice Radical Forgiveness: I know we often ghost our goals because we fail at perfection. I’ve had to learn to forgive myself for being human, because I am not a robot.
My Challenge: Sowing Seeds in the Silence 🧭🔥
My greatest personal challenge is to not lose hope when I see people slip back into their old selves or vanish into silence.
I’ve come to realize that the “ghost” is often just someone who is “dumbfounded” by the spark I gave them. They may just need time to “digest” the impetus of their own awakening.
I know my purpose is not to control their outcome—I can’t control it anyway. My purpose is to keep providing the spark. Even if the L-Dopa wears off today, I believe the memory of what it felt like to be “awake” remains a trigger for a future emergence. 🪟🕊️
