Hello, I am an outlier, a statistical anomaly that does not exist in today’s approach to science.
In a world where normal is defined by the number of people that experience a certain behaviour, condition or lifestyle, it would seem that there are many things in the world that we consider normal but point to a world that is not doing well.
Becoming overweight or even obese is becoming normal.
Being dependant on sugar or caffeine is normal.
Using alcohol or other recreational drugs is normal.
Yet based on the above I am an outlier, as none of these things are part of my life:
- I live without eating or craving sugar, caffeine, refined carbohydrate, salt or alcohol
- I am on the lower side of the normal weight range for my height
- I wake up without an alarm early in the morning, ready for the day after a solid night’s sleep
- I work with consistent energy throughout the day around the house and in my job.
This was not my experience of life 12 years ago. In fact, 12 years ago, I was pre-diabetic, overweight, using caffeine, sugar, and alcohol and not particularly happy in my job or within myself.
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So my NORMAL has changed, which means this is not a story of someone with a genetic predisposition to a certain mode of health. Any genuine scientific researcher would look at this change and want to study it because the changes I made were not ‘rocket science’ but observable, repeatable changes.
The changes were founded on the principles of The Way of The Livingness, a uniquely and truly holistic approach to life that presents a combination of science, religion and personal responsibility that is, in my experience, both profound and unique in the world.
The Science Part of The Way of The Livingness – involves studying the science of my body more closely and observing the repeatable experiences I have with certain foods, moods and lifestyle choices and how they affect me. It also involves respecting and working with my GP and other health practitioners to monitor my health to ensure I am not deluding myself.
The Religion Part of The Way of The Livingness – involves appreciating the fact that while my life has a practical quality, it also has an energetic quality as well. This energetic quality is about the way in which I define my relationship with God (where even denial is a relationship). Over time I have begun to accept the fact that I can and do have a very personal and real relationship with Divinity and that life has a sacredness that is worthy of respecting and honouring in my movement and actions. I have learnt that I do not need to be beholden to a particular person or congregation, but rather have defined success as the honesty of my personal relationship with God, as it defines everything else.
The Personal Responsibility Part of The Way of The Livingness – involves knowing that if I am choosing to eat or live in a way that is harmful to me or others, I need to look at why. It makes little sense that we would choose to ingest poisons (alcohol), smoke, over-eat or do a myriad of other things that modern science knows leads to poor health, but we do. The fact is, I matter in the world and my choices affect me and others. So personal responsibility is looking at the choice and the reason for it. In essence it is perpetual choice to either respond or ignore the Science and Religion I am still discovering.
And while science is consumed with trying to cope with the ever-increasing rates of obesity and other lifestyle diseases, here I am, the outlier – thanks to The Way of The Livingness –feeling very normal, but hardly a blip on the radar of conventional science.
You only need to visit the before and after project on UniMed Living, to see that I am not alone. In fact, people from around the world have begun to replicate these changes, across gender, age, race, income and demographics.
Hello, I am an outlier, why don’t you join me?
By Joel Levin, 47
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Joel Levin, is a student of life, himself and The Way of The Livingness. With a deep interest in what makes people and groups productive, effective and joyful to be around.
For the full back catalogue of Joel Levin’s writing, visit: www.joellevin.net |
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What is The Way of The Livingness |
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The Truth about Universal Medicine 
“I matter in the world and my choices affect me and others.” And so we can appreciate that the outliers are making a difference.
I am loving that openness in which all people share their experience of how their life changed after having met Universal Medicine. That to me is visable power, for all to see confirmed by these pictures and felt beyond.
Hear, hear Joel, I am also proud to be an outlier. With current rise in illness and disease, especially obesity and diabetes, it is obvious that the Livingness is a very supportive and ‘normal’ way for the body to become more vital and truly healthy.
These photographs are undeniable testament to the benefits of being an ‘outlier’ as a result of practicing the principles of The Way of The Livingness.
I love the way you talk about responsibility here Joel that it is not just about taking care of numero uno but also about considering the bigger picture of how our actions or way of life is affecting everyone else and everything else on the planet.
Responsibility, we all have a significant effect on others, so how we are, and live is not just for self, ‘The fact is, I matter in the world and my choices affect me and others.’
Each of us have a feeling of what an outlier is for him/her. This feeling is the other side of the coin to what an inlier is. All of this means not much in principle. Yet, it gets interesting when outlying only means excelling in true wellbeing.
When we follow our truth we might be an outlier but this does not mean that it is abnormal to our natural way of being.
Even denial is a relationship, now that has me smiling for there is truly no no really … we just say yes to something else. And here’s to being an outlier, and for more to join.
I agree Monica, well said, we are always in a relationship with everything, so it makes sense to me to be aware of what the quality of our relationships are and what they represent.
It is crazy to see what the ‘norm’ has become – it reminds me of the movie Wall-E. Everyone is overweight, floating around in chairs making no effort to exercise, watching the TV screens, all entertainment provided and drinking oversized sugary drinks. Why as humanity would we want to settle for that as an existence?
A great question to ask ourselves and truly take stock of what we feel or wish life to be, to then to be able to endorse what truly supports us and renounce all that is not.
Why as a humanity do we settle for many things in our lives… from an onlookers perspective many of us may seem slightly crazy.
What my normal is today is totally different to what it was 10 years ago, and even 1 year ago, thanks to the Way of the Livingness. When we start to embrace life in a way that reveals to us how our behaviours and patterns impact on our health and society in general, it becomes clear that we constantly have to review how we are living and make adjustments to support ourselves as our bodies change.
It is important to continually review how we are living, what is supportive to our evolution, and what is not.
“It makes little sense that we would choose to ingest poisons (alcohol), smoke, over-eat or do a myriad of other things that modern science knows leads to poor health, but we do.” – This is a question I have been asking myself about a lot recently, especially in regards to making those self-sabotaging choices myself at times when I am actually feeling quite steady, centred, and joyful. Why would I want to intentionally disrupt those feelings? Well, to me it must have something to do with not wanting the responsibility of living that all the time in full and not standing out as the incredibly sensitive, tender, and caring man I know I am. This can really hurt, but having the honesty of why we are making these self-harming choices is key to healing them, as Joel has indicated here so well.
Thank you Joel, I loved everything you wrote but I could not stop smiling at your photo, so filled with joy, a bit of cheekiness, and the gorgeousness of simply being you. The cuteness and purity of a little boy and the wisdom and power of a man. Welcome back home to yourself!
I love what you shared here Joel, “And while science is consumed with trying to cope with the ever-increasing rates of obesity and other lifestyles diseases, here I am, the outlier – thanks to The Way of The Livingness – feeling very normal, but hardly a blip on the radar of conventional science”. This is such a true statement, we need to be explored for sure, we have much to share and we are a testament to The Way of The Livingness.
What a joy Joel to be an outlier – I join you. You are an inspiration to me – a walking miracle. I am the same. I have gone from the depths of a tyrannical torturous abuse I played out on myself – not an ounce of appreciation in my bones. Now I walk appreciation from all the love I feel in my body and from God within. Talk about science – investigate and analyse me! The Way of The Livingness is the truth, love, harmony, stillness and Joy of God no doubt about it!!
As an outlier sometimes I can feel a desire to be part of the norm, to fit in. Yet when I really look at that there is nothing there that is greater than what I currently live now. When I did live that life was challenging, I was tired, I was overweight, there were moments of ‘fun’ but in truth this was just relief from the tensions of life. I can say that I do not want to be part of that again.
Changing our choices from those that actually harm us for example alcohol, overeating, or drugs to making more loving choices is all part of taking responsibility for ourselves and understanding that the choices we make really matter, and through the process of this I found the real me.
The choices we make do matter, how responsible are we being, as all of this effects more than just self.
I love the ‘marriage’ of religion, science and philosophy in The Way of The Livingness and feel very enriched that my life is not purely about being human, but that God and multidimensionality are leading in it.
“appreciating the fact that while my life has a practical quality, it also has an energetic quality as well.” I really got this aspect of The Way of the Livingness. Both are incredibly logical and should be considered as being interchangeable if we are to truly live the love we are from.
“So my NORMAL has changed,” The ripple effect of my ‘normal’ as a student of The Way of The Livingness is changing the normal of those around me.
Such is the reflection of a True outlier.
Currently ‘normal’ is constantly being refined downwards and the students of the Way of The Livingness deserve to be studied as they are bucking the current increasing ill-health trends by simple and practical choices in the way that they live that have transformed many lives including mine and supported me to become a much more productive and loving member of my community.
The simple building blocks that have been ignored for many of us, for many many years. Its such a practical simple platform you describe Joel, and the proof is in the sparkle in that last photo. Its a true way and that is obvious to see.
Many greats point made here Joel and this one spoke loudly today ‘…even denial is a relationship.’ We are constantly in a relationship with ourselves, our bodies, with others, with God and the universe. So the great question is what is that nature of our relationship and is it a relationship that embraces, honors and represents all that we really are, guided by our connection to our truth from within? With eternal and heartfelt thanks to The Way of The Livingness I walk beside you Joel and many others, now knowing what it means to live in a way that may not as yet seem ‘normal’ by today’s ‘standards’ but without a doubt feels absolutely natural as is reflected through my body, well-being and vitality.
Knowing our value and that we matter is key to undertaking any assessment in how we are and how we live. In my experience The Way of The Livingness comes from a basis that we are it all already, but we may not be choosing to live it, and then it’s a matter of looking at any hindrances we may have, so rather than trying to attain something outside of us, we’re looking at letting go all those things which do not support us to be who we naturally. To be supported and held in an understanding that we are whole already is amazing and as Joel notes here, and I can say my experience is similar, it’s changed my life, and continues to do so. There is another way and it’s accessible to us all.
“You only need to visit the before and after project on UniMed Living, to see that I am not alone. In fact, people from around the world have begun to replicate these changes, across gender, age, race, income and demographics.” Witnessing the changes people have made over the years is truly astonishing. Your before and after photos say it all Joel. Love your blogs…..
Thank you Joel I am also an outlier too, having worked shift work for over 28 years now I cope better now than I did in my 20’s and 30’s, and I know it is because of The Way of The Livingness showing me there is a different way to live and move in the world that supports me to experience life with more love, vitality and true wellness.
There really is no rocket science or anything remotely exciting about choosing to live by these very simple, practical principles you describe here. Yet, what we are seeing in these three photos tell us that the difference is a life apart. You do not even look the same person in the first two photos. Totally unrecognizable in many ways.
Practical principles, with an energetic foundation, ‘ appreciating the fact that while my life has a practical quality, it also has an energetic quality as well.’
When the outliers become the norm and what they do is the ‘normal’, outliers become those who rebel against the ‘normal’ and go one way and those who embrace themselves who go another way. The ‘normal’ feed the ‘rebels’ and are confirmed by them to be ‘normal’. The problem is those who embrace themselves. They do not fit well in the picture because in truth they are and represent the normal even if they are perceived by the ‘normal’ as abnormal.
I’m an outlier too Joel. As a woman with a chronic thyroid condition I should, statistically speaking, be a lot less healthy than I am. Not only do I have wonderful medical support, thanks to The Way of The Livingness, I have an equally wonderful prescription for life that I joyfully choose to take.
And what a handsome Outlier you are Joel… Bringing your wonderfully refreshing words of wisdom to humanity on such a regular basis for which we are all grateful.
Gorgeous Joel, to feel the joy and playfulness with which you live and write. The real gem among many is that the changes you’ve made can be done anyone, they’re simple, accessible, observable and repeatable .. and the other key aspect is to look at the underlying reason for our behaviours and choices as that supports us to truly understand and see what we are doing and consider what may need to change.
My body says that The Way of The Livingness is the healthier way of living. It doesn’t matter if I’m an outlier, but I definitely worth it!
What can I say but true rebels rock, how do I know this? Because I am one!
I have joined you in being an outlier and I am so glad as it is so life-enhancing.
Yes, to often we also shift the bar of what is normal. When recently looking at some portraits of people 50 years ago- the state of their health and their bodies were very different to the bodies you see today. Yet we have shifted the bar and normalised what would have been considered unhealthy in those days to just be the norm now.
For too long we have accepted the abnormal as the normal and it is time that collectively we made the shifts in our ways to correct this fact.
I agree Suse, it is very obvious that the current accepted normal in our society is actually harming us and the new normal is in fact accessible to us all, to live in harmony with our body and it will guide us to a much more healthy, light and joyful life. If we are in disharmony with ourselves this naturally affects how we are with others, hence why we have a world that is in huge disharmony. It is certainly overdue for us all to change what is not working.
Well overdue chanly88 and well said – for living a healthy, light and joyful life will allow us to all live our potential.
Absolutely, there is too much that really is abnormal in this world, yet has been accepted as normal because so many participate in this behaviour, or activity.
Joel, this article is Gold. I love the line “Over time I have begun to accept the fact that I can and do have a very personal and real relationship with Divinity and that life has a sacredness that is worthy of respecting and honouring in my movement and actions.”, this resonates deeply with me.
And the photos share it all – the joy, light and sense of fun in your most recent photos is beautiful and gorgeous to feel. Thank you.
Your outlier status won’t be so for long Joel… I am joining you too! The fact is there is proof from lived experience of many now that shows that change is simple when Love is the purpose and founding Way and this is something science is sorely missing.
I look forward to the day when The Way of The Livingness is the normal for all.
You say it so well Joel, the outlier speaks very clearly and very succinctly, and shows that we all can choose the same. Your line ‘So my NORMAL has changed … ‘ is key, it’s saying it’s not a matter of being special, having special abilities or genes, but the willingness to look within, get honest and make choices that truly support.
The Outlier says it all! The only person we need to listen to is ourselves! Our bodies hold the wisdom we need to follow and our innermost love is a Son of God.
I never really enjoyed science at school, but now I absolutely can’t get enough of it. It’s exploring all the fine details of our daily lives and how we move express and nourish our bodies that brings the outlier truly out into the world and seeing just how joyous it can be to live and share in this way. The inner wisdom we hold in our bodies is the true science and one that allows us to continually deepen and explore more and more of what makes us tick. Thank you Joel and thank you Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine.
Very sweet and very inviting and so very simple.
What I find with The Way of The Livingness is the simplicity that it starts with us choosing to be honest. No one is telling us what to eat, what to do – but by being very honest I have learnt how what I used to think I ‘love’ was really not supporting me or in fact actually very harming to myself. And it became so clear how our ‘normal’ is actually not natural to us. It’s been a quite incredible, humble yet totally self-empowering process.
I love how you have presented that that there is more to life, that we are in an inescapable relationship with science, religion and responsibility, that we have access to a greater awareness than just following the ‘norm’ so to speak. We all have a sense of what is true and what is not yet we are choosing to not engage this. Understanding why we choose to avoid our responsibility to live from our inner-most has been nothing short of empowering. I have found that The Way of The Livingness has supported me to no end to re-discover that within me, and us all, is our guide to knowing all that is truly our normal, and to explore my relationship with humanity, God, the universe and as such living my Divinity in the world.
“This energetic quality is about the way in which I define my relationship with God (where even denial is a relationship).” Great point Joel – we can’t escape the relationship to ourselves and to God because we are in constant relationship with everything, even if our perspective is isolated to just our thoughts or wants.
The understanding that we have a constant relationship with God, with everyone and everything means it is very difficult to avoid taking responsibility for our choices. Because, every choice we make impacts all our relationships and no matter where we are in the universe, we are in constant relationship with everything and the ALL.
I like that The Way of The Livingness encompasses all aspects of life. I will be visiting my doctors later on this morning because I am not feeling well. In the past I would probably not have gone and made an assumption about what I had and decided on what medication to take. These days I feel I am taking greater care of myself and part of this responsibility is about checking things out with the doctors. The Way of The Livingness really is a holistic approach to life.
This blog is enormously supportive for anyone wanting to bring change to their current way of living, so many in our current society are settling for a reduced way of living that lacks any vitality, commitment, energy, or true health. The Way of The Livingness is a complete package that offers the body a different way to live and to make responsible and loving choices that support your body to truly heal and to live as an ‘outlier’ and experience the many benefits that come with embracing the body as a living science.
The beauty of living from our own choices and responsibility within those choices is how it connects every facet of not only our lives but of everyone else’s too. Every movement within our choices has a ripple affect on the all and that is something worth pondering on how and why we live as we do today.
I love reading this blog. The part about our relationship with God stood out for me today. This is one relationship I have given my least attention to yet it is one that will support me in all my other relationships. Huummm interesting to notice this and a note to myself to start paying more attention to developing my relationship with God and to be more aware of when I tend to avoid this and why.