The following is an introductory guide to the Life Level System, spanning from Life Level 0 (LL0) through the transition between LL4 and LL5. As explained at the bottom of this page, the inherent qualities of Life Levels 5 and above require that their details be covered on Peasant Faith, and can also be found in some detail in a post entitled Showing the Unfamiliar Path. Deeper explanations of these Life Levels can be found in our various posts, but whether you've read everything we've written, or this is your first introduction to the Life Level System, feel free to use this guide whenever you find yourself saying, "Wait...what was LL-Such-n-Such, again?"
Introduction
The purpose of the Life Level System is to improve human nature itself in a simple, straight-forward way, in order to dramatically improve every part of life for everyone everywhere. Problems exist and things can always be better than they currently are, but do we tackle them from the outside-in or from the inside-out? From the outside-in means (at best) weak, temporary results; from the inside-out means strong, permanent results. Like any plant, treating a problem at the roots -- not the leaves -- yields the greatest return. For the problems we face every day, individually and globally, it's not in external things like legislation or finances that we find the solutions, but it is first and foremost in changing our own human nature for the better.
But changing our deepest nature can seem extremely difficult, if not impossible. The Life Levels are here to help you accomplish that, but it is important to first understand this concept of our outer and inner selves. In addition to the analogy of a plant mentioned above, consider the following two analogies as further explanation of what the Life Levels are, and what they have the potential to do for you.
Building Analogy
Think of a house, a building, or any structure of some sort. Specific architectural details are irrelevant here. This structure has a roof, walls, and a foundation. It may be built of wood, cement, various metals, or any number of materials. Each part of this building is important, though some can literally not stand without the others. A roof is essential to help keep out the elements, but without walls and supports, you can forget about it. Without a good foundation, the walls will fall in the slightest breeze. And even if you have a foundation and everything else, a house of straw won't stand up to the huffings and puffings of life. Good materials, a foundation, walls, and a roof are necessary for the structure to serve its purpose.
We are each like these buildings in a very real way. Our roof is like the things we have, sheltering us from hunger, fatigue, or bad climates. This can be a literal home, friends, food, money, or anything else. They are not really a part of who we are, but they still play an important part in the entire structure -- the entire self. The walls that support the roof can be likened to our talents, skills, and knowledge. The more we know, or the better we are at something, the more easily we can gain and keep external things. In fact, greater knowledge and skills naturally, almost effortlessly, lead to longer lasting external results. So what’s next in the sequence? How can we gain knowledge and skills in similar natural and effortless ways? Just as the whole structure is held together by the foundation, knowledge and possessions are supported by inner qualities that help determine who we are to an even greater degree. These qualities are virtues like patience, perseverance, kindness, determination, integrity, and motivation. A person with more of these will naturally learn and build talents better than someone who doesn’t. But what, then, will cause us to gain more virtues, the way virtues help us grow in skills, and skills help us get and keep external stuff?
The materials used to make a building, be it straw, wood, bricks, or even titanium, is the innermost layer of humanity and is the very Human Nature that defines us. What we choose to build our lives out of, our core, is that which drives and motivates every thought and action. Simply stated, it is why we do what we do. But just as there are many different kinds of materials to build a house with, there are many different kinds of Human Nature -- some are better, some are worse. It turns out they can be organized into distinct levels, each naturally transitioning to the next one, and because why you do what you do affects every part of life, we call these levels of one’s innermost self Life Levels.
Human Onion Analogy
Ogres* aren’t the only ones who are like onions! We’ve all got layers. Using e same pattern as the Building Analogy above, the following diagram illustrates the layers and their relationship with each other. Viewed from the outside-in, this can be called an Onion. But from the inside-out, we can think of it as a ripple in water. As one improves their Human Nature, it automatically spreads out to every other layer.
But changing our deepest nature can seem extremely difficult, if not impossible. The Life Levels are here to help you accomplish that, but it is important to first understand this concept of our outer and inner selves. In addition to the analogy of a plant mentioned above, consider the following two analogies as further explanation of what the Life Levels are, and what they have the potential to do for you.
Building Analogy
Think of a house, a building, or any structure of some sort. Specific architectural details are irrelevant here. This structure has a roof, walls, and a foundation. It may be built of wood, cement, various metals, or any number of materials. Each part of this building is important, though some can literally not stand without the others. A roof is essential to help keep out the elements, but without walls and supports, you can forget about it. Without a good foundation, the walls will fall in the slightest breeze. And even if you have a foundation and everything else, a house of straw won't stand up to the huffings and puffings of life. Good materials, a foundation, walls, and a roof are necessary for the structure to serve its purpose.
We are each like these buildings in a very real way. Our roof is like the things we have, sheltering us from hunger, fatigue, or bad climates. This can be a literal home, friends, food, money, or anything else. They are not really a part of who we are, but they still play an important part in the entire structure -- the entire self. The walls that support the roof can be likened to our talents, skills, and knowledge. The more we know, or the better we are at something, the more easily we can gain and keep external things. In fact, greater knowledge and skills naturally, almost effortlessly, lead to longer lasting external results. So what’s next in the sequence? How can we gain knowledge and skills in similar natural and effortless ways? Just as the whole structure is held together by the foundation, knowledge and possessions are supported by inner qualities that help determine who we are to an even greater degree. These qualities are virtues like patience, perseverance, kindness, determination, integrity, and motivation. A person with more of these will naturally learn and build talents better than someone who doesn’t. But what, then, will cause us to gain more virtues, the way virtues help us grow in skills, and skills help us get and keep external stuff?
The materials used to make a building, be it straw, wood, bricks, or even titanium, is the innermost layer of humanity and is the very Human Nature that defines us. What we choose to build our lives out of, our core, is that which drives and motivates every thought and action. Simply stated, it is why we do what we do. But just as there are many different kinds of materials to build a house with, there are many different kinds of Human Nature -- some are better, some are worse. It turns out they can be organized into distinct levels, each naturally transitioning to the next one, and because why you do what you do affects every part of life, we call these levels of one’s innermost self Life Levels.
Human Onion Analogy
Ogres* aren’t the only ones who are like onions! We’ve all got layers. Using e same pattern as the Building Analogy above, the following diagram illustrates the layers and their relationship with each other. Viewed from the outside-in, this can be called an Onion. But from the inside-out, we can think of it as a ripple in water. As one improves their Human Nature, it automatically spreads out to every other layer.
How to Use the Life Levels
How does one actually change their Human Nature? How can we change the underlying motivation for all our behavior? First, you need to want to change -- without that, nothing will ever come of this system. You will also need to be willing to go through whatever may be necessary to bring about that change. Moving forward to the next Life Level is a revolutionary turn-around in how you receive and respond to every part of life, so be prepared for a difficult but highly rewarding climb. Next, as you read the descriptions of each Life Level below, try to identify which one best encompasses your main drive for all your behavior. Go through them slowly and consider why you do what you do. You will then need to find what the next Life Level and the transition to it entail so you know what to aim for. Lastly and always, monitor yourself in every decision you make and remember to let your choices be driven by whatever the following Life Level may be for you. This will require you to be incredibly honest with yourself, as well as courageous in letting go of whatever may be holding you back from leaping into what will likely seem to be dark uncertainty. But before you can do any of that, you need to know what the most common Life Levels are! And before that, you should know a few more important points about how to properly use the Life Level System.
Firstly, as you begin to recognize your own Life Level, you will inevitably start to see the Life Levels of others. That's a good thing! It’s a good exercise that can help you to see your own Life Level more clearly. But this can become dangerous as soon as you begin to point out another’s Life Level for the purpose of discouraging them in any way. The Life Level System is meant to encourage and lift up, not discourage or tear down. One’s own Life Level is an incredibly personal thing, though it is possible for others to observe it. Making note of someone else’s Life Level, whether to that person or to others, is by itself neither good nor bad -- but doing so to help that person or others live better, happier lives is always good, while doing so to serve yourself or put others down is wrong. Just beware of that if you need to.
Next, each Life Level description will be split up into three parts: Its “Main Motivation”, “Strengths”, and “Weaknesses”. In actuality, the Main Motivation comes from a combination of the Strengths and Weaknesses. The Strengths are different virtues that add upon each other as one moves forward through the Life Levels, and they eliminate the main Weaknesses of the previous Life Level. For example, Life Level 2 (or LL2) has its Strengths and Weaknesses, and LL3 has its Strengths and Weaknesses, but the Weaknesses of LL2 are resolved by the Strengths of LL3, which are added upon the Strengths of LL2, as well as those of LL1. Life Level 3’s Weaknesses are fixed by LL4’s Strengths, and so on. Understanding how this progression works is imperative to understanding the Life Level System.
And lastly, as you read through the list of Life Levels below, it is important to remember that while there are many ingenious systems that deal with human behavior (Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People are just a couple examples that I would highly suggest you take a close look at if you haven’t already), the Life Level System works deeper and infinitely farther than any similar system we yet know of. It works deeper because each Life Level is a description of one’s innermost core and motivation for all behavior, instead of basic needs or important virtues. And its scope is infinite because unlike 4 Steps or 7 Habits, there is no “highest” Life Level. We’ll only go through LL4 here, but there is an LL5, an LL10, and even an LL1,000,000. Don’t get me wrong: I love things like Seven Habits for Highly Effective People, and especially the newer Eighth Habit. I just want to emphasize these two major beauties of the Life Level System: 1 - It gets down to the root, the materials we each use to build our lives, or the core of every individual; and 2 - No matter how far you go through the Life Levels, you can always grow to be something more.
Bear these things in mind as you read through the list of the most common Life Levels and locate which one you think you operate in. Remember honesty and courage will give you the most accurate results.
How does one actually change their Human Nature? How can we change the underlying motivation for all our behavior? First, you need to want to change -- without that, nothing will ever come of this system. You will also need to be willing to go through whatever may be necessary to bring about that change. Moving forward to the next Life Level is a revolutionary turn-around in how you receive and respond to every part of life, so be prepared for a difficult but highly rewarding climb. Next, as you read the descriptions of each Life Level below, try to identify which one best encompasses your main drive for all your behavior. Go through them slowly and consider why you do what you do. You will then need to find what the next Life Level and the transition to it entail so you know what to aim for. Lastly and always, monitor yourself in every decision you make and remember to let your choices be driven by whatever the following Life Level may be for you. This will require you to be incredibly honest with yourself, as well as courageous in letting go of whatever may be holding you back from leaping into what will likely seem to be dark uncertainty. But before you can do any of that, you need to know what the most common Life Levels are! And before that, you should know a few more important points about how to properly use the Life Level System.
Firstly, as you begin to recognize your own Life Level, you will inevitably start to see the Life Levels of others. That's a good thing! It’s a good exercise that can help you to see your own Life Level more clearly. But this can become dangerous as soon as you begin to point out another’s Life Level for the purpose of discouraging them in any way. The Life Level System is meant to encourage and lift up, not discourage or tear down. One’s own Life Level is an incredibly personal thing, though it is possible for others to observe it. Making note of someone else’s Life Level, whether to that person or to others, is by itself neither good nor bad -- but doing so to help that person or others live better, happier lives is always good, while doing so to serve yourself or put others down is wrong. Just beware of that if you need to.
Next, each Life Level description will be split up into three parts: Its “Main Motivation”, “Strengths”, and “Weaknesses”. In actuality, the Main Motivation comes from a combination of the Strengths and Weaknesses. The Strengths are different virtues that add upon each other as one moves forward through the Life Levels, and they eliminate the main Weaknesses of the previous Life Level. For example, Life Level 2 (or LL2) has its Strengths and Weaknesses, and LL3 has its Strengths and Weaknesses, but the Weaknesses of LL2 are resolved by the Strengths of LL3, which are added upon the Strengths of LL2, as well as those of LL1. Life Level 3’s Weaknesses are fixed by LL4’s Strengths, and so on. Understanding how this progression works is imperative to understanding the Life Level System.
And lastly, as you read through the list of Life Levels below, it is important to remember that while there are many ingenious systems that deal with human behavior (Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People are just a couple examples that I would highly suggest you take a close look at if you haven’t already), the Life Level System works deeper and infinitely farther than any similar system we yet know of. It works deeper because each Life Level is a description of one’s innermost core and motivation for all behavior, instead of basic needs or important virtues. And its scope is infinite because unlike 4 Steps or 7 Habits, there is no “highest” Life Level. We’ll only go through LL4 here, but there is an LL5, an LL10, and even an LL1,000,000. Don’t get me wrong: I love things like Seven Habits for Highly Effective People, and especially the newer Eighth Habit. I just want to emphasize these two major beauties of the Life Level System: 1 - It gets down to the root, the materials we each use to build our lives, or the core of every individual; and 2 - No matter how far you go through the Life Levels, you can always grow to be something more.
Bear these things in mind as you read through the list of the most common Life Levels and locate which one you think you operate in. Remember honesty and courage will give you the most accurate results.
The Life Levels Themselves
Life Level 0
Main Motivation: Random, animalistic impulse.
Strengths: Has emotions.
Weaknesses: Is thoughtless and sometimes wild.
Strengths: Has emotions.
Weaknesses: Is thoughtless and sometimes wild.
Transition to Life Level 1
Transitioning from LL0 to LL1 can be a difficult experience, and typically only happens with toddlers (which explains the so-called “Terrible Twos”). In the most basic sense, what separates man from beast is that man has the capacity to be at least LL1, while animals do not. As soon as conscious thought and consideration begin, however, LL1 begins.
Life Level 1
Main Motivation: Thoughtfulness towards one’s own desires.
Strengths: Has real consciousness and thought.
Weaknesses: Is selfish and self-justifies behavior.
Strengths: Has real consciousness and thought.
Weaknesses: Is selfish and self-justifies behavior.
Transition to Life Level 2
As people master the self-interest of LL1, they eventually realize that working with people is more profitable than working against them or in indifference to them. Life Level 1 masters pursue a selfish form of genuinely cooperative friendship, but the pleasure of human connection soon becomes an end in and of itself. This leads to LL2.
Life Level 2
Main Motivation: Social Awareness.
Strengths: Cares and thinks about others.
Weaknesses: Is often flighty.
Strengths: Cares and thinks about others.
Weaknesses: Is often flighty.
Transition to Life Level 3
As people master the social awareness of LL2, they begin to strive to be true to themselves. They know that people like you better when you’re sincere, and they care enough about that to be willing to make the effort to be true to themselves. The resulting self-esteem soon becomes its own reward, which leads right into LL3.
Life Level 3
Main Motivation: One’s own perception of the world.
Strengths: Has integrity, honor, and a strong sense of self.
Weaknesses: Can be rigid and closed-minded.
Strengths: Has integrity, honor, and a strong sense of self.
Weaknesses: Can be rigid and closed-minded.
Transition to Life Level 4
As people master the self-respect of LL3, they try to be more and more exact in doing what they feel is good. They begin to seek consistency in their personal code of honor so that they can better follow all of it. This leads them to think deeply about their code, forcing them to face any inconsistencies it may have. Life Level 3 masters end up seeking to understand the world as it really is, so that they can always do whatever may be truly best. This is the beginning of LL4.
Life Level 4
Main Motivation: An open-minded thirst for Truth.
Strengths: Is open-minded, unbiased, and eagerly embraces the unfamiliar.
Weaknesses: Is bound by the limits of human comprehension.
Strengths: Is open-minded, unbiased, and eagerly embraces the unfamiliar.
Weaknesses: Is bound by the limits of human comprehension.
Transition to Life Level 5
As people master the unbiased rigor of LL4, their conduct and perceptions begin to align with how Reality really is. Their personal code becomes refined and consistent, and their behavior starts to be driven by Truth as it comes to them from the sum total and source of all Truth. Call this “sum total” and “source” what you will, whether “God”, a “Higher Power”, or even “the Force”. But whatever you may call it, this leads to a complete, personal connection with it, which then motivates all thought and action. As an additional explanation, in his masterpiece The 5000 Year Leap, W. Cleon Skousen tells us of Eldridge Cleaver, the founder of the Black Panthers who later reformed his life and began to teach college-aged young adults about his own personal journey to that point. Skousen writes, “[Eldridge Cleaver] described the long and strenuous intellectual struggle with his Marxist atheism before he recognized its fraudulent fallacies. He frankly and patiently dialogued with university students still struggling with similar philosophical problems. He assured them, as [John] Locke had done, that a persistent pursuit of the truth would bring them to the threshold of reality, where the Creator could be recognized and thereafter have a place in their lives.”** This is the beginning of LL5.
Below is a visual aide mapping out the Life Levels up to this point in a stair step formation. Remember, the Main Motivations and Strengths on top of each step build upon each other as you move upward, while at the same time correcting the main Weakness of the previous Life Level. This should help you visualize how each Life Level relates to the others around it.
Below is a visual aide mapping out the Life Levels up to this point in a stair step formation. Remember, the Main Motivations and Strengths on top of each step build upon each other as you move upward, while at the same time correcting the main Weakness of the previous Life Level. This should help you visualize how each Life Level relates to the others around it.
Life Levels 5 and Above
Due to the subject matter that LLs 5 and above are naturally associated with, it would be best to explain the next Life Levels and everything about them on Peasant Faith. And because so many people cling to their own preconceived notions of what or who the infinite source of Truth is, it may not be appropriate to continue this list any farther for now. We first need a people who aren’t afraid to question current paradigms. We need people who welcome unfamiliar concepts with open arms. And we need people who firmly believe in things -- not out of emotion, selfishness, or popularity -- and are willing to honestly question everything because they know that if any belief doesn’t stand strong on its own after rigorous objective study, then they don’t want to believe it anyway -- and if it does, then they’ll be all the more confident about it throughout their lives. When there are enough people who view the world in an LL4 way, then we’ll be ready to explain LLs 5 and above.
As it is, there is a post entitled Showing the Unfamiliar Path that explains LLs 0 through 10, as well as a lot of important information and principles that specifically apply to us here at PeasantWatch. While this is a wonderful post written by Dark Knight, I only suggest you read it if you really honestly see yourself operating in LL4 ways on a daily basis. There is a lot of precious information written there, and I wouldn’t want it discarded unfairly by anyone because it didn’t fit into their particular LL3 concept of what’s right or wrong. So if you would like to read it and you feel like you’re ready to, then go ahead and click the link above.
As it is, there is a post entitled Showing the Unfamiliar Path that explains LLs 0 through 10, as well as a lot of important information and principles that specifically apply to us here at PeasantWatch. While this is a wonderful post written by Dark Knight, I only suggest you read it if you really honestly see yourself operating in LL4 ways on a daily basis. There is a lot of precious information written there, and I wouldn’t want it discarded unfairly by anyone because it didn’t fit into their particular LL3 concept of what’s right or wrong. So if you would like to read it and you feel like you’re ready to, then go ahead and click the link above.
Conclusion
We can plainly see that as we turn our focus to the innermost motivations behind all of our thoughts and actions, and seek to improve those motivations, that improvement will ripple out to every area of our lives. Many people the world over try to do better in life, whether by learning a new skill, refining a skill they already have, being more productive, going to church to become more godly, or anything else. Those are all wonderful things that we should never stop doing. Yet despite all of our efforts, the world seems to just get worse! There’s more crime than ever before. Pollution is nearly everywhere. Families are torn apart daily. Starvation, sickness, and death strangle whole societies while many of those who have the power to stop them turn a self-inflicted blind eye. At best, even when we try with all our might to make this world better, we find ourselves on a sort of hamster wheel: always running, but going nowhere. This is because all of our efforts, as great as they are, have been contained within whatever Life Level we’ve each become accustomed to. The key, then, is to locate which Life Level follows the one you currently operate in, and then remember to think and do according to that next Life Level every day, every minute, and every waking moment. As long as you are honest with yourself and courageous in facing uncertainty, this will revolutionize your very nature, improve culture, and begin to change the whole world for the better.
Footnotes
*A very special thanks to DreamWorks Pictures. The reference to Shrek was done without permission, though in loving adoration of their film.
**Skousen, W. Cleon. The 5000 Year Leap. American Documents/PowerThink Publishing, 2009. Page 85.
Footnotes
*A very special thanks to DreamWorks Pictures. The reference to Shrek was done without permission, though in loving adoration of their film.
**Skousen, W. Cleon. The 5000 Year Leap. American Documents/PowerThink Publishing, 2009. Page 85.
