Most of us seem to be running a race; a race towards “success”, or the illusion of it anyway. The accumulation of material possessions is high on the list of priorities for many. People are expected to work longer & harder to achieve more than our neighbour has and, in a shorter period of time than they have. This race has mentally left most of us running non-stop, and in turn, feeling overwhelmed.
Are we Running a Race or are we Living a Life?
There are two major differences between real life and a race. One: Races come and go with numerous finish lines and numerous opportunities to cross that finish line. Whereas real life only happens once, with only one finish line. Two: Races have a path that is predetermined and predictable, whereas real life doesn’t move in a straight line, nor is the direction predictable. Real life, requires pit stops just like race cars do. The difference being, in Formula 1, pit stops put you behind in time, where as in life, pit stops can place you ahead of the game.
Because life’s path is unpredictable, all of us need to stop running once in a while, stand tall, and look around to see where we’re going, so that we can course correct if needed. Not doing so could lead to waking up one day and realizing we are nowhere we intended to be. We need to evaluate how much gas we have left in the tank so that we know whether to refill it or whether to change our destination, avoiding a mental breakdown. Most of all, we need to stop once in a while so that we may remind ourselves why we are running this race in the first place. This is best achieved by “doing nothing”.
What does that even mean?
So how do we do nothing, what is involved and what happens? Actually doing “nothing” is not as easy as it sounds. Try it. Try sitting down and actually do nothing for 5 minutes. No TV, no reading, no internet, no phone calls ... nothing. For ages, people have called this meditation and one of the most popular tricks is to try to focus simply on your breathe. We however, are not here to discuss meditation. What we mean by “doing nothing” in this context, is to simply stop running that race. What we mean is, to get away from the things that cause us stress, relax and enjoy life, whatever that means to you. Sit and watch a movie, go for a walk, read a book, watch the sunset, etc. with only three rules to abide by:
- Do them alone. Do not involve any body else. This exercise awakens your inner voice and we do not want anyone else to influence or distort that inner voice.
- Do anything that is not linked to your career, money, goals, or predicaments you are facing at the moment. As an example, driving your car around counts, as long as it’s not to or from work. Watching a movie works, as long as you are not stressing about how you will pay for your new TV. The point is, this activity should not remind you of anything that causes stress.
- Do it for a minimum of 30 minutes, even if it’s at the end of your day.
What actually happens?
In life, we are constantly faced with road blocks or tricky situations we are supposed to overcome. We are looking for answers to questions. Whether it is wondering how to manage a conflict at work, or getting everything done on time, or losing those pounds you’ve been trying to lose for ages, these questions add up and start weighing on our subconscious. And the longer they are left unanswered, the heavier that weight feels. The truth is, the harder we consciously focus on answering them, the longer it takes for the right answer to appear. We can always force answers to our questions, but we want to make sure that these answers are aligned with what is best for us. By “doing nothing” what we are doing is relieving the conscious part of our awareness from this pressure and letting the subconscious part of our awareness do the work.
Pick a card, any card
You see, we cannot tell our subconscious mind what to think. It’s subconscious and so out of our control and because of this, our subconscious mind is most aligned with what and who we are. It’s like it almost acts on behalf of our soul. So, while you are watching a movie, your subconscious mind is working away and thinking of a solution. Imagine all the little things going on in your life as playing cards. Your job is one card, your bill payments are another, the fight you just had with your spouse is yet another, and so on. While you’re consciously focused on stressing about an issue, you are only able to focus on that one card at a time, not knowing what the other cards in your hand are. Remember that we are one being, and so every card, however different, is linked to all the other cards. What ultimately happens when you “do nothing” is, you allow all the cards to fall to the ground so your subconscious mind can see all of them. Now, you can see the whole picture and so now you can make a decision that is best for your life on the whole and long term.
The beauty is, your subconscious mind does this on its own. The tragedy is, it is constantly trying to do so, but we don’t allow it to, because we force ourselves to focus on that one card that is nagging us at any given moment of the day.
The bottom line
Doing nothing is what helps us answer questions in life and helps us appreciate why it is we work so hard ... so make it a regular practice. Do nothing at least once a day. Consider it your form of prayer or meditation. Want to know how to address an issue you have with your partner on your next date? Stop thinking about it and it will come to you maybe while you’re walking your dog. Want to know how you rid yourself of the anger you feel towards your boss? Stop thinking about it and watch a movie that makes you laugh. Perhaps just the fact that your spirits are lifted will make you not focus on the anger and help you realize how lucky you are to even have a job. Want to stop wondering why your’e working so hard? Stop thinking about it and read a book. Your subconscious will tell you that you work so hard so that you can afford paying rent, and the chair that you sit on while you enjoy reading this book. These are just examples and although may not pertain to you, the practice of doing nothing will work for you, in a way that is meant just for you.
The point is, doing nothing results in us enjoying the gifts of life, and us making the right decisions, which is really doing everything we ever want to do. Doing Nothing is Doing Everything!
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