The Power of Words
Starting Each Day With A Little Thinking...Conscious
It’s amazing to me how the mind works. Without our conscious knowledge it’s continually scanning everything around us, formulating a huge number of alternatives, and somehow surfacing just the right course of action for the moment. Again, it does this without any conscious guidance from us. The even more amazing thing is how adaptable it is. While the normal behavior is to go on “auto pilot”, we each possess the ability to focus this powerful tool via the simple act of conscious thought. As soon as we provide the seed, the mind grows the basic thought in to an amazing set of steps that we can — and should! — take. One simple seed thought allows us to immediately refocus.
The key to tapping to potential of our mind is two-fold. First, there’s the issue of consciousness. Without the effort to explicitly use the mind, you’ll never be able to tap it’s immense potential. Ironically, the second key is “nothingness”. You see the mind’s normal day-to-day mode is to be cycling through all of those stimuli to formulate a course of action. It modifies that basic course, when you plant a seed. It jumps at the opportunity to take on this new challenge. It likes doing this. It’s good at it. However, to really tap the potential that is there, we have to turn off this normal mode. We have to get to the place where we stop thinking. When we do, the mind becomes freed of the ordinary day-to-day burdens. It’s free to go where it wants not where you want it to go. It’s at these times that the mind is able to organize all that you have put in to the memory banks. To access all of the experiences that you have had. It’s at this time that it is able to pull together connections that we never even imagined existed. It’s why you wake up in the middle of the night with a brilliant idea that’s crystal clear. It’s why this same idea disappears instantaneously when you try and think about it.
While I don’t know how the mind does what it does, I do know that until you are able to get it to ignore everything it won’t be free to find it’s way to the insights that are hiding within. That’s why it’s so important to take time to rest and relax. To clear your mind and let it tell you what’s next versus you telling it what’s next.
With that in mind:
Isn’t it about time you told your mind to do nothing for a few moments?
As always, thanks for the time.
Tradition
Often I focus on what needs to change. How we can learn, grow, and live more fully. As with anything, however, nothing is absolute. There are times when we need to forgo our pursuit of knowledge. There are times when we need to on enjoy life. There are times when we need to focus on tradition.
Each of us has recurring traditions that bring a smile to our face. It could be the Thanksgiving dinner, the Easter Holiday, the meeting of your buddies at the bar to start the football season, the week at the family cabin spent fishing, the reading of “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” on Christmas Eve, or some other event. Regardless of the specifics, these experiences are the ones that we look forward to, that we draw energy from, and that we remember long after the occasion.
As we too often get caught up in the day to day and forget about the importance of growth, there is the similar risk that we get too caught up in the focus on growth and forget to enjoy. That would be a mistake.
With that in mind:
What’s your favorite tradition?
As always, thanks for the time.
Mulligan
In golf there’s the concept of a mulligan. While there’s lots of variants, the basic are (i) you hit a bad shot and (ii) you forget about it and hit another ball. Now the purists out there will point out that you are NOT playing golf if you do this. Golf’s about honor, the rules, respecting the game, playing fairly, etc. I get it. If you’re in a competitive situation where you are playing an “official” match then mulligans are a definite no-no. However, what if you’re just out there to enjoy yourself? Why wouldn’t you hit another ball if it brought you enjoyment? Further, why would you continue to fixate on the bad shot you just made? It’s well known that the mind becomes what it sees. Why let the failure be the picture that’s influencing the mind? By the way, apologies to all my golfing purist friends. I’m sure they’ll give me a lecture on how I’m putting the integrity of the game at risk by even uttering the above blasphemy. And, in their defense, if they get more pleasure out of not taking a mulligan, so be it!
Life’s a bit the same. Sure things didn’t go right yesterday, you made some mistakes, and you’re worried that you frittered away time and dollars. So, hit a mulligan! You can’t change the past, but you can focus on what you want to achieve and take a new shot. The only thing keeping you from doing so is you.
With that in mind:
Is it time you took a mulligan?
As always, thanks for the time.
Leap
It’s interesting how certain words immediately trigger a flurry of thoughts and emotions. Leap is one such word. The connotations associated with leap include: a big effort, a chasm to be crossed, danger, fearlessness, activity. It’s a word that is both simultaneously exciting and scary. And one that most of us wish we could use much more often in regards to our actions.
All too often we hesitate when the opportunity to leap presents itself. We’re afraid that making that jump and stepping out of our comfort zone will lead to some sort of failure. Really? We’re no longer walking amongst the saber tooths and wooly mammoths. We’ve moved in to a world where we are blessed with abundances that our ancestors only two generations ago could never imagine: multiple flat screens, giant homes, the internet, abundant food, and the list goes on and on.
The irony is that the larger safety net is actually holding us back from taking the leap that the inner voice is encouraging. And the tragedy is that when you look back in twenty years it’ll be that “what if only” thought that drives you crazy. Not the metaphorical skinned knee or twisted ankle you might get from taking the leap.
With that in mind:
Why aren’t you making the leap?
As always, thanks for the time.
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