DOING NOTHING

It’s Monday once again, as I go along Facebook statuses, one status has caught my attention. Doing nothing can be very wise. After reading my friend’s (Sir Henry Banayat) status, I end up writing now. I think it’s fair to say that sitting down and just letting your mind run free can be considered a form of relaxation. Your mind is completely different when you’re in a relaxed mode than it is when you are in the middle of working your butt off. I get some of the most important things I can think of done when I’m not doing anything. Obviously it’s all intellectual, but it really helps me for later on as it gives me a chance to think things through and see something for what it really us. Or, what it could be.

The brain tends to choose the easiest path by default; it is easy to fall into the trap of doing the ‘easy’ stuff all the time. However, as they say, the easiest path is rarely the best one. I usually place a little 'seed' in my head the night before about what I want to do the next morning, so when I wake up ready to go on that particular task - this can have either a positive, negative or unexpected result. Unluckily, I have not been able to force myself to tackle my list.  It never occurred to me to do something I like to do or that's easy.  I was determined to get my list done no matter what - only I didn't.  I didn't end up doing anything, and doing things I like or that are easy, would have been so much better. I usually do the task that brings me the most joy first. However, the fact is, whether I realize it or not, what I am really feeling isn’t really the lack of motivation to do every possible kind of work. It’s just a lack of motivation to do the work that I have originally planned for the day. I find that, once I am in the flow of getting things done, everything after that becomes easier. It's surprising how much you can get done in a day if you just throw out a plan that isn't working and start fresh. Sometimes though, I just let myself sit and not do anything when I don't feel like doing anything, or go out for a walk, watch TV, read a book, and let it be. I find that when I really feel resistance to doing something, what seems to work is, to genuinely give myself permission not to do it (which is harder than it sounds). The longer you keep trying to force yourself to do something the more resistance you feel and the more time you waste. As often as not, after a while I feel a lot better in general and the task suddenly seems do-able. It's a bit like agreeing with someone who is criticizing you - it shuts them up immediately; whereas if you argue back and insist on your point of view you just prolong the argument and get nowhere. It goes against logic, but it really does work. Sometimes the best thing to do is nothing until your emotions are under control and your logical thinking is in tact. It has happened to me. So whenever an emotion arises and when there’s an argument, I tend to shy away and not to say anything anymore.

There are few of the most important things I accomplish when I sit around doing nothing. It would have to be relaxing, peace, tranquility, calmness and enjoyment.

No matter what line of work we are in, there’s always something we’ve enjoyed doing every time. Some specific kind of task that comes easy to us and we don’t need to put much effort into it to produce great results. We all need to enjoy some rest and relaxation every once in a while. Some of us don’t consider blogging to be work and I see it as more of a hobby, but that doesn’t mean it can’t cause stress. The great thing about taking an hour or two (or maybe just the day) off is that you will more than likely be in a great mood to get some work done. And I for me, I enjoy taking my time to blog. It serves as my inspiration to tackle what is next and that enjoys me. A relaxed mind is the best kind of mind to have. You never know what you will come up with if you’re just in your comfort zone letting your mind roam free.

Relaxation can really open your mind up to a lot of emotions. The one emotion that it brings me, and I’m sure you can say the same for yourself too, is happiness. I think happy bloggers are the best bloggers, and you can really be surprised what you can think of when you are just thinking positively. I consider thinking as not really doing anything because your best thoughts come from your relaxed mind. When you’re not doing anything you’re relaxing, hence a clearer mind, and of course – good ideas to be used in my blog and my everyday tasks. 

I find that the greatest ideas come when I am out doing just normal, everyday Filipino things; I just want to wind down with a good video game on my phone, texting my girlfriend and friends,  recharge my batteries and just have a bit of fun.  Sometimes we really d need a break. Too much of everything is bad for us. 

 -dyoyzee-