It’s so easy to get lost in the busy-ness of the world, of your life, isn’t it? Trying to avoid overwhelm and anxiety, sleeplessness and regret … just getting through the day.
Surviving ... all so the weekend will be your time to live. And then of course, if you are like I was, losing a big chunk of your weekend cos you’re dreading the return of Monday.
Now I knew life could be better. I did. I didn’t know what to do, but I wanted to find out.
I wanted to find the point of being human.
So, here’s the reason I started meditating, why I made some small but not insignificant changes in my life, and pretty much what I stand for now, and all what it might mean for you.
(Just so you know, the photo is what you get when you search for "Flow". Maybe it's about squeezing all the juice from life? Hmmmm... that would work!)
Here we go:
Do you remember an amazing moment in your life? You’ll be able to remember at least one, I’m sure, if not more.
It’s the thing that links us humans … these moments, these precious moments of Aliveness.
It matters not what you were doing, but that you were fully immersed in the task or the moment. Whether it was knitting or reading or kayaking down a river or sitting by a fire, you were captivated, rapt, fully involved, absorbed.
Sometimes, like me, you might have had a heightened sense of reality.Time might have slowed, intuition peaked, you might have known what was going to happen before it happened. There was zero doubt, just inspired action.
I had these moments in kayaking and being in the mountains but also cooking, hanging out with buddies, dancing on a hill top until dawn, at work (of all places) too … the key thing is that it’s not about WHAT you were doing, but HOW you were doing it.
Alive, fully alive … such a great way of living.
Many of us forget these moments. I didn’t. I wanted more of that, so much more, but had no idea of the how, no idea at all.
Psychologists are calling this Flow, and are trying to work out the how. People generally “fall” into it by mistake (I know I did) but with advanced brain scanning and bigger, better science they’re getting closer to this answer.
The amazing thing is that - the way I personally see it- this state of Flow can be switched on by experienced meditators at will, by choice.
True - and if anyonecan choose to have these moments ALL the time? You can too.
Everything I’m reading about Flow is replicable by getting good at the following:
Being present and super focussed in this precise moment in time.
That’s it.
That's it, in a nutshell, of course.
That seems to be the conclusion psychologists are coming to, too. That you can meditate to end stress and limitation, or you can meditate so you can be SO alive stress and limitation doesn’t exist.
To get this, you couldthrow yourself off a mountain top with a parachute attached, or if that doesn’t appeal, you can learn to be Alive no matter what you are doing.
You can have a state of Flow that is caused by something, or you can learn to choose for it regardless of where you are and what you are doing.
I’d rather be free to choose … then doing the dishes or looking after Bubs becomes a whole new world of fun.
Conclusions?
Don’t settle for less. Each and every moment of your life, no matter what it entails, can be so much more.
The answer lies not in what you do, but how you do it. Your attitude and your focus is key.
Flow is a skill. Your human brain can learn these states - in fact it takes a ton less energy to exist in these states and not only does enjoyment goes through the roof but effectiveness too.
Flow takes practice. The more you do it, the more you master it. Or maybe it masters you? (oooh!)
What do you think? Gives a whole new dimension to motivation for regularly sitting with your eyes closed, doesn’t it?
Go well! Arjuna
PS. Here’s the PS - there’s always one, isn’t there? -
I did a lot of searching for what would end stress and bring Flow and Aliveness to my life. Here’s an excellent guide on getting started with this. And it's free;