In which Wolf discusses the opposite of our normal state of being: mindlessness. Watch this episode on YouTube here: https://youtu.be/J-b0eTLMhyk
When you’re watching an anime and you see a character focusing their “chi” or “ki” energy just before launching a fireball… what exactly are they doing? Obviously, that’s fantasy, but is there anything that happens in your own mind that is comparable? Is it possible that you have some sort of latent power that you could learn to use?
Well, yes there is, and it’s called “mindfulness.” The fact is, most of us go through most of our lives awake, but not really present. Our minds are elsewhere and our bodies do stuff and time ticks by, and before we know it the day is gone and we wonder where it went. This state of unawareness is the opposite of mindfulness: mindlessness. Most people behave mindlessly most of the time.
I’m going to give you some tips to start to be able to distinguish mindfulness from mindlessness in your daily life. Once you learn to start becoming mindful at will, you’ll realize that the additional focus can really make a difference in what you accomplish. It actually feels a bit like a super power!
Anyone can become mindful at any time: you just decide to. It really does feel like flipping on a light switch. You decide to become aware of where you are, what you’re doing, and be present with it. The other distracting thoughts you were involved with a moment ago are set aside, and you’re just here, now. But unlike a light switch, which stays where you leave it, mindfulness is a switch that automatically turns itself off. And what’s stranger is that it turns itself off without you noticing. You could say to yourself, “I’m going to stay mindful for 5 minutes, or 1 minute, or even 30 seconds.” Until you practice this a fair amount, you’ll discover that your mind quickly goes wandering without you even noticing. A few seconds, or minutes, later you’ll think, “What was I doing? Oh, yeah, being mindful!” And you flip the switch on again.
When someone else is talking to you, you can choose to not only listen, but listen mindfully. When you walk, you can not just take steps, but be present with your walking. This is a simple form of everyday meditation, and once you start doing it, it becomes a bit of a game: how long can I stay mindful in one go, and how long will it be before I notice that I’ve gone mindless again?
One particular situation I like to use mindfulness is when I’m lifting at the gym. If I’m being mindless, letting my thoughts wander, texting with someone or listening to a podcast, then I find that the overall intensity of my workout goes down. Aside from shielding myself from various distractions, the one technique I use that makes the most difference feels a lot like that anime chi ball. Just before I start a lift, I gather my consciousness and focus on the lift itself and the effort I’m about to make to lift the weight. I actually feel the muscles I’m about to use. As I start the reps, I work to maintain my focus on every rep, staying present, staying mindful, breathing and feeling that mind-body connection, finally putting down the weight with the same mindfulness with which I picked it up.
When I do this successfully, I often find that the intensity of the sets I do in this state are way more intense, but they actually feel easier!
I’ve worked at mindfulness in various ways much of my life. And it’s still humbling how often I recognize that I’ve let myself slip back into mindlessness. But having the option to remember to become mindful; to bring maximum focus to any task, is really a nice power to have.
Have you ever practiced mindfulness, and if so, what have you learned about yourself as a result? Let me know in the comments, and if you find this valuable give this video a like or share; it helps the algorithm learn who else will like it too. See you tomorrow!