Sovereign #Hacks - Shifting from Thinking to Being
If you live in London you know the scene well.
I was driving to an appointment - cruising along, happy as Larry - when all of a sudden the traffic ground to a halt.
Getting from A to B is tricky enough in Hampstead Village, where the ancient streets are narrow and winding, and cars park on either side of the road.
But I’d forgotten it was trash collection day, and suddenly found myself boxed in by several huge, noisy dustcarts, as an army of bin men went laboriously from door to door.
Almost immediately, the clamour and craziness outside was mirrored by an inner turbulence as well - my body clenched up with reactive tension and an angry rant kicked off in the mind.
‘I can't believe this is happening!’
‘I have to get to this appointment!
‘Could these guys actually go any slower?’
‘Why does this always happen to me?’
This is a well-worn reactive pattern that I’ve learned to recognize. And from previous experience, I knew that if I engaged with the commentary, it would kick off a cycle of stress that could easily last all day. I needed to be skilful - to deal with the thoughts and feelings without getting sucked in by them.
Learning to notice these responses without engaging them - to identify without identifying with - is a total game changer.
Recognizing the reactive tension in my mind I took slow deep breaths - allowing the tension to arise, allowing it to be there, and then gradually breathing it out and letting it go.
Situations like these are so helpful because they illustrate the principle that we only ever feel our thinking; we do not feel the external situation - ever!
But this innocent misunderstanding turns out to be one of the main sources of stress, fear, and worry in our life. And the one thing this problem hinges on? Distraction.
You need real presence of mind to spot and work with these habits - you need traction in your mind not distraction.
But unfortunately, we’re now the most distracted humans in history.
An estimated $2.1Trillion is spent every year on different types of entertainment designed to grab our attention and keep our minds busy. We’re addicted to our phones and screens, and it's rarer than ever to take the time to rest our minds without stimulation.
A consequence is that most of the time we’re out of sync where we really are and what’s really happening. Our creativity and imagination are constantly captured by other people's creations.
How can we learn to reclaim our attention and navigate skilfully through life? How can we learn to shift from the relentless pursuit of stimulation and distraction to clarity and confidence instead?
The answer is simple - to shift from identifying with thoughts to an inner experience of peace, presence and possibility instead. In short - to shift from Knowing to Being.
Here’s a three step Sovereign #Hack to show you how. Use these diagnostic questions to reclaim your attention:
#1 Where am I?
At any given time there are a potentially infinite number of things to think about, relate to, and be affected by.
Posing the question ‘where am I?’ forces us to take stock of our attention and - more often than not - brings to light that we aren’t present at all.
Shift your attention into your body - your actual physical location - and observe the feelings and sensations without judgement.
#2 When am I?
Although you are physically present the mind can easily be caught up in the past and the future - and nowhere near ‘now’.
Are you projecting into an idea of the future - emotionally anticipating it with worry or expectation? Or are projecting into an idea of the past - emotionally carrying it with depression and regret?
Posing the question ‘when am I?’ brings us back into the here and now - and connects us to the transformative potential of the present moment. Focus on the breath, moment by moment, to ground yourself ‘where’ and ‘when’ you actually are.
#3 What am I?
Having arrived in the here and now two miraculous things come into view. You are alive and you are aware.
Posing the question ‘what am I?’ forces us to consider what our actual nature is. And when grounded in the here and now, the answer is: I am peace, presence and possibility.
Notice the calm and stillness that follows. As you rest your attention in this experience for a while, everything will sync up again.
When your body and mind are in sync, your perceptions, feelings and responses will be accurate and appropriate to the external situation.
Final thoughts
Thoughts are not the enemy. It’s our obsessive or unskillful attending to them that’s causing the frenzied thinking.
Remember, you can always drop out of this cycle of thinking into the space of Being.
Whenever you’re feeling stressed, or caught up in the noise in your head, let that be a cue for you to ask these questions.
You can also accompany this shift in psychology with a shift in energy. Take deep, slow breaths to aid this positive transition.
The only thing we really ever command is our attention. If you master it you can truly master your life.
To learn more, join me once a week for Sovereign Tea Time. For more information on how to sign up, click on the button below.