Time for One’s Self

In the class that I teach at the University, Recovering Creativity, this week I took an informal poll and found that ALL of the students felt that they didn’t have enough time. Recalling my own student days, I could sympathize. I remember the all niters and racing across campus the next day to get assignments in on time, my addiction to coffee and then chocolate covered espresso beans, and the junk food diet that kept me alive. Older now though, and looking back, I also remember the procrastination goofing off with friends, hanging out in cafes, playing a lot of speed chess, catching a lot of live performance, writing songs, and partying (it’s all a blur today, but seemed important at the time). Things were fun, new, and exciting.

Today, as the pace of life around the world in modern cities continues to accelerate, it is very easy to lose focus and get caught up in narrow personal perspective which is easily influenced by others. We have demands of family, friends, personal ambition, and responsibilities and very easily lose track of time for ourselves. Demands and expectations get out of hand and sense of self takes the hit as things don’t turn out the way we expect. Many also get frustrated and find escape/release through television, video games, alcohol, etc.

There are other ways of being that are less neurotic. The logic is simple. Take care of yourself first. Learning to eat right, getting enough sleep, keeping hydrated, and knowing why you are doing what you do at as deep a level as possible are essential to health and happiness. For many people (again an informal survey), they do things as a result of external factors. In college for me, it was about getting a good job and pleasing my parents. For many today, it isn’t so much about the work as it is about job security and making more money. It has taken me a long time (20 years) to correct the habits that I learned in college.

The best start towards a more sustainable way of being is to try doing nothing. It was interesting that in class, people equated doing nothing to watching TV. Watching TV turns out to be worse than doing nothing. Studies have shown that your metabolism is higher doing nothing than watching TV. Furthermore, a lot of the images go straight to the right side of the brain (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Remotely-Controlled-television-damaging-lives/dp/0091902606).

What I mean by doing nothing is to really do nothing, as nothing as you can. Witness the thoughts that come up, the desires, the feelings and emotions, and develop an understanding of how your thoughts translate to your actions. It is also interesting to observe the “source” of these thoughts, feelings, and emotions. Develop a deeper understanding of who you are and why you do what you do. If you encounter obstacles in what you are trying to achieve, rather than escaping try developing a better understanding by going deeper into yourself. By staying present and working from a deeper place time becomes yours again. Time is always yours to spend. Indeed, that is the gift bestowed upon your being alive right here and right now.