#73 Why am I rushing?

ByLukas
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Journaling question of the day: Why am I rushing?

Out of habit and automaticity – mindlessness caused by endless repetition?

Out of discomfort – I want to get out of this situation as soon as possible?

Out of impatience – I expect whatever comes next to be more interesting or riveting?

What would happen if I don’t rush this?

By interrupting the automaticity and slowing down, will I reopen my senses and discover new nuances?

By not rushing away from discomfort, will I discover everything is not as bad as I feared it would be?

By resisting impatience, can I become fascinated with whatever is happening right here, right now?

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    #78 Unconscious categorization

    ByLukas

    Within a split second, I’ve categorized an object as an apple. Now I don’t pay attention to the dimensions, color, smell, and texture anymore.

    Within a split second, I’ve categorized an emotion as anger, fear, frustration, love. So I don’t pay attention to the physiological changes in my body anymore.

    I’m always categorizing – but I didn’t consciously create the categories.

    But what if I’m categorizing inaccurately?

    Can I interrupt instant categorization, governed by language, habits, patterns, past experience?

    Can I re-open my senses and see, smell, touch, hear, feel again?

    Can I start sensing nuances between the objects I behold?

    Can I discern nuances between the feelings I feel?

    Mindfulness, journaling, meditation, and learning languages can help with more conscious categorization.

    Because what if the anger I feel is nothing but fear?

    What if the fear I feel is nothing but frustration?

    What if the frustration I feel is nothing but unrequited love?

    And what if the love I feel is nothing but infatuation?

  • |

    #289 You don’t even know half of what’s possible

    ByLukas

    You don’t need to know how the story will end to start it.

    In fact, if you think you know how it’ll end, you close yourself off from the possibility of it ending even better than you ever thought possible.

    So start without fear. Start with an open mind.

    Then keep going without fear. Keep going with an open mind.

    Because you don’t even know half of what’s truly possible.

    Isn’t that a nice way to start your day?

  • #2 Why I write

    ByLukas

    If writing and creating every day were as vital to my survival as drinking water, ingesting food, and bonding… What would life look like?

    Biologically, all behavior is driven by pain, pleasure, and the triggers and habits that come from repeated reaction to those stimuli.

    So I eat because I want to escape the pain of hunger – or heartbreak, sadness, and frustration.

    I connect with others because I’m neurologically hardwired to feel pleasure when bonding… and pain and deprivation when I’m abandoned.

    Similarly, I write because I want to escape the frustration of not being able to put into words an insight.

    I also write because I enjoy the rush resulting from finding the words that convey what I want to say.

    I write because I love the tingling in my back and neck when I combine those words into sentences with just the right rhythm, just the right cadence capturing the meaning, context, emotion of what I want to say…

    I write because writing wrests the essence from the whirlwind of thoughts and emotions racing through my mind and body.

    I write because when when I write, I feel that at last, I can make sense of life.

    And the more meaning I find, the more likely I am to write.

  • | |

    #282 You can write every day

    ByLukas

    If you truly believe you can write every day – not that it is generally possible to write every day, but that YOU can write every day – you would be doing it already.

    So if you’re not, ask yourself:

    Do you believe YOU can write every day?

    If not, why not?

    Is it physically impossible for you to write something every day? A page, a paragraph, a sentence… a word?

    Deep down, you know the answer to that question.

    And now we’ve established you can write every day; what other excuses come up?

    That the work won’t be good?

    That the words won’t capture what you want to say?

    That you’ll disappoint others?

    That you’ll disappoint yourself?

    Put words to your fears, then ask yourself: what would happen if they all came true?

    Would that stop you from writing? Or would it liberate you?

    Would you maybe be just fine?

    What would it be like to have overcome your fears and still be writing anyway?

    Only one way to find out…

    Write. Every. Day.

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    #255 The method to your madness

    ByLukas

    Most people don’t see why you’re taking time out of your busy day to sit down and write until the book you were working on every day lies in front of them.

    They don’t see why you run every day and eat clean until you set a personal best at the next marathon.

    They don’t see the new product you’re working on until it’s developed so far that it helps them achieve their goals.

    You’re the only one who sees the method to your madness.

    And that’s fine.

    Because you probably don’t see the method to their madness either.

2 Comments

  1. Wow! I am 63yr old and wish I would have been contemplating these 3 questions earlier in my life! How would I be different today? And how would my responses to life’s circumstances have modeled a new way to think for my children? I can’t change the past, but I can make better choices going forward! And I intend to do it very intentionally! Thank you!!

    Reply

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