it's very different.
I've been looking at life a lot differently over the past couple of weeks.
Things are different now. It's as though something happened; something deliberate, yet not significant... and it sure is hard to articulate without sounding existential or self-obsessed. But basically, I realised somewhere along the line very recently: that we need to be very, very careful about the things that we put into our heads... and - to a lesser extent - what we output from them.
The more I think about it, the more I think that doing so is far, far more important than looking after our physical selves (and paying attention to the things that we put into our bodies) - and yes, it would be fun to go off on a tangent about how the two are intrinsically interrelated. For someone who pays an almost obsessive amount of attention to doing the right things by their body (especially dietary intake, from an ethical / environmental / nutritional / kinetic point of view), so too must it be the same with our minds.
We live in a society where we eat because we are bored. We eat far and away to excess, where 'the average westernized person eats about twice as much food as they need in any given day'. (to paraphrase one keynote nutritionist / yogi / chef ... I can't remember who). But in the same way, our society is nothing if not saturated - completely and unutterably overstimulated - with the product of the thoughts of others. We need to feed our minds astutely, and above all else moderately, if we are to have them grow and flourish.
My newfound logic (and I make no claim that it's an earth-shatteringly new theorem) has nothing to do with spiritual roots, although one could very easily be forgiven for thinking so (especially given my fascination with eastern religion and philosophy... I mean seriously, have you met me? :p ). Rather, this is a mind shift from an entirely physiological point of view. I don't even want to say "mindfulness", (not only becuase I hate how that word has recently become such a buzz word for the new-age and medical community, but also because I think even 'mindfulness' has the incorrect connotation of spiritual self-improvement. Again, 'physiological' seems to fit best: a concerted focus on health, perhaps we might call it mental health, but from a very new/different perspective, at least for me.
Much of this comes from a fantastic TED talk which I saw recently by Ran Gavrielli . While much of the content is different, I think that he makes and excellent point that we are ultimately on this planet for an incredibly finite length of time, and the most important decisions in our lives are not going to be based upon the calculated equations that we learned in school, but upon the nature of character which we've come to develop from the ways that we treat ourselves, the ways that we respect, love, and reason.
Perhaps it's simply a case of finally taking in all of those things that the really wise teachers in my life (not just the regular ones, but the really unforgettable ones - like Rob Vincs, Richard Perry, Tamblyn Lord and others) have been saying for years now. Not to mention the really great lessens of self that we learn in the demoscene from conversations with guys like Sir Garagetruck and Igor^kooi and Mitch^Slaughterhouse.
Whatever the influences, the result has been subtle, but profound.
Making this change feels like the 'missing piece of the puzzle' in my life, on so many levels... and I feel like a better human for it. No longer are we dealing with the outer layers - the symptoms of overstimulated society that runs us down into so much self-doubting, apathy, and tiredness... but now we are dealing with something more. The inner sheaths. What's underneath.
Practically, I'm talking about the little things. For example, opting for less stimulation from the senses - primarily the eyes, because they are so damn good at sending signals direct to our brains, aren't they? For example, do we really need to be checking Facebook 20 times a day? Do we really want all of those external influences and agendas and opinions going straight into our heads? NSA issues aside, there's a far greater thing than data worth preserving: the space inside our own heads.
But it's more than just screens and vision that has my focus. Another example - I am listening to a lot more music than I ever have in years, and I am also listening to a lot more ambient soundscapes than I have in a long time. This will sound weird, but sometimes I'll throw in earphones (of which I am rediscovering the value of always carrying a set), and simply listen to a brown or pink or white noise, on low volume. Not because I want to listen to anything, but because I don't want to listen to what others do. Only in the chaos of noise can I think most clearly.
I'm going to bed considerably earlier. When it's enjoyable, I'm walking that little bit more slowly.
I hope I don't sound righteous at all. I don't feel righteous. It feels like I am looking after myself, and I'm doing this by creating space for myself. Mental space. Like all lifestyle changes, it'll take some discipline to get the most out of it... but so far, I've experimented with small changes... and it feels really good.
Improve the man, not the exterior.
Things are different now. It's as though something happened; something deliberate, yet not significant... and it sure is hard to articulate without sounding existential or self-obsessed. But basically, I realised somewhere along the line very recently: that we need to be very, very careful about the things that we put into our heads... and - to a lesser extent - what we output from them.
The more I think about it, the more I think that doing so is far, far more important than looking after our physical selves (and paying attention to the things that we put into our bodies) - and yes, it would be fun to go off on a tangent about how the two are intrinsically interrelated. For someone who pays an almost obsessive amount of attention to doing the right things by their body (especially dietary intake, from an ethical / environmental / nutritional / kinetic point of view), so too must it be the same with our minds.
We live in a society where we eat because we are bored. We eat far and away to excess, where 'the average westernized person eats about twice as much food as they need in any given day'. (to paraphrase one keynote nutritionist / yogi / chef ... I can't remember who). But in the same way, our society is nothing if not saturated - completely and unutterably overstimulated - with the product of the thoughts of others. We need to feed our minds astutely, and above all else moderately, if we are to have them grow and flourish.
My newfound logic (and I make no claim that it's an earth-shatteringly new theorem) has nothing to do with spiritual roots, although one could very easily be forgiven for thinking so (especially given my fascination with eastern religion and philosophy... I mean seriously, have you met me? :p ). Rather, this is a mind shift from an entirely physiological point of view. I don't even want to say "mindfulness", (not only becuase I hate how that word has recently become such a buzz word for the new-age and medical community, but also because I think even 'mindfulness' has the incorrect connotation of spiritual self-improvement. Again, 'physiological' seems to fit best: a concerted focus on health, perhaps we might call it mental health, but from a very new/different perspective, at least for me.
Much of this comes from a fantastic TED talk which I saw recently by Ran Gavrielli . While much of the content is different, I think that he makes and excellent point that we are ultimately on this planet for an incredibly finite length of time, and the most important decisions in our lives are not going to be based upon the calculated equations that we learned in school, but upon the nature of character which we've come to develop from the ways that we treat ourselves, the ways that we respect, love, and reason.
Click to viewPerhaps it's simply a case of finally taking in all of those things that the really wise teachers in my life (not just the regular ones, but the really unforgettable ones - like Rob Vincs, Richard Perry, Tamblyn Lord and others) have been saying for years now. Not to mention the really great lessens of self that we learn in the demoscene from conversations with guys like Sir Garagetruck and Igor^kooi and Mitch^Slaughterhouse.
Whatever the influences, the result has been subtle, but profound.
Making this change feels like the 'missing piece of the puzzle' in my life, on so many levels... and I feel like a better human for it. No longer are we dealing with the outer layers - the symptoms of overstimulated society that runs us down into so much self-doubting, apathy, and tiredness... but now we are dealing with something more. The inner sheaths. What's underneath.
Practically, I'm talking about the little things. For example, opting for less stimulation from the senses - primarily the eyes, because they are so damn good at sending signals direct to our brains, aren't they? For example, do we really need to be checking Facebook 20 times a day? Do we really want all of those external influences and agendas and opinions going straight into our heads? NSA issues aside, there's a far greater thing than data worth preserving: the space inside our own heads.
But it's more than just screens and vision that has my focus. Another example - I am listening to a lot more music than I ever have in years, and I am also listening to a lot more ambient soundscapes than I have in a long time. This will sound weird, but sometimes I'll throw in earphones (of which I am rediscovering the value of always carrying a set), and simply listen to a brown or pink or white noise, on low volume. Not because I want to listen to anything, but because I don't want to listen to what others do. Only in the chaos of noise can I think most clearly.
I'm going to bed considerably earlier. When it's enjoyable, I'm walking that little bit more slowly.
I hope I don't sound righteous at all. I don't feel righteous. It feels like I am looking after myself, and I'm doing this by creating space for myself. Mental space. Like all lifestyle changes, it'll take some discipline to get the most out of it... but so far, I've experimented with small changes... and it feels really good.
Improve the man, not the exterior.