It’s worth the effort, because being awake means we’re not missing life as we walk through it. Being awake means we’re conscious of what’s going on inside us, as it happens, and so can make more conscious choices rather than acting on our impulses all the time.
~ Leo Babauta from, http://zenhabits.net/toolset/
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The journey begins with a single step, a wise man said, and for me that first step is simple:
Admit I don’t know.
Learning begins by emptying your cup, so that you can fill it with what you find. Emptying your cup means getting rid of pre-set opinions.
~ Leo Babauta from, http://zenhabits.net/aol/
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It’s been a long journey, but I’ve enjoyed it. I struggled with feeling bad about my body, feeling insecure about myself, doubting my abilities to make it without an employer, doubting myself as a writer, not believing I had discipline or the ability to change my habits.
And all this led to other problems: I sought happiness and pleasure in food, beer, shopping, distraction, TV. I procrastinated, I let my health get bad, I smoked, I was deeply in debt, unhappy with my work, never exercised, and ate lots of junk food.
~ Leo Babauta from, http://zenhabits.net/little-book/
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The book is a short, and completely free, download.
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And while many might say, “Sure, you can say that now that you’ve reached a certain level of success,” I think that’s wrong. Many people who achieve success don’t find contentment, and are always driven to want more, and are unhappy with themselves. Many people who are poor or don’t have a “successful” career have also found contentment. And what’s more, I think finding contentment has actually driven any success that I’ve found — it helped me get out of debt, it helped me change my habits, it has made me a better husband, father, friend and collaborator, perhaps even a better writer.
~ Leo Babauta from, http://zenhabits.net/contentment/
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Many people are super busy, and distracted, because busy-ness and distraction feels productive, and isn’t boring.
Smokers don’t want to quit smoking, because it helps them deal with stress.
What do all these people have in common?
They rely on crutches.
~ Leo Babauta from, http://zenhabits.net/crutch/
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The examples can go on forever, but the principle becomes clear: when there’s an obstacle, don’t go around it. Don’t run from it. Go into it. Work with it. Explore it. Learn how to be with it and deal with it, and you’ll have a skill for life.
And what’s more: you will no longer be limited by obstacles in your path.
~ Leo Babauta from, http://zenhabits.net/obstacle/
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They are two different things, and yet, what if we could have the vacation mind while working? We’d have to toss out the lazing around and the margaritas, but the mindset could be the same. The result would be a saner way of living, where we aren’t “working for the weekend” or looking forward to the little vacation time we have, but instead are happier throughout the week.
~ Leo Babauta from, http://zenhabits.net/zenwork/
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(Part 4 of 72 in series, My Journey)
When we are unaware of our thoughts and urges, which arise in the back of our mind mostly unnoticed, they have a power over us. We are unable to change if these unbidden thoughts control us. But when we learn to observe them, we can then release their power over us.
Meditation is practice for observing those thoughts, for being more mindful of them throughout the day.
~ Leo Babauta from, http://zenhabits.net/fundameditate/
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Meditation is literally the easiest thing you can add to your life — 5 minutes, 2 minutes, even 60 seconds will do you good. As I wrote elsewhere:
If you were handed a large bucket of sloshing and disturbed water and told to calm the water, you should simply set the bucket down and wait for the water to calm. You would definitely NOT shake the bucket in an attempt to convince the water to calm down.
Driving, texting, walking, rushing, typing, watching TV, playing games, talking, frenzied eating. Set the bucket down for a few minutes.
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1. A calm morning ritual
~ Leo Babauta from, http://zenhabits.net/calm/
2. Learn to watch your response
3. Don’t take things personally
4. Be grateful
5. Create stress coping habits
6. Single-task
7. Reduce noise
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