The Joy of Doing Nothing

Doing nothing is apparently very hard.

It sounds ridiculous, right? Usually something is hard because it's exhausting, because it demands our full attention and energy. Doing nothing sounds like the opposite of that.

But even for just five minutes, all I could think of was what I could have done with that time. I could read, I could do chores, I could start an episode, or go to bed sooner.

As if five minutes were the "make or break" of my day, stopping the productivity train seemed wasteful and illogical.

I (and probably most of you), have an urge to do something, to treat time as a resource that must be spend wisely, because how can we not? It's not like we're immortal, and it's not like life is too easy that we can just lay back and rest.

Even when we are not productive, like doom scrolling or watching tv, we feel guilty, so we can't shake that urge or sense of obligation to utilize our time well. That guilt weighs on us like Sisophysus's boulder until we're crushed by it, going to sleep exhausted so we can repeat the process tomorrow.

Another difficulty was to quite my mind. I tried focusing on my breath, on my body, visualizing my thoughts pass by like clouds in the sky, nothing worked.

Even Meditation was something I tried "doing right", to think of nothing, to focus on my breathing or body.

I realized that what bothered me, aside from having a mind that refuses to shut up, is that this kind of meditation, with it's countless rules on how you should do it well, was draining rather than renewing my energy.

Paradoxically, I replaced productivity guilt with meditation guilt.

However, there's a good ending to the story. After a year of experimentation, I finally found the meditation (if we can call it that) that works for me - a do nothing meditation.

As the name suggest, I don't "try" to do anything, which includes trying to quite my mind or maintaining a posture.

Meditation shouldn't feel forced or exhausting. The only rule is that I can't physically do stuff, like working or doing chores, but other than that anything goes. It's okay to think, it's okay to lose focus, it's okay if I move a bit, it's okay to just "be" or let my mind wander.

And apparently, doing nothing for five minutes feels like forever in a good way.

The stress that clouded my mind evaporates, bringing clarity and calmness.

I get the most creative thoughts precisely because I don't try to suppress my mind, I let it run free without interruptions, without being stuck in the feeling that I "have to do something", whether being productive or trying to control my attention.

I get off the "hustle train" for five minutes a day, and yet it's the most productive and rejuvenating part of my day.

ask yourself

• When was the last time I felt truly refreshed? What was I doing?
• Do I have opportunities to relax during the day?
• How do I feel about doing literally nothing?
• What would happen if you take a whole day off for yourself?

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