Don’t be a drone. {And I’m not talking airplanes.}

If you live a repetitive life, it gets pretty easy to tune out altogether. Don't be a drone! Tune in to your life to get more out of your day.I was getting on the elevator this morning at work and as I was about to glaze over into my own senseless mind chatter, the man next to me started making small talk. He was talking to me in the elevator; Aren’t people usually awkwardly silent in those things?

This gentle man was holding a bouquet of flowers and commenting about how they were blooming so beautifully in his garden, that he wanted to bring some in for his secretary.  Seriously? How nice is that, I thought.  I was so grateful to him for waking me up in that moment.

I know that the repetitive motions of my daily life make me tune out.  The ease of life’s daily tasks can make it simple to go on auto-pilot day in and day out like a drone.  But does that mean I am really living?  

There are some daily tasks that I know I automatically just tune out of. Driving for one: sometimes I don’t know how I got from one place to the other.  You too?  Getting ready for work in the morning is another: Shower, do hair, apply makeup, eat breakfast, find keys, pack gym clothes, fly out the door.  Lather, rinse, repeat.

What’s scary is that if we live that auto-pilot-repetitive-life, it gets pretty easy to tune out altogether.  Just going through the motions, letting only emergencies or surprises break us out of the spell of monotony.

We end up living life mostly in head space rather than interacting with others.  The conversations become one sided and we get lost in the solitaire way of viewing things which can be very isolating.

Your life is happening, don’t miss it.

I know it’s not realistic to always! be! present!  We would have a mini breakdown experiencing every little detail of everyday, but there is a tipping point in living; what if we woke up even half way?

What if we interrupted the mind chatter, those same thoughts that lead to the same result, and really dug in to what was happening in the moment, even just half of the time.  How would that change things?

Here are 3 easy ways to tune in:

  • Start each day with a list of intentions: how you want to feel + what you want to accomplish
  • Set an alarm on your phone to go off during the day and take 5 minutes to think about what your doing + where you’re headed.
  • Meditate.  The more you practice, the more you naturally tune in.

Maybe it would put the spotlight on what we are trying to avoid, aspects of our lives that need to change.  Afterall, that’s generally why we tune out.  And addressing what needs to change can be scary.  But what if tackling those things meant a better way of life?  What if it made us happier and gave us the opportunity to actually truly enjoy our life?

 

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