Category: The Power Of Reflection

To be thoughtful, you have to give yourself space to think.

…And not just think your way through a hectic day.

I mean, space to actually think… space to let your mind filter and sift… space to let your subconscious mind chime in… space where you can finally stop the barrage of incoming stimuli and can take a look at what’s already within.

Without a space like this, it’s incredibly hard to be thoughtful… to think more than one step ahead… to zoom out from the microscope of the day and look at your life trajectories in a more strategic way… to process all of the bite sized information and form authentic opinions.

And to be thoughtful in a world filled with people who are “too busy” to think… or maybe “too busy” to figure out how to make space to think… or maybe too brainwashed or addicted to even recognize they don’t have time to genuinely think…

…Is precisely what I think, we need.

When driving, how much time do you spend looking in the rear view mirror?

…Maybe 1% of the time?

And how much time do you spend planning out your route in advance?

…Again, maybe 1% of the time it takes you to complete the actual drive?

I think these are good proportions to apply to driving forward your life as well.

I don’t think there’s ever a time we drive our car without looking in the rear view mirror or planning out our route in advance in some respect.

Just as I don’t think there should ever be a day when we drive forward our life without looking at our past or planning out our future route in some respect.

Of the 16 hours you spend awake driving your life forward (assuming eight hours of sleep), this means ~ 10 minutes each day should be spent reviewing the past and 10 minutes should be spent planning out the future (16 hours x 60 minutes = 960 total awake minutes x .01 = 9.6 minutes).

If you can remember to spent even just 5 minutes per day looking back and 5 minutes per day looking forward, I’d say your journey forward will remarkably improve.

…Probably in at least as much as the introduction of the rear view mirror and GPS remarkably improved driving cars.

Imagine that…

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P.s. Need help planning out your life’s route? My guide (now 30% off) can help. Details here.

The interesting thing about writing every day is that it makes you more keenly aware of how interesting or mundane your day-to-day thinking is.

When I don’t have something immediately saved in my mind to write about, I’ll rotate my computer chair 90 degrees, kick up my feet onto the adjacent couch, peer out the large window my dog uses as a TV screen, and let my mind wander for ideas.

It’s in those moments that I’ll notice something unique that springs forward or, on the other end of the spectrum, a mundanity that’s lingered for longer than its anticipated stay.

And it’s in those moments that I try and either capture those unique moments so as to better understand them (so I can keep moving my life in the direction of those ideas) or adjust my life strategy so as to flush out those redundant, dull thoughts and pump in new, raw experiences for my mind to freshly chew on.

Without these moments of daily reflection, I can see how easy it would be for me to get lost in the daily hustle and bustle and not even realize how mundane/repetitive my daily experience might be. Leaving me so consumed with daily tasks that I have no time to steer my life’s ship.

…And I fear there’s quite a few people out there who are so zoomed in on their busyness that they’ve forgotten to check on the steering wheel of their ship. If that’s you, take this as your reminder to kick up your feet and stare out the window for a while… it’s more important than you might think.

One of the beautiful things about writing daily what’s on your mind is that when you’re asked to share what’s on your mind—either in general or in regards to specific topics—the work is already done.

There’s no need to delay, no need to beat around the bush, no need to answer generically or mumbly or complicatedly so as to buy yourself some time to think…

Your thinking space has already been honored. The editing of your thinking via written word has already distilled your key thoughts. And the rest of it—the crap thinking—you’ve already released and has already begun to sink towards the bottom of your mind’s floor.

And because of it… you’re more ready to capitalize on potential opportunities.

…You’re more ready to make a good impression when you didn’t even know you were going to have to make one.

…You’re more ready to express yourself properly when you meet someone special—because you just never know when that might happen.

Because the last thing you want—when any of those moments arrive—is to feel like there’s a lot of work yet that needs to be done or like a delay needs to be made.

Writing daily is thinking done.

And thinking done is an excellent strategy for getting ahead in life.

I found myself feeling really inspired by this apparent journal entry that I stumbled upon on Pinterest this morning:

…And not even because of anything written (although the “note to self” piece is pretty damn good)—but, because of the effort and aesthetic and how… human it is.

And the thought that immediately popped to mind when I saw it was… imagine journaling like this every day of your life…

Imagine the memories you’d have lifetime access to…

Imagine the feelings you’d be able to not only process faster, but get to revisit and reflect on…

Imagine the legacy of life you’d get to leave behind for those who come after…

The reality is… eventually… all of our memories will fade to black.

And only the ripples of our actions will survive.

A journal not only helps us understand our ripples by helping us understand ourselves (so we can deliberately create better or more aligned ripples)… but it leaves behind a small light for other people to find…

…A light into the mind, memories, and inner workings of a fellow life traveler.

…Where there otherwise would’ve only been black.

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P.s. If you like picture quotes, I curate and publish fresh finds each day on MoveMe Quotes here and Pinterest here.