Thinking ability is an amazing gift and it allows us to accomplish wonderful things. The human mind is the greatest problem solver on the planet, and it is eager to provide you with the answer to any question, and the solution to any challenge.
The thinking side of life
As soon as you present your mind with a question it goes to work analyzing and calculating. It combs your mental file cabinets in search of relevant information. It quickly picks out similarities and patterns as it builds an almost instant resource of connected data. What a marvel the human mind is.
We can use this amazing ability for just about anything you can think of. Whenever we make plans for the day, the week, or the year, our mind goes into analytical mode. As we review past performance, it becomes an efficiency expert seeking ways to make improvements. Our mind is a tireless servant, chomping at the bit and ready to take on any and all challenges that we may give it.
The experiencing side of life
There is another wonderful ability we need to consider that also makes a giant contribution to an amazing life . It’s the ability to actually experience life through our five senses. Like the mind, our senses also gather information and feed it to our nervous system, but this happens on a completely different level then pure mental analysis. This is a different kind of intelligence altogether.
In fact, when our senses are fully engaged, thinking often comes to a screeching halt. This is what allows us to fully savor an experience in the moment. When you stop to smell that perfect rose, or you come out from a cold shadow into the warm embrace of the sunshine, what happens? Do you stop to analyze it, or do you just experience it?
When the mind and sensory organs fully merge
There are rare occasions when the full power of our analytical mind and our sensory experience come together in the moment. This usually happens in conjunction with a huge dose of adrenaline. Have you ever been in an emergency situation where everything turned into slow motion, and all of your senses were on hyper alert, while your mind was calculating every detail?
One such occasion that stands out for me happened in a cross country hang gliding race over a rugged range of mountains. I had to make an emergency landing in a completely unacceptable speck of clear ground deep in the forest. The whole event probably lasted about 30 seconds, but for me it seemed like I had all the time in the world. My heightened state of alertness turned those seconds into slow motion, and I was fully aware of every moment. Like I said, these occasions are rare and adrenaline usually plays a major role.
The analytical mind versus the physical senses
More often than not, our mind tends to pull us away from, or minimize sensory input. This is because our senses give us information in the moment while our mind likes to operate outside of the moment in some abstract time warp. We can get so busy problem solving that thinking takes over our awareness, and we lose our sense of the here and now. Sometimes this kind of concentration serves us, but sometimes it robs us of the experience of life.
The mind is a bully and it likes to be in charge. Making room in our life to enjoy the experience of living in the moment, means learning to control the runaway thought process and allowing sensory feedback to have shared custody of our life. We need to learn to stop and smell the roses whether our busy brain likes it or not.
Paths that lead to balance
There are two main approaches to subduing the mental monster and temporarily giving our consciousness over to our other senses. These two approaches are at the opposite ends of the spectrum. In between these two extremes, there exists a wide variety of useful activities that allow for an increased sense of balance.
As we look at the spectrum of possibilities, keep in mind that what we are looking for here is greater balance. We create this balance by allowing some time, on a regular basis, for the mind to take a back seat while we allow sensory input to help us feel more fully engaged in the moment. Let’s consider the two primary but opposite approaches.
1) Ramp up sensory stimulation
With this approach we engage in any activity that creates massive sensory stimuli. Doing so will literally force the analytical mind out of the picture by overriding it with stronger neurological signals. Some examples would include any form of physical activity or intense exercise that you cannot do on autopilot.
Some that come to mind are body surfing, weight lifting, circuit training, aerobics, getting a massage, and sex. These kinds of activities demand that we be “in the moment” and they are linked primarily to a state of physical readiness. They are defined by sensory involvement and as a result, we are literally forced to participate in real time.
2) Quiet the mind
This approach is the exact opposite of the last one. Instead of using sensory stimulation to beat back the brain bully, we coax it into a state of peaceful hibernation. Of course, this one requires that we learn to consciously gain control of the thinking process, and then purposely dial it way down. This can be more difficult then it sounds because the analytical mind will try to take advantage of the lack of sensory input to do what it loves to do – THINK!
People use a variety of techniques to accomplish the goal of a quiet mind. All of the popular forms of meditation and controlled breathing share this objective. Anything that can mesmerize us, such as soothing music or nature sounds, a campfire or fireplace, also helps to quiet the mind. Additionally, there are some specially designed skills like the Sedona Method or the Release Technique with mental quieting as their main objective.
We should also recognize that millions of people also use drugs and/or alcohol in an attempt to dial down the thinking process without any real effort on their part. There are also new technologies that do most of the work for you by using highly specialized rhythmic patterns to control brain wave frequency such as binaural beats.
Develop your five senses + 1
The middle ground between intense sensory stimulation and a quiet mind is where we spend the majority of our time. The area is filled with a wide array of practical steps that we can use on a daily basis to maintain our mental balance. A great place to start is by purposely exercising your five senses throughout the day. For example:
Taste. When you eat a meal or a treat, take smaller bites and fully experience the flavors. If you love chocolate, savor a small piece as it melts in your mouth instead of chomping it down in unhealthy amounts. Turn eating into an exercise of culinary pleasure by slowing down and experiencing it via your taste buds.
Smell. This is often a major contributor to the joy of food but it also stands alone as a sensory pleasure. As the saying goes, take time to smell the roses. Don’t just take a quick sniff, but drink down all of the incredible aromas that can add such a wonderful dimension to your life.
Touch. If you close your eyes and see with your hands and fingers, what will you discover? Probably that you have not been fully aware of this amazing gift. How wonderful the world of touch is. Much of our emotional balance is linked to the human touch. Next time you touch someone or something, let yourself feel the experience without thinking about it.
Sound. Many people like to close their eyes and really listen to beautiful music or the sound of waves crashing on the beach. If we really listen, sound has the ability to quiet our whole being. When appropriate, take the opportunity to surround yourself with calming sounds, and then let it engulf you and carry you far away from the analytical noise.
Sight. Our eyes are the most direct sensory path to our brains. Therefore, we should make it a point to fill them with beautiful sights whenever possible. Do you stop to experience a beautiful sunset in all it’s glory? Do you marvel at the splendor of the natural world? If you put before your eyes that which is visually soothing your mind will make the connection. As a result, your life will feel much more balanced and peaceful.
Laughter. This is a wonderful, happy, sensory experience that has scores of benefits. Laughter involves our whole being and it takes place in the moment. There is no reason to analyze this one (ha ha!), just do it as often as you can.
Balance is the goal
A life rich in experience and wisdom is one that has found a balance between thinking and experiencing. Both are valuable and both make a solid contribution to the quality and joy of living. In this age of information overload and mental bombardment, it’s important that we remember to take time to experience our own life first hand and in the moment.
How do you relax your mind?
Which of your five senses are you most aware of?
The lines are open.
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{ 23 comments… read them below or add one }
Time slows down for me too when I’m in a sailing race and the competition is close. Like you say it’s adrenaline and I’m at my peak of performance.
Interesting analogy that I thought of while reading this great article is that of a traveler. This is my $64,000 traveling question: do you enjoy the moment or do you capture it in a photo or video for your mind to savor later?
Mark Lewiss last blog post..How to Deal with Stress
@Mark, Hopefully we can do both. When I go to Hawaii, I always come back with dozens of sunset photos of beautiful moments that were fully savored in the moment and then captured for viewing on those cold winter days.
Excellent article Jonathan. This is really timely for me too. I enjoy my morning walks, but even then I find my mind thinking too much. I have to really pay attention to stay in the moment. The rest of the day all the way until I go to bed, my mind races too much. There is so much I want to do, it is hard to stop.
I’m really trying to do better and these tips will really help. I need to step up my exercise to a more intense level so I have to stop thinking.
I wish touching people was more socially acceptable because I think that is something we desperately need to do more often. In the meantime I guess I will have to be satisfied with the trees!
Stephen – Rat Race Traps last blog post..25 Ways To Enrich Your Brain Experience
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How to slow down your mind and experience life. Great article! : [link to post]
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@Stephen, As I was writing this I was thinking, “physician, heal thy self.” I think all productive people struggle with this one. Obviously we enjoy the mental side, but we also recognize the value of, and enjoy “being in the moment.” Balance is always the hardest thing.
Over analytical thinking is a definitely problem for me, and there is no place where it becomes more obvious than dancing. I take ballroom dance lessons, and my brain wants to understand everything before it allows my body to do it.
I had the same problem in tennis, where I was over thinking my shots, and I notice now that when I just myself react naturally, my shots are better than when my brain is going “Ok, setup for a forehand going cross-court..”
But going back to my original point, if there was ever an activity that absolutely requires quieting the mind and letting the body learn instead, it’s ballroom dancing. If the mind is taking over, for me, then I’m just stuck.
~ Kristi
Kikolanis last blog post..Blogging, Goals, and 101 Things
@Kristi, I can relate to that. I have had that same challenge with ballroom dancing. I think when we are early in the learning curve we think before we move. Later, we feel more comfortable with the flow and we can relax into it. I love to Rumba.
Great reminder. I’ve fought my analytical tendencies for years, to good success thanks to much effort, but always still more work to do. Playing music is a great escape for us, also tai chi, beach days, and playing with our animals.
Angelas last blog post..2012: A Perfect Storm?
Rumba is one of my toughest to do dances. So far, I just look stiff as a board. There is a definite disconnect in the way I should be able to move, and the way I actually do.
~ Kristi
Kikolanis last blog post..Blogging, Goals, and 101 Things
Emotions Vs logical thinking…. that’s something I always seem to struggle with. It takes me a long time to make decision where this occurs..
Shamelle- TheEnhanceLifes last blog post..8 Common Mistakes Made, After A Mistake Was Made
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Has your Analytical Mind Taken Over Your Life? [link to post] via http://www.diigo.com/~elepants
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@Angela, thanks for including playing music. I mentioned listening, but if you are a musician then all the better. I agree about the animals also, they seem to be wired for life in the moment and we can learn from that.
@Kristi, you will soon be gliding around the floor, I can feel it. And congratulations on your upcoming wedding.
@Shamelle, making decisions holds a lot of people back. I wrote about this extensively in 7 Simple Steps. Everything starts with a decision but we don’t need to over analyze the process. Deep down, you always know what the right decision is so just make it and move on
This is an excellent article and I have just read so much about sharpening the senses.
For us who do have all of our senses it is very interesting to read of the ones who have to learn to adapt without them.
I find meditation to be helpful and yoga or other workouts to help me relax and open my mind to a freer way of thinking,
I am more of a salsa dancer not thinking before I move -Thumper has many years of dancing schools. we dance divinely together.
Cheers
Bunnygotblogs last blog post..Helen Keller
Excellent, Jonathan!
I’ve been many times in both of the extremes: sensory overload and thinking overload and I must say you described those states with great clarity and accuracy.
In the end, we all have just this one tiny little second we live in and it would be such a waste to spend that second thinking instead of living.
Dragos Rouas last blog post..The Anatomy Of A Blog Post
@Bunny, I read your post about Helen Keller, it was an inspiration. So, you and Kristi both like to dance. Guys, have you figured it out?
@Dragos, your “just one tiny little second we live in” analogy makes the point crystal clear, there really is only this moment.
I really appreciated this post today!
My mind is constantly analyzing & reviewing…a never ending spiderweb spanning from one project or idea to another.
Started a physical “inbox” (Getting Things Done by David Allen)…every thought and analysis goes into “in” until the proper time to process it. Incredibly helpful in keeping me involved & invested in every minute rather than cluttered with thought.
Thanks!
Jonathan,
. Good for me I become aware of it and too few steps to protect myself from me. In a nutshell i adopted simple mantra of “Think, less, do more, revise and improve”. I also started to practice Emotional Intelligence, it helped me to spend less energy on regrets and focus on future improvements.
I admit, sometimes I am the victim of my own analytical mind
Alik Levin | PracticeThis.coms last blog post..150 Ways To Break Into Your Blog (Hacking For Dummies)
@Allison, I haven’t GTD but I have heard good things. Glad it’s working for you. The important thing is that we find ways to stay involved and engaged like you are doing.
@Alik, good affirmation! The simple act of doing gets our senses involved and helps balance the two forces. You mentioned regret in your last comment also, sounds like a challenge you have faced and overcome. That’s a good thing to move past because as you said, “it never helps, only wastes your precious energy.” I totally agree.
I like that line: “…allowing sensory feedback to have shared custody of our life.” Yeah, sometimes it feels like I need a divorce from my analytical side, but I decided to opt for inner marriage counseling.
(You know I had to say that.)
Daniel Brentons last blog post..Gratitude Watch – 2009-04-17
Hi Jonathan, this is a topic SO dear to me that I get overwhelmed in leaving a comment. Only because so much wants to come out at once. LOL!!
Just THANK YOU!!!!
I was twenty-five, living in the Rainforest my first year there and I consciously decided that I wanted to chuck all books, religion, shed as much schooling, familiar and social conditioning as I could be aware of, and start from scratch. Unless I knew something to be true in my gut then I chucked it out. Until I “knew” without a doubt from my own life experience that something was true it did not exist.
Starting from this totally barren and unknown place, using only all my senses and my heart to guide me I began to explore the world.
I “re-learned”, for me, what it means to be alive, what Life is about for ME, what is fully possible, what is true (for me), what was real and so forth.
The journey and my time in the wild went on for many years and it was one hell of a journey, raw, exposed, unknowing, unassuming, vast beyond my comprehension. It shattered every preconceived notion I had. I explored and became deeply intimate with a world, a reality that goes far beyond social conditioning and edict, far beyond organized religion, school, materialism, stores, things, concepts, books, TV, “civilization”, etc.
I fell down many many times, dragged myself through the muck and mire, picked myself up again and again, as I “reinvented the wheel”, so to speak, I groped many times in total darkness. I learned great patience, I learned to simply “BE”, that there is nowhere to be. I learned to trust my other brain, my enteric nervous system that lives in the esophagus, stomach, small intestines and colon, that brain that gives us the “gut feelings” we get. I learned to take risks and face fear head on. I fell deeply in love with Life.
Oh, Jonathan, this is SUCH a powerful topic and area to explore. I am writing about my experience with it in my second book, which I am currently working on.
I applaud you for reminding us of the importance of this part of who we ARE. I applaud you for validating it’s existence. So few fully understand it’s deep and profound significance. When I saw this post I was thrilled beyond words. But as you can see I quickly recovered and found…just a few words. LOL!!!
Robin Eastons last blog post..Who Are You?
@Daniel, sounds like a viable solution. Make sure your counselor doesn’t get overly analytical.
@Robin, that relearning process is something we can all benefit from. The structure of the current educational model, and the rewards of the secular world are geared toward one sided development. Much of the sensory input we experience has been crafted by advertisers and others with some kind of agenda. To achieve balance requires that we first become aware of the imbalance, and then make a decision to address it. Thanks for sharing your fascinating story.
Great post. I struggle with my monstrous mind every day. I am a writer and everything I expereience I think of writing about it; I am also a painter and a photographer, and everything I see is analyzed for a painting or a photograph. Sometimes it feels like a horrible curse not being able to quiet the mind! I am presently in the process of learning to meditate and hope it helps!
Like an automobile is a two-opposite system of brake and accelerator, we are also a too-opposite system of body and soul. There is the third element needed to drive this two-opposite system like the driver in the automobile. The third element in our casd is the mind that drives the body – soul system.
Now from birth, the mind happens to be almost exclusively with the body and not with the soul. It is something like a driver who has his foot always on the accelerator and hardly on the brake. The results are obviously catastrophic.
So the solution is to take the mind and put it in touch with the soul on a DAILY basis for about 15 minutes in the mornng and in the evening. This is the basis of meditation. There are 3 kinds of meditation- one you keep chanting a short mantra : in this case the mind starts wandering ( its true nature) and the mantra helps you to put the mind back to what ever the mantra denotes. The second method is keep looking at a point of light and here again the point of light helps in getting back the mind to the light. The third method is action mediatation: This is you indulge in an activity where the mind cannot leave the body, soul system. This is what happens when we play music, paint or play tennis. or in a sport where your mind has to be with the body and soul. You have described some of these activities beautifully in your article. I discuss these aspects in my book ” Success through Opposites” published by Eloquent publishers, New York; you may log onto:
http://www.eloquentbooks.com/SuccessThroughOpposites.html