Hello everyone,
My name is Dylan and I'm one of the meditation teachers here on Insight Timer.
And welcome back to my page for those of you who have listened to or engaged with my content before.
I wanted to come on here and talk about the difference between a hurried thought and an unhurried thought.
And essentially the gist of this is that if we're experiencing hurried thinking,
It might be time to check in with our grounding.
Whereas if we're experiencing unhurried thinking,
We could already be pretty grounded,
Right?
So the idea is that an unhurried thought is one that is more grounded,
Whereas a hurried thought is one that is a little bit less grounded,
Maybe even a little bit ungrounded,
Right?
So I want to go over some perspectives on grounding versus ungrounding and how it is actually natural to be grounded and unnatural to be in an ungrounded state.
So these are just some items for me personally that I've noticed within my experience regarding hurried thinking or ungrounded functioning.
So when I find myself experiencing hurried thinking,
I'm noticing that I feel a little scatterbrained,
Maybe sporadic,
Not evenly channeled or not able to maintain a clear focus.
I maybe even feel like I want to push the river.
I'm not motivated.
I could be easily fatigued and experiencing brain fog.
I could be out of touch with my intuitive guidance systems,
A little knocked off-center and have some type of unclear direction and easily bothered.
So those are some traits or characteristics of an ungrounded state,
Which is also known as hurried thinking.
Again,
The pace,
Tempo,
Or the rhythm of the thoughts in a hurried instance are kind of rushing,
A little bit urgency,
Maybe even stemming from fear,
Maybe a little restricted,
Maybe feeling a little bit tight in my experience,
Right?
So let's go into the opposite.
What happens when we're experiencing unhurried thinking or a little bit more grounded in our orientation?
Well,
In these cases,
I'm feeling purposeful living.
I'm feeling empowered patience.
I'm feeling mission-centered,
Positive abundance.
I'm more connected to strategy or strategic thinking,
Getting ahead of things,
Coping ahead.
I'm more connected to confidence and strength within vision building.
I feel a little bit more stable,
Vibrant,
Driven,
Volitional,
Unfettered,
And I'm more connected to my personal pathfinder,
Meaning my intuitive guidance systems and my sense of true north,
My inner compass.
I maybe even have a greater sense of coordination and coherence as well,
Order,
Harmony,
And ease of access to states of stillness and inner calm.
So the question becomes,
How do we calm down our thoughts?
How do we go from a hurried state to more of an unhurried,
More of a grounded state?
One of the key perspectives within it is nature,
Change in environment or scenery.
So how many of us have noticed that when we change our surroundings,
The pace of our thoughts changes?
That's if we step into an art gallery,
The tempo,
Rhythm,
And pacing of our mental mind functioning actually shifts as well because it requires us to step into that oscillatory rhythm between immersive attention and rational distance when we gaze at a work of art,
Right?
So we're actually called into more of a deceleration,
A more productive deceleration within the power of patience.
If we go on a nature trail,
Right,
We may find ourselves more in a state of stillness or relaxation connection to the environment,
Which also could have the potential to decelerate,
Slow down,
And shift the rhythm,
Tempo,
Or pacing of our thoughts from hurried to unhurried.
So again,
The title of this talk is Slowing Down on Purpose,
And the key perspective within that is to go from hurried to unhurried.
One of the things we can do is shift our environment.
We could do that through taking a break.
If we're working at home,
We could step outside to take a walk.
If we're in an office building,
We could step outside for fresh air,
What have you.
Now,
I want to go over some activities that energize my grounding and some activities that weaken my grounding.
And the purpose of me sharing this with you is hopefully to inspire you to create a list for yourself.
Speaking about activities that energize my grounding,
I'm somebody who enjoys barefoot walks in nature,
Foot reflexology,
Animals,
Connected with animals,
Massage,
Spa time,
Aromatherapy,
Moisturizers,
Tea tree oil,
Music composition,
Intention-setting practices,
Being around fountains,
Reminding me of the flow of life,
Dim lighting,
Tranquility vibe,
Nourishing my nervous system,
And mindfulness breaks,
Emotional renewal activities as well.
Now,
What are some activities that weaken my grounding?
Lack of sleep,
Too much coffee or tea,
Too much caffeine,
Not taking breaks when I know I need them,
Operating on an empty stomach,
Impulsive decision making,
Chasing my dreams instead of trusting that what is mine will come to me if it's on a cord,
Having too many priorities on my calendar,
Too many tasks on my horizon,
Attempting to control outcomes or engineer solutions,
And of course ignoring what my body is telling me to do,
I.
E.
Not nourishing my body or taking care of it.
So my hope in sharing these lists of perspectives and items here is to really strengthen the idea that if we catch ourself in a hurried stream,
We can always tune in and ask why,
Right?
Is this a fear thing?
Is this a fear response?
Are we saying that there's an urgency out of fear that we feel restricted,
Rushed,
In a hurry,
Things must get done by a certain time?
Okay,
I do understand that that is the case in some instances,
But are there other times when we could benefit from more of a mindfulness moment to recalibrate into our grounding connection?
What are the things that energize your grounding connection different from the things that weaken or diminish your grounding connection?
If you take just a moment,
If you feel called,
This is an invitation,
Not a requirement,
But if you feel called to make a little inventory,
A little reference list,
A little library of items that strengthen or energize your grounding different from things that diminish or weaken it,
I think this could help because what it does is it creates a reference tool such that if you ever find yourself wondering about it,
If you catch yourself in a hurried stream where you're rushing,
Ask yourself,
What on that list?
I mean,
If you want to shift from hurried to unhurried,
What can you do about it?
This is an empowerment within patience and pacing,
Helping you to find a purpose to your pacing through the flow of your week,
Your month,
Your year,
Your goals,
Your day,
And your existence.
So I hope this perspective has been helpful regarding slowing down on purpose.
