The other day, in the context of a bike ride I went on, I alluded to different modes of thinking and, in an attempt to keep things simple, I ended up settling for two broad types:
- Active/Analytical thinking
- Passive/Perceptual thinking
I then briefly mentioned daydreaming and worrying, so let’s have a look at those, shall we?
I see both of these as variants on 1: ‘Active/analytical’ thinking and here’s how it plays out, for me at least:
Daydreaming
I’ll be out walking or cycling (both of which get done mostly on autopilot), and essentially I’m letting my mind future-project. It’s creating a story, with Giles as the central character, and while it lasts, it’s fun.
It can even be a coping mechanism of sorts, if it’s a particularly gruelling feat I’m attempting and I’m struggling physically - a case of ‘taking my mind off it’, if you will.
Daydreaming has quite a nice feel to it.
Then, maybe because I’m outdoors, doing things out in nature, surrounded by real, actual life and not stuck in left-brain-human-world, I really notice when my mood suddenly drops. It doesn’t take long at all to become aware of this.
It’s like, “Ooh, I was feeling good and now I’m feeling bad.”
Worrying
And that’s my signal that I’ve flipped over from daydreaming, into worry. Giles is still the central character, and it’s still all just a story that the mind is creating, but now it’s creating problems, too. Problems it can’t fix. Because they’re made up. By it.
🤦🏻♂️
Nice and simple.
What’s important is the feeling. Noticing the difference.
Daydreaming feels pleasant (e.g. I'm imagining cycle touring in heavily wooded, mountainous foreign climes, where I don’t speak the lingo… and yes I appreciate this would count as ‘worry’ for some of you - but hey, we all live in separate realities!)
Worrying doesn’t feel pleasant (e.g. I'm imagining falling off my bike out in the wilds, or remembering previous over-use injuries from such exploits, or the mind's telling me I don't have the money or time to go and do something like that in the first place).
Stopping
Now, the key with worry isn’t to try and out-daydream it, reason with it, re-frame it or rationalise it.
That way madness lies.
(See that thought-fire over there? 🔥 Here, go pour this thought-accelerant fuel on it and see what happens. ⛽️💥🔥🔥🔥)
No, the key with worry is to spot the feeling and remember it’s just a story!
It’s been dreamed up! By the mind!
Just by being aware of what’s going on, you can let the story go and relax back into passive/perceptual thinking (which is the Now).
That’s why feelings are so important.
They’re our guide.
If you want an easier life, listen to them!
💟
Giles
Related
Giles P Croft
Contains the line: “Disquiet is, by definition, ego.”