Earlier today I felt crappy. I had driven four hours in the morning and worked on a computer for four hours in the afternoon. I didn’t feel like moving and all I wanted to do was sit still.
Usually when I force myself to exercise in a situation like this, I feel refreshed. So I picked myself up and started running. For the first 10 minutes all I wanted to do was stop and complain. Half of me was running and the other half was spouting off about how much I hated doingit.
My mind was divided, fighting against itself.
But I was already running. Why was I spending half of my energy on something other than what I had chosen to spend my time doing? I can’t run and not run at the same time. I can only do one or the other. I decided to run, but another part of me was still still focused on scenarios that I had determined were not worth my time. This happens all the time. Most decisions are difficult because pros and cons accompany every option. Everything is not so black and white.
It’s like when a friend asks you to lunch and you agree despite not feeling completely up for it. You spend the whole lunch thinking about what else you could be doing, not fully experiencing what’s happening. Your head is spending energy wondering about imaginary scenarios that don’t exist and don’t have any relation to what your body is actually doing.
There will always be things you could be doing instead of what you’ve chosen to do right now. They might be more valuable or less valuable uses of your time. But once you decide, don’t look back. Thinking about what you could be doing will only give you more anxiety. You will end up half-assing the thing that you consciously decided to spend your time doing. Pick one and give it your undivided attention. By choosing it instead of any other option, you’ve determined it’s more worth your time than anything else you could be doing.
Decide to be undivided.