How to Stop Paying Attention
Haha, did that title get your attention?
One mild complaint I sometimes hear about the embrace of consciousness is people feeling like they have to be paying high-level attention all the dang time. As if life isn’t challenging enough! As if many of us don’t already have a full plate of to dos and wish list items, just for starters. So today, let’s break it down and remove some of the pressure so the gifts of consciousness can rise to the surface.
“There is a voice that doesn’t use words. Listen.” – Rumi
In this respect, we can think of hyper-vigilance as the opposite of consciousness. Not that one extreme is all good or all bad, but that by having a contrast we can tease out the benefits we want and leave the rest.
This is a variation on the theme of learning to intentionally ignore:
I think of consciousness as an act of paying attention, yes, and I’ve mentioned that many times here. But it is not “attention on demand 24/7” that I support! No, it’s having consciousness muscles and antennae so they can be called on to assist when the energy gets goofy. We know when that happens; whether we freeze or react or use our tools to pause and examine is, for me, one of the markers of consciousness.
“The soul always knows what to do to heal itself. The challenge is to silence the mind.” Caroline Myss
On the other hand, hyper-vigilance comes from an assortment of inner fears that dictate we must always be en garde for potential dangers and threats on the horizon. I mean, who doesn’t want to survive and thrive? It’s a legit goal and desire to have. But if we use instructions from the monkey mind, what writer Katharine McPhee calls ‘Negative Nancy’ then we are missing the point.
Everyone has that inner voice, the one that's a Negative Nancy. I'd say to ignore that voice and to be confident and follow your heart. Katharine McPhee
This little person inside each of us is focused on three things, all co-mingled together: safety, security, and survival. The problem is as a little person, there is little time or room for nuance, thoughtful consideration, or the ability to hold opposite truths in one moment of time. So constantly ‘looking for trouble’ and ‘finding fault everywhere’ are the best tools available to the little ones, even if they are primitive and exhausting. I mean, always having one eye open for something to go wrong is not trusting the process. It is not trusting ourselves, either, to be able to handle what problems may appear.
And this hyper-vigilance sucks the joy out of you. Who really wants or needs that?
“Cease trying to work everything out with your mind. It will get you nowhere. Live by intuition and inspiration and let your whole life be a Revelation.” – Eileen Cady
Instead, by building our access to inner silence and wisdom, we can relax and have some fun in life. We can trust that we will get notice when something wants our attention. We can build consciousness, aka conscious awareness, by being silent and relying on the tools we’ve built: inner strength, detachment from all-or-nothing thinking, giving ourselves, others, and situations the initial benefit of grace. Hyper-vigilance too often leads to jumping to rash and incorrect conclusions, serving as fuel on the fire instead of being calm, cool, and collected.
A Personal Note:
I am recovering today from getting three vaccines yesterday. My body aches and my brain is foggy. So I’ve sprinkled in a lot of quotes as our call to action as we reject the fearful need to be always on, always tracking, always three steps ahead. That sounds so tiring; it’s the opposite of trusting. I mean, why build consciousness skills if we cannot rely our own ability to respond to life? No, build these skills so we can play and create and respond when necessary!
Spend time in silence and reflection, the core of a consciousness-centered mindset, so you can get out there in life and take some risks, try new things, and not be stuck looking for trouble! You will, I promise, find some, but to what end? You can choose instead to let trouble find you, knowing you can handle it.
Tell me: do you think you pay too much or just enough or too little attention? It’s yet one more spectrum from one extreme to the other. What’s your comfort spot?