How About We Do More Things “Just Because”?
Sometimes you don’t need a “why”
When was the last time you did something “just because”? In our quest to live more purposeful lives, we might find ourselves asking “why?” a little too often.
It’s an important question but when does it end?
We constantly ask ourselves why we want to do something. We question the meaning behind every action we take. We ask ourselves whether we want to accomplish things for ourselves or to impress others. We ask why we put the left sock on before the right.
OK, maybe that last one is just me. I think it has to do with balance on your dominant leg. But I digress…
My point is:
Asking “Why?” gets exhausting rather quickly
You can only get so far before it becomes a question about the meaning of life and you fall into an existential black hole. Occasionally, it’s a worthwhile exercise but it really shouldn’t be a daily ritual.
The irony is that usually, at the end of all the suffering and pain you put yourself through, you end up with more or less the same “meaning of life”.
It probably resembles the following:
“Life is what you make it. Always has been, always will be.” — Eleanor Roosevelt.
You are ultimately the one that decides what is meaningful to you.
The worst part is that the stupid reason you got into this existential mess in the first place was that you had some ambitions that seemed a little out of reach. You wanted to make more money, get fitter, eat healthier, or improve your life situation in some way.
Perhaps in some cases, asking why you want any of those things is a form of procrastination. Maybe it’s an evaluation of whether it’s worth it. Or potentially, it’s the lazy friend within looking for a way out of doing what needs to be done.
So how about this?
Let’s mix it up a little and stop relentlessly engaging in the multiple layers of “why?”.
Occasionally, throw in a “why not?”. If you can’t think of any serious negative consequences of taking a particular action, just do it.
On your path to finding purpose, meaning, fulfillment, or whatever it is you are after, it’s absolutely acceptable and necessary to take a few detours. You should be able to explore for no other reason than to indulge your curiosity.
Our journeys are not linear, we don’t just map out where we want to go and start driving there at full speed, in a straight line.
We get more information to add to our map as we go along. The immediate path might seem clear but the rest of the way ahead is covered in fog.
You need to adapt to changing circumstances, recognize when your map is wrong, and make the appropriate adjustments.
Fortunately, most of the time, we aren’t doing anything of particular importance. It’s unlikely that any one action will change everything forever.
Most things we do, don’t matter. Only some of it does.
So, instead of asking “why?” or “why not”? Maybe, we can occasionally do some things “just because”.
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