How Not to Live Your Life on Autopilot

I’ve taken back the steering wheel of my life, so can you

Have we become mindless as the cars we will soon be driving? Sounds very futuristic but it’s been our reality for quite some time.

Autonomous cars don’t need drivers as they use sensors and software to drive the vehicle. Humans have a body controlled by the brain that sends and receives signals.

When autonomous vehicles become mainstream, what will become of us drivers? Our own cars will hijack us. We will become passengers. Likewise, our minds through technology, smartphones, social media, and advertising have hijacked us.

I often contemplate how much of what we think are our own thoughts.

Cars come in both automatic and manual transmission. Over time we have forgotten that we do have the option of switching to manual mode or should I say stick shift. Ring a bell? In our minds, this is our intuition, our conscience, our awareness, and the ability to choose.

I have had moments when I couldn’t recall my thoughts. Minutes would pass doing something but nothing registered in my mind. I was on autopilot. Repetitive tasks such as driving, doing laundry, running, and even cooking can become monotonous. It happens more in our daily life than you’d care to admit.

Life is not a journey you want to make on autopilot — Paula Rinehart

Ways to Escape This

Where there is a will, there is a way. The time is now to gain control of the steering wheel; before your autonomous car drives away with you into the distance, leaving only tire marks on the road, the only sign of your journey.

Own Your Morning

One way I wake up from highway hypnosis and take charge of my life is by owning my mornings. I do this without even getting out of bed.

As soon as my alarm rings, I’m up. I never snooze despite sometimes not wanting to wake up. What I do instead is sit up. Back straight. Eyes closed. I take this time to program my mind for the day.

Breathe

Box-breathing is a technique where you breathe in for a count of 4, hold for a count of 4, and then breathe out for a count of 4. Easy right? Do this 03 times, trust me- that’s all you need.

Show gratitude

Gratitude never fails. I start by thanking God, the universe, consciousness for giving me another day to be better and do better. There’s plenty to be grateful for!

Set your intent

This is where you layout your intentions for the day and plan on what you want to get done. Be as specific as you can but brief- if that’s possible. Now, it might not work the first day or even the first week.

No one bought a car and returned it the same week for not performing to their expectations. Give it time. To sound cliched, life is a marathon, not a sprint.

Claim Your Day

Our days are so jam-packed with to do’s. From the time we are babies, expectations begin: sit, crawl, walk, talk, run, preschool, kindergarten, elementary, high school, university/college, find a good job, become successful and settle down with a family. Shew!

Anyone else out of breath? These are all man-made expectations. What they are, are projections that society and people put on themselves and others.

I have passed half my life and only now realized that there are no rules. Richard Branson dropped out of high school. Bill gates dropped out of college. Colonel Sanders was 62 when he franchised KFC.

We are so wrapped up in the days of our lives that we fail to live in the seconds and minutes and moments. We all have the same 24 hours. Here’s how to make them count:

Awareness

It is something that has taken me some time, but once I mastered it, there was no going back. Awareness of the self encompasses your thoughts and emotions, reading them immediately so that you can act on them appropriately.

The key is noticing your every thought and emotion and how they affect your behavior.

Taking the time to notice what you are feeling and how you want to react can help you deal better with it the next time. Once burnt, twice shy.

Mindfulness

For me, mindfulness works best with awareness. It brings you to the present. I practice mindfulness in two ways:

Yoga: I perform 10 sun salutations daily. During my yoga, I concentrate on my breathing and my body and its abilities, without judgment.

Meditation: There are no strict rules for how long to meditate. I meditate anywhere and everywhere. I have done it on the summit after a hike, in a rooftop hot tub during the winter, and even in a noisy mall.

A few minutes is all you need. Close your eyes and be still. The goal is to notice your thoughts and let them enter your mind, don’t fight them no matter what they are. Watch them go by like you sitting in a car looking out the window. Acknowledge them and let them pass.

Acceptance

As hard as this one seems, we have to make it a lifetime practice. Imbibe an ‘it is what it is’ philosophy. The Serenity Prayer helps me with this every day; God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

To Conclude

Don’t get to a point in your life when you pause and realize how fast time has gone. Time stops for no one, but you can stop.

So, when you find yourself a passenger in your own car, I hope it leads you to your chosen destination.

The choice is yours. Make it wisely.

Thank you for reading.