How to Incorporate This One (Simple) Instruction to Fulfill Your Potential and Life Purpose

And it will not cost you any money to do it.

Silence is the one thing that all other things sit within.

Most of us fear silence. To the point that we plan to make sure we don’t sit in silence.

A teacher said something to me that now has me skyrocketing forward with purpose and using my full capabilities.

He said to me, “Damian, sit down, shut up, and be silent.”

This wasn’t a concept to understand. It was an instruction to follow.

Physical sit down and don’t move.

When sitting down, don’t speak.

Allow the mind to be silent. Let the ramblings of the mind quietly pass by and settle.

Magic results from self-awareness

Because sitting in silence is so terrifying, we keep the tv remote and cell phone within arm’s reach.

In the past, every time an opportunity came up to sit and be silent, I avoided it.

But now I sit down and be quiet periodically throughout the day.

Once you implement this instruction, you find the hardest part of doing nothing and sitting in silence was the anxious moments immediately before doing it.

In the silence, I got immediately see the hard expectations I place on myself and the soul-destroying effects they had on my life.

Your positive and negative thoughts that arise shine bright against the backdrop of silence.

Takeaway

Silence provides a clear whiteboard in your mind upon which all your thoughts run across.

This translates to you becoming more self-aware. From being more self-aware, realizations naturally pop.

Boredom is a marketer’s playground

I rarely remember ever getting bored when I was a kid.

If you ever said you were bored to your parents, they would just tell you to go outside and play. And you did, and you always found something fun to do.

Skip forward to being an adult. Those inspirational ideas that sprung from your young, silent mind in the backyard are now lost.

Big companies with multi-million dollar marketing budgets prey on you not liking to be bored. Netflix automatically will start the next episode of your series so you don’t turn it off and sit in silence.

Screw being a sucker. Your inspiration on what course of action is required next in life springs forth after boredom fades away.

“Effort to deepen your focus will struggle if you don’t simultaneously wean your mind from a dependence on distraction”

— Carl Newport

Takeaway

Embrace the boredom of sitting in silence. After the boredom passes, inspiration flows.

When inspiration appears in your mind. Act swiftly and courageously.

Upside down thinking

Busyness now is viewed as having a lot of social street cred. The busier you look on Insta, the more appealing your life looks.

It’s a paradox, though. The things we do are mere reactions to the world, without much intelligent thought put into them. We do and buy things that aren’t fulfilling, so we can present our story to the world so people will like us.

A picture of you sitting on your favorite chair in the sun will not get you many likes on Facebook. But it will give you the internal container from which to make many life-changing decisions.

These powerful decisions can go on to make a decisive change in the world. And these world-changing moments would be far more interesting than that pic of you trashed at a seedy bar.

“The greatest enemy of good thinking is busyness.”

— John C. Maxwell

Takeaway

Lazing on your couch in quiet solitude takes courage. Your monkey mind, in a few minutes or more, will quieten by itself if left alone.

When silence is allowed to take place it provides a point of reference for clear and powerful decision-making.

Where to sit down, shut up, and be quiet

The most obvious place to sit down, shut up, and be quiet is at home. Such as sitting outside on a comfortable chair taking in the sunshine. Or getting on your favorite meditation cushion in your yoga room.

However, the comings and goings of life create opportunities throughout the day for these special moments:

Waiting in line. Keep your phone in your pocket. Release all the muscles in your body. Be restful and quiet.

Going to the toilet. I have found it not usual now to walk into a public toilet and hear the voice of Logan Paul blaring out from a toilet cubicle. Try doing your busyness with no distractions. Constipation can be your best friend.

Shower. I have had a long list of ideas that have sprung up out of nowhere when I have allowed myself to relax in the shower.

To sit down, shut up, and be quiet isn’t necessarily something you need to create a formal practice out of.

I have found it most effective when I start to feel myself rushing to get get a task completed. The muscles of my body start to tense and I start to get worried about not completing something.

Allow yourself to periodically throughout the day to stop what you are doing for a few minutes. Look out the window and let your mind be a blank canvas.

Don’t think about what you will get out of this instruction. Just do it and allow the inspiration to flow.

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