Have you ever had a day or two when nothing seemed to go right? You were in a bad mood and you felt tired. You were trying to do something and it didn’t seem to work.
In my business, I have to create. I have to create scripts for my speeches and words for my books, CDs, and podcasts. I also have to create promotional and marketing materials, not only for myself, but also for those I train. (Ranging from entrepreneurs or those who want to be entrepreneurs, as well as professional speakers and ministers, etc.)
The right side of my brain does a lot of work. And hopefully, I incorporate my left side, so what I’m doing looks smart too.
Recently, I hit a wall. Well, I don’t know if I got there or I crashed into it. No creative idea would come out of my little head. I just looked at a blank page in Microsoft Word… and nothing. He was also short tempered with others and was a real pain.
Obviously, I needed a break, but I felt guilty taking it. I said to myself: “Yes, you need to rest, but you have a lot to do.” Then a voice came into my head and said, “Bob, keep working… go through the wall. You can do it… force yourself.”
As this internal conversation continued, another voice rose above the chaos…it was a tiny little voice saying these sweet words: “Shut up! The guy needs a break!”
Now, you might be thinking… how many voices do you normally hear in your head, Bob? Well, sometimes I hear quite a few. (Don’t you argue with yourself sometimes? Of course you do.)
That little voice… that still little voice, was the voice of God, my inner being, telling me that I needed to rest. Good. I heard it. But that didn’t alleviate the guilt I had for taking time off. In fact, I got angrier at myself for not allowing me to take a break, which made me more irritable and unproductive.
To do? Well, luckily, it was almost bedtime and before I go to bed, I usually grab a few books. I have a tendency to read a lot and many books at the same time. I call it “horizontal research.” (I got the idea from Mark Twain and Winston Churchill, two highly productive men who wrote and studied extensively in bed.)
On this particular night, I decided that I would seek some advice on how to take a mental breather. To put it bluntly, I was seeking permission from others and I wanted some facts to “back up” that permission, thereby removing my guilty feelings.
Now, I know that seeking permission from others is silly, but a lot of people do it. They seek permission to succeed, to buy something or do something, and here I was asking permission to take it easy. (So dumb.)
I also know that guilt is worthless energy. I mean, unless you’ve done something to harm another living creature, most of the things we feel guilty about are ridiculous. (So, I was not only being silly, but also ridiculous. You have to love it!)
Anyway, I picked up a book by one of my favorite authors, Paul Brunton. Brunton is recognized for introducing Eastern philosophy to the West. His ability to synthesize Eastern and Western, as well as ancient and modern approaches to soul discovery was astounding.
The book is called “Perspectives,” and when I opened it, an entire chapter Brunton wrote on retreat and silence stared me square in the face. Perfect… the cure I was looking for.
When I started reading, Brunton explained to me that a busy person who doesn’t take breaks is just as bad as a person who is always looking to have fun, neglecting the important parts of life. In fact, these people are two ends of the same suit. One is always busy; the other always plays. To have a fuller life, one must learn to get to the middle of the stick.
That hit hard. She also reminded me of a man she had met at a party, just the day before.
This man had told me that he had quit his job and now all he wanted to do was surf. (Since we all live near the ocean, that’s an easy thing to do.) The man had a wife and a small child, and I asked him what he would do for an income, as well as how he planned to take care of his other responsibilities. He said. “I’m tired of working and my wife can now earn the money. All I want to do is play.” I asked him what his wife thought about this and she told me that she wasn’t thrilled with the idea of him, but she thought she would get over it eventually.
I could not avoid it. I asked him how long he had been married, to which he said three years. (I’m sure you’re thinking the same thing I am, that if this guy doesn’t change his attitude, he’ll be lucky to make it to his 4th anniversary!)
I learned that this man was not rich. He hadn’t won the lottery or inherited a fortune from a deceased relative. He just wanted to play and neglect his responsibilities entrusting them to his spouse. It’s not like he wanted a break…it’s more like he wanted to get out of life.
However, was I so different? By always working, I was delegating day-to-day responsibilities to my wife. (We’ve been married for 15 years, and I definitely want to see my 16th anniversary and beyond.)
In reality, this man and I were two ends of the same stick: we were the “extreme.” Regarding these two extremes, Brunton said that unless we make a change in our behavior, we are forced to change when an emergency or crisis arises. However, at that point, it may be too late to repair any damage.
For the person who must always be busy, you neglect your family obligations. You also create havoc with your mental and physical health. The result could be divorce or a heart attack or both. I realized that I was escaping into a world of “hustle and bustle.”
The person who always wants to play may suffer a similar fate. The spouse tires of supporting the family, and unless he is financially burdened, his money dries up and he is ruined. You wreak havoc on your physical health by worrying about money and paying bills. This person is not taking a break; They’re escaping to a Peter Pan land… where they’ll never have to grow up.
The “busy body” must take a break to reunite and regroup and become one with its inner power. The “slacker” must take a break from his game and retire to a higher knowledge that will guide him to a more productive and fulfilling life.
What is always needed is time to sit, think, meditate… to be at peace. One must learn to be still and be one with God. What you do is withdraw from the outer activities of the world, as well as from your own inner conflicts.
Brunton wrote: “The needs of external life have a right to be satisfied in their place, but they have no right to dominate a person’s whole attention.” Regarding working or playing too much, Brunton continues: “These are insufficient reasons for a person to go through life with no thoughts other than those of bodily needs or financial exertion. There is still room for other kinds of thinking, those related to with the mysterious, elusive and subtle thing, which is the divine soul.The years go by and one cannot afford such a waste of time, cannot afford to be so extroverted at the cost of having lost contact with the inner life. ”
One must get in touch with that inner life. That inner being, the individual “I Am” of the Universal “I Am”. You do it by taking a break… giving yourself the luxury of communicating with God from within.
You don’t need anyone’s permission. You already have permission to do so from the highest power. As it says in Hebrews 4: “There remains, then, a rest for the people of God. For he who has entered into his rest, he also has rested from his own works, as God from his.”
In Isaiah 30 it says: “In return and rest you will be saved; in stillness and trust will be your strength.”
As Buddha said: “Dedicate yourself to that stillness of the heart that springs from within, not reject the ecstasy of contemplation; look through things, be very alone.”
Again, you don’t need anyone’s permission to take a break. You don’t need to feel guilty about taking time off from the chaos and confusion of our world. You must retire to your inner chamber and close the door. You must take the time to align with your inner power.
Let me close with another Brunton quote: “While one looks, the more focused one’s attention, the deeper one sinks into ever finer thoughts, honoring not only the visible sun without, but also the invisible soul within.” .
Honor the power of God. Honor your inner being. Stay still… and take a break.