Nature will always be the best teacher
Are animals smart enough to tell us how to be productive?
When I was growing up, I used to own a cat who was literally like a younger brother to me, yet knew even as a child that he wasn’t like me nor could he relate to me in any way.
But what often fascinated me was how relaxed, laid back and straight forward my cat actually was – When he was hungry, he would eat. When he was tired, he would sleep. When he was acting mischievous, he would act it out with complete consistency.
This often made for a very interesting dynamic in my household where getting stuff done was often a momentous task. Ranging from arguments, procrastination and downright laziness.
Yet here my cat was, acting out his daily duties with complete ease and simply doing what all cats do.
It often made me wonder why animals seem to live life so much more easily than humans. Why is it the case?
Having read books on what makes us so different from every other animal, it’s pretty clear that our logical mind and our ability as a species to adapt is perhaps what makes things so complicated.
On one hand we have our nature, which is no different to most animals yet on the other hand we have our logic, which can be manipulated and changed through society and other external influences.
And having thought about it, it’s made us completely lose connection with who we really are as a species.
It made me wonder.
What if I was able to live my life like my cat?
What could I achieve in my life?
Where would I be?
What would I do?
What’s actually stopping me?
The above questions are things I encourage anyone to ask themselves because it encourages you to literally force yourself to take a good hard look at your current circumstances and to see whether what you’re doing in your life right now is what you ought to be doing.
Perhaps the greatest gift and the greatest curse we ever have is in our ability to think.
We’re able to build skyscrapers, find cures for diseases and travel to the moon, and yet are able to destroy ourselves by doubting in our own abilities and becoming our own slaves.
So what’s the deal?
I know for a fact that in these last few months, I haven’t done my utmost to make the most of my time in order to achieve the things I would like to achieve for this year.
And when I look at what’s really stopping me. It’s clear that there’s really nothing stopping me or any of us besides us.
The destination between where we are and where we want to be really is a straight line. The walls and barriers that seem in the way isn’t really there to begin with. It’s simply our limiting beliefs and our own negativity and doubt that does it.
Every day is a battle that has to be won. And our crowning achievement is simply a daily reminder to tell us that we can do it.
It amazes me that as a species, we’re able to dominate the world yet seem to battle with ourselves, unlike the rest of the animal kingdom who simply just get on with it.
This leads me onto the following suggestions, which will not be for everyone:
1) If you’re holding yourself back. Empty your mind and just do it anyway
In the last few years, i’ve undertaken activities where I was literally doubtful as to whether it would work or not. And i’ve often surprised myself when I proved myself wrong.
Like a cat who curiously surveys their surroundings and venturing into the unknown, don’t be afraid to push your limits. You never know what you will learn about yourself in the process.
2) Discard to-do lists and just do what you need to do.
To be completely honest, to-do lists for me have been a complete waste of time. It’s never worked for me and have never stuck by them. The truth is, all of us know deep down what we need to do and how to get there.
If you honestly have a desire to do something, simply get off your ass right this minute and get started.
3) Review and ask yourself if you’ve done your best for the day.
Be hard on yourself. Have you lived out your day to the fullest? Have you done all you can to make progress with your goals?
The fact is, most of us simply do not work hard enough and often trick ourselves into believing we have by surfing the web, checking emails and browsing our Facebook news feed.
What would you do if you didn’t think? Act on your instincts and get on with it. You know what you’ve got to do.
It’s easy for me to write about this and know full well how challenging it is each day to battle with yourself to make stuff happen. I get it.
But maybe as an experiment, try owning a pet in your house and see how you compare to them. Observe their actions and see how productive they really are.
Becoming a master of yourself and achieving really is as effortless as it ought to be. All it really takes is getting out of our own way to make it happen.
What have you learned about yourself? please leave your comments below…
photo credit: hidden side
