Years ago I read a riveting book called Touching the Void which was made into an excellent doco. It tells the miraculous story of survival of Joe Simpson trapped in the Andes after falling down a crevasse, breaking his leg and then having to climb his way out. Here is a little excerpt.

“There was silence and snow…and me sitting there, taking it all in, accepting what I must try to achieve….It was as if there were two minds within me arguing the toss. The voice was clean and sharp and commanding. It was always right, and I listened to it when it spoke and acted on its decisions. The other mind rambled out a disconnected series of images, and memories and hopes, which I attended to in a daydream state as I set about obeying the orders of the voice. I had to get to the glacier…The voice told me exactly how to go about it, and I obeyed while my other mind jumped abstractly from one idea to another…..It didn’t seem to concern me that I was moving like a snail. So long as I obeyed the voice, then I would be alright.” 

Now this gives us a good insight into motivation and how easily we can waiver. We all know the feeling when we “know” what it is we must do. In times of stress we can give up and follow the rambling and disconnected mind, or we can listen to the certainty of the voice. The rambling mind is the one that buys the lotto ticket and dreams on. The voice is the reality of what you can achieve right now. If I don’t have that “knowing voice” within me then I don’t move – I understand that I can wait. Becoming a professional waiter is a good knack to have.

This applies to setting up goals in our life – losing weight, getting a new job, moving on in a relationship because your partner is driving you nuts. Follow the clean, sharp voice, not the rambling mind, and you are most of your way there. (it’s the opposite for creativity which will be in another post).

Meditation is an excellent way to help you to sort out what it is you truly need in your life and to stay focused on your goals.

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