Nothingness taught me to trust my deepest instincts. And this is how it all began. The year was 2009 and I decided to resign from my job. I don't know how sky diving or bungee jumping feels because I haven't done either. But when I quit my job, the free fall felt similar - only it seemed to last for some months. Surprisingly, in a good way. More like.....the thrill of doing something forbidden and enjoying every moment.
But quit I did. And how.
My husband and I spent a longish time living up in the mountains in India, doing things that appealed to us. I had no job, no plan for my career, and no remorse for being utterly unemployed. The results were nothing short of dramatic. Amazingly....I never missed my workplace (though they were fantastic to me), and neither did I have any withdrawal pangs of not buzzing along with a busy city. And I am a city girl.
Of course, it helped that I didn't wake up to go anywhere, the doorbell rang rarely, I stopped checking my mails compulsively, ate on time and ate healthy, and talked for long hours with those who really mattered in my life.
Being a free floating, unemployed soul went straight to my heart and gave it new life. Thoughts and ideas and bursts of creativity hit like never before. I wondered what part of me was happy with my daily grind all those years? Not that I waited for an answer...there was so much else to think and talk about.
To my absolute surprise my first book, Corporate Nirvana, flowed out of me after my brush with absolute freedom in that phase. It wasn't my plan to write or become an author. Ever. But I did begin writing, and it took shape one day at a time.
The deliciousness of doing nothing is a gift. Being terribly busy is not necessarily the mark of a successful person. Success is a deeper idea. When we meaningfully and happily suspend ourselves to flow with the current of life - tremendous things happen. We find some part of our true selves, detect our destinies, discover our motivations, ponder on our purpose, master our impulses, and realize what truly matters.
The mind and spirit have all the answers. Only.....it takes doing nothing to listen to their voice.
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