Posts Tagged With: waiting

How to Wait Less

Posted: 01 Oct 2012 07:58 AM PDT

‘How much of human life is lost in waiting?’ ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Post written by Leo Babauta.

So much of our lives are spent waiting.

We wait in lines, we wait for the perfect person, we can’t wait for our dreams to come true, we look forward to the day when we have a better body and a better life, we look for ways to make our goals become reality someday soon.

We wait. That good life is coming, and we’ll be there soon.

What if we stopped waiting, stopped trying to make dreams and goals come true, stopped wishing and anticipating? What if that good life is already here, and the only way to live it is to stop looking forward and notice what we already have?

If you are waiting for good things to happen — or are actively trying to make something good come true — take a pause. Look at where you are right now, in life and physically in this moment. Where are you? Is it already great? If so, why are you looking towards the future, when you’re already there?

And if we don’t think where we are is already great, perhaps we’re not paying close enough attention.

Three Things to Do Today

How do you stop waiting for good things to come? Three things you can do right now, today:

1. Slow down. Rushing means you miss what’s right here.
2. Pay attention. Look at what’s around you right now. Look at yourself, and how great you are. If it doesn’t seem great, look closer.
3. Applaud.

‘We never live; we are always in the expectation of living.’ ~Voltaire