In our modern society, ‘time’ has become one of our biggest stressors. At some stages of life, it might feel as though there is never enough time to do what we need to do. Often we don’t know where the time has gone, the years pass by so fast. At other stages, time may weigh heavily upon us. The days and the hours can seem interminable- and we don’t know what to do with all our time. As crazy as this may sound, I am going to suggest that the antidote to time stress is intentional non-doing, and that non-doing is applicable whether we are suffering from not having enough time, or suffering from having too much time. The challenge here is for us to put this proposition to the test in our own lives, and to see whether our relationship to time can be transformed through the practice of non-doing.

If you feel completely overwhelmed by the pressures of time, you might wonder how it could possibly help to take time away from what you have to do in order to practice non-doing– and on the other hand, if you are feeling bored and isolated, and have nothing but time on your hands, you might wonder how it could possibly help to fill this burden of time unfilled with “nothing”. The answer is rather simple… inner peace exists outside of conventional time.

If we can commit ourselves to spending some time each day in inner stillness even if it’s just for 2 minutes, or 5, or 10… for those moments we are stepping out of the flow of time altogether. The calmness, relaxation, and centering that come from letting go of time can transform our experience of time when we go back into it… then it becomes possible to flow along with time during our day rather than constantly fighting against it, or feeling driven by it simply by bringing awareness to our present moment experience.

When our day becomes suffused with a clear awareness grounded in the present moment, we transcend the normal pressures of time. So if we are pressed for time, being in the present gives us more time by giving us back the fullness of each moment. No matter what is happening, we can be centered in perceiving and accepting things as they are… then we can be aware of what still needs to be done in the future without it causing us undue anxiety or loss of perspective… and we can move to do it with our doing coming out of our being… out of peace… and into making better, more intentional and contextually appropriate choices (decisions).

Time and the clock drive us from one thing to the next. It has become a way of life for many of us to be driven every day by all of our obligations and responsibilities. Routinely take PAUSE to simply BE and you’ll FREE yourself from the tyranny of time while living in the present more of the time.

In our everyday lives, we tend to waste inordinate amounts of time & energy musing about the past and worrying about the future. The essence of mindfulness in daily life is to make every moment you have your own… it’s the practice of pause. Take time each day to intentionally “be”… to meditate, reflect, and to slow time down itself… to STEP OUT and to STEP BACK IN. Calmness and clarity unfold from protecting our time to be still… seeing is being and being is seeing when purposefully living in the present moment. Try it and see for yourself…

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