It is a gift to be certain about something in today’s world. Humans are more distracted and stressed out than ever before (Piao et. al, 2024) especially with the amount of inputs most of us are processing on a daily basis. Most of us navigate life in a reactive manner, relying on bite-sized pieces of information to aid us in making split-second decisions about which email to answer first or what’s for dinner that night. Amongst all the hubbub of today’s modern 21st century life, how is it that anyone manages to feel sure about anything we’re doing? It’s all just one big “fly-by-the-seat-of-our-pants” sort of world nowadays.

As exciting and efficient our modern society has become, we have traded in our sanity and mental clarity for the cost of progress. ChatGPT has all but replaced the process of quiet introspection. Consumer advertising has made us devoid of knowing what we really want. What’s worse is the tendency to compare ourselves to others, which is stealing our sense of self faster than we can put our finger on it. When did we stop navigating life using our personal agency as a compass?

I think that the gift of certainty in today’s world is enduring a quiet death that is killing us softly. So what do we do?

The good thing is: the hope of certainty is not lost. A common thread of the human spirit exists in us all. It is that same tangible yet elusive thread of life that weaves the love of connection and vocation in our hearts. This same essence is what informs our enjoyment in art, music, literature, creation and vocation. It is a universal lifeforce that takes on its own unique shape and color depending on its lifeforce. All we have to do is tap into it…

…but how? Who has the time! Ah, yes. The ever-present question of “When can I make the time?” is what plagues us all. That’s where our individual pursuits come in: finding a way means making a concerted effort to find the way.

Finding certainty in your heart and in your life has a lot to do with cutting out unnecessary distractions. It’s all about tapping in to our actual thoughts. We all know we’re on our phones too much. We probably watch too much Netflix or spend too much time listening to noise. Instead of listing out all the reasons why – just put your phones down. Spend the two minutes brushing your teeth looking in the mirror. Turn off Apply Play in the car and just drive. Leave your phone in the other room when you’re eating. That’s a good start.

Maybe in the span of those two minutes, you’ll tap into something cool or special that you want to share with others. Maybe a song you like will pop into your head. Maybe you’ll get your next big idea. Or maybe you’ll ponder that to-do list you’ve been putting off a while. Maybe you’ll decide on your next big trip. Maybe you’ll remember something you forgot about a while ago. Maybe, you’ll even get the gift of quiet! Don’t hold any expectations – just see what happens.

The other thing is asking ourselves earnest questions as we move through the day. If you’re feeling anxious about something, do a scan of your day (or week) and ask yourself what it is – don’t just hide from it. If something doesn’t feel right, study it – ask yourself what it is that doesn’t feel right about it. The next and most important thing is: do not cast judgement on the answer or its source of truth. Facts and feelings alike inform the paradigms we possess about the world. If we dismiss our instincts or emotions as “irrelevant,” or “illogical,” then we are dismissing our inner truth. Consider the source, yes – then move on.

What we’re looking to achieve here is not to solve the world’s problems in a day. We are simply taking space in the pockets of time within our daily routines to actually exist with our thoughts instead of covering them up with distractions. I truly believe that if each of us spent twenty minutes a day doing this, we would be a lot more mindful of a society as a whole. What’s the worst thing that could happen – you get bored? Seriously… so what?

Over time, though, if you really stick to it and make a commitment to spend time with yourself and check in with your thoughts, I’ll bet you’ll notice that you feel a lot more sure of yourself and less apt to question your decisions. Nothing in life is certain, but I think that we can achieve a greater sense of personal agency if we commit to it. There is nothing “wrong” or “selfish” about being in the quiet alone of our thoughts. In fact, I think it is essential to shaping our lives the way we wish and being part of our society in a meaningful way. Isn’t that what we want for each other?

So, go ahead – you have my permission. Tune out all the bullshit and start regaining your sense of self today.

Reference:

Piao, Xiangdan, Jun Xie, and Shunsuke Managi. “Continuous Worsening of Population Emotional Stress Globally: Universality and Variations.” BMC public health, December 23, 2024. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11668040/.