# do you think to much....



## escorial (Jul 17, 2016)

[video=youtube_share;dTFDfR47dl4]https://youtu.be/dTFDfR47dl4[/video]


worked for me....

click on the title at the top dude....


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## Bloggsworth (Jul 17, 2016)

I never thunk in my life... I generally have 2 or three strands going on at the same time, makes straight thinking difficult, ADD without the hyperactivity. If I'm really concentrated I go deaf and have tunnel vision, but generally it's like having three or more televisions on at once - Sounds fun but isn't, as I miss the thread of conversations, lectures, programmes etc as my mind has taken a couple of words and run with them, sometimes miles away.


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## escorial (Jul 17, 2016)

thunk you


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## dither (Jul 17, 2016)

I  do.
I double think and over think everythink.
Would be interested in the vid but i don't have sound.


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## Jigawatt (Jul 17, 2016)

I have a blabby mind. I think everybody does. I gained command of my thoughts by becoming proficient at meditation. I began meditating as a teenager. In meditation I discovered critical thinking. I didn't know it was critical thinking at the time, because no one ever defined for me critical thinking, or even suggest to me to think about thinking. I didn't know at the time the concepts of subjective or objective thinking. But I saw during meditation my judgements and beliefs, and I recognized them to be a manifestation of my fears and desires. I saw how I could look at my fears and desires differently, and the judgement was not manifested. I saw this new way of thinking to be a better way of thinking because I was more accepting of things, and more open-minded. And I didn't expend mental energy trying to define or judge. I stopped believing in everything. I don't believe in UFO's. I don't believe in angels or demons. I don't even believe in evolution. Instead of believing or judging, I let the data speak. I accept things, if the data is there to support it. I accept evolution to be the most plausible explanation for the existence of life, because of fossils and the geological history of our Planet, along with the work of the scientific community. But I'm not afraid to say, "I don't know." I have a blabby mind, but I've learned to disconnect and let the ramblings fade into the background.


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## escorial (Jul 17, 2016)

Jigawatt said:


> I have a blabby mind. I think everybody does. I gained command of my thoughts by becoming proficient at meditation. I began meditating as a teenager. In meditation I discovered critical thinking. I didn't know it was critical thinking at the time, because no one ever defined for me critical thinking, or even suggest to me to think about thinking. I didn't know at the time the concepts of subjective or objective thinking. But I saw during meditation my judgements and beliefs, and I recognized them to be a manifestation of my fears and desires. I saw how I could look at my fears and desires differently, and the judgement was not manifested. I saw this new way of thinking to be a better way of thinking because I was more accepting of things, and more open-minded. And I didn't expend mental energy trying to define or judge. I stopped believing in everything. I don't believe in UFO's. I don't believe in angels or demons. I don't even believe in evolution. Instead of believing or judging, I let the data speak. I accept things, if the data is there to support it. I accept evolution to be the most plausible explanation for the existence of life, because of fossils and the geological history of our Planet, along with the work of the scientific community. But I'm not afraid to say, "I don't know." I have a blabby mind, but I've learned to disconnect and let the ramblings fade into the background.




that's cool man...i think we all need time away from ourselves and i'm sure there are many ways to do that..it's just a case of finding what works for you..cool


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## bdcharles (Jul 17, 2016)

I used to overthink everything, to the point where it pretty much precluded any sort of action, and it is only recently that I have managed to sideline my ego (who I liken to a very jobsworthy, very stressed micromanager) and just let myself be. I've never felt happier. A large part of it though is not being around people who I consider negative, and around whom I'm always having to watch myself. I would rather be by myself than that.


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## escorial (Jul 17, 2016)

bdcharles said:


> I used to overthink everything, to the point where it pretty much precluded any sort of action, and it is only recently that I have managed to sideline my ego (who I liken to a very jobsworthy, very stressed micromanager) and just let myself be. I've never felt happier. A large part of it though is not being around people who I consider negative, and around whom I'm always having to watch myself. I would rather be by myself than that.



yeah dude....you figured it out for you..cool


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## Patrick (Jul 17, 2016)

Hadn't given it much thought.


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## Olly Buckle (Jul 17, 2016)

Isn't 'thinking too much' an oxymoron? Worry too much, sure, people do that, but most barely think at all, never mind too much. When they say 'I think' they mean 'I have a received opinion that I have not thought about much at all' in my experience.


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## ppsage (Jul 17, 2016)

I don't know where much is, but if I did, I'm pretty sure I could think myself there.


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## Plasticweld (Jul 17, 2016)

I have come to the conclusion that thinking too much is a weakness rather than a strength.  For my employees I have come up with a simple analogy of what it takes to make it in business, or at least in the types of business I am in. 


I want to be able to punch one of my employees, knock them to the floor and have them get up swinging.  I don't want them to lay on the floor and ask why, wonder what they did wrong or wonder if I am nuts.  I want them to fight back, I want their first instinct to come at me swinging. 


It may sound crude, it may sound simplistic.  From my point of view I am in a tough business, logging and construction.  Nothing goes right, every thing is  a fight and certainly nothing is ever fair or just.  The weather is against you, the work is down right physically hard, you have to deal with regulatory agency's that seem as though their only goal is to put you out of business.  The markets are fickle and as soon as you seem to find something that works and pays well, someone pulls the rug out from under you. 


All of that negative stuff a side, if you have the grit, have the balls to push forward and fight like there is no tomorrow you can do very well.  If you think your going to coast, take it easy or ever get what you deserved you are going to be sadly disappointed.  Show me a fighter, show me someone that is not discouraged when things go wrong or throws in the towel on tough day and I will show you a winner in life.   


A smart man would know better, think about all of the obstacles involved and quit before even getting started, they would have thought this whole thing though and thought it was all bullshit anyway. 



On a side note I get weekly requests by those looking for work, I have a reputation for paying very well and also expecting a lot in return.   You could ask any of those guys if they were smart or over thought the whole concept of working for me...just don't be surprised if they smack you around a little if they don't like the way you asked :}


I am looking for winners, I am not sure that thinking everything through is compatible, for you truly to win you must take chances and take a certain level of risk.  That balance may be hard to find but for me I am pretty sure that if someone described themselves as a deep thinker or calculated every option I doubt I would be talking to him for very long.


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## dale (Jul 17, 2016)

thinking is fine. but stressing over your own thinking can cause insanity.


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## Morrigan (Jul 17, 2016)

Jigawatt said:


> I have a blabby mind. I think everybody does. I gained command of my thoughts by becoming proficient at meditation. I began meditating as a teenager. In meditation I discovered critical thinking. I didn't know it was critical thinking at the time, because no one ever defined for me critical thinking, or even suggest to me to think about thinking. I didn't know at the time the concepts of subjective or objective thinking. But I saw during meditation my judgements and beliefs, and I recognized them to be a manifestation of my fears and desires. I saw how I could look at my fears and desires differently, and the judgement was not manifested. I saw this new way of thinking to be a better way of thinking because I was more accepting of things, and more open-minded. And I didn't expend mental energy trying to define or judge. I stopped believing in everything. I don't believe in UFO's. I don't believe in angels or demons. I don't even believe in evolution. Instead of believing or judging, I let the data speak. I accept things, if the data is there to support it. I accept evolution to be the most plausible explanation for the existence of life, because of fossils and the geological history of our Planet, along with the work of the scientific community. But I'm not afraid to say, "I don't know." I have a blabby mind, but I've learned to disconnect and let the ramblings fade into the background.



I too immediately thought of meditation when I saw this.  Funny though how we as beings are all so different.  Your journey seems to have taken you to a place in which you have stopped believing, where as mine has taken me to a place in which I believe in things most readily.  I love to hear about the versatility of the mind and soul.


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## escorial (Jul 18, 2016)

Olly Buckle said:


> Isn't 'thinking too much' an oxymoron? Worry too much, sure, people do that, but most barely think at all, never mind too much. When they say 'I think' they mean 'I have a received opinion that I have not thought about much at all' in my experience.



you are a wordsmith Olly.....cool


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## escorial (Jul 18, 2016)

ppsage said:


> I don't know where much is, but if I did, I'm pretty sure I could think myself there.



not sure what you mean by much PP...?


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## escorial (Jul 18, 2016)

dale said:


> thinking is fine. but stressing over your own thinking can cause insanity.




one gets the feeling your coming from personal experience dude...


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## escorial (Jul 18, 2016)

Plasticweld said:


> I have come to the conclusion that thinking too much is a weakness rather than a strength.  For my employees I have come up with a simple analogy of what it takes to make it in business, or at least in the types of business I am in.
> 
> 
> I want to be able to punch one of my employees, knock them to the floor and have them get up swinging.  I don't want them to lay on the floor and ask why, wonder what they did wrong or wonder if I am nuts.  I want them to fight back, I want their first instinct to come at me swinging.
> ...



you always come at things with your own perspective...the saying glass half full or half empty...seems to be a theme in alot of your writing..cool


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## dither (Jul 18, 2016)

escorial said:


> that's cool man...i think we all need time away from ourselves and i'm sure there are many ways to do that..it's just a case of finding what works for you..cool



And how?


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## dither (Jul 18, 2016)

Plasticweld said:


> I have come to the conclusion that thinking too much is a weakness rather than a strength.  For my employees I have come up with a simple analogy of what it takes to make it in business, or at least in the types of business I am in.
> 
> 
> I want to be able to punch one of my employees, knock them to the floor and have them get up swinging.  I don't want them to lay on the floor and ask why, wonder what they did wrong or wonder if I am nuts.  I want them to fight back, I want their first instinct to come at me swinging.
> ...



PW,

You  wouldn't want to know me personally and you  certainly wouldn't employ me.
I can't tick any of your boxes.

"Thinking a weakness"?

Yes, maybe.
But a barrier yes.
I suppose that for me it's an excuse for never trying anything. It's  prison and a hiding place.


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## dither (Jul 18, 2016)

dale said:


> thinking is fine. but stressing over your own thinking can cause insanity.



Tell me about it.


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## Sam (Jul 18, 2016)

There's a story about a Buddhist monk requesting to speak with the Buddha about his problems. Being a benevolent man, the Buddha consents to this audience, whereupon the young man asks: 

"Master, I've been a monk for many years now, but yet I still feel as though there's something missing. I still suffer." 
"You suffer because you desire, and you desire because you suffer."

With a gesture of his hand, the Buddha instructed the young monk that the audience was over, leaving him bewildered. In the days that followed, the monk set about eradicating desire entirely from his life. He ripped up the roots, cut out the heart, and stomped on every bit of desire that existed within him. A few weeks later, confident that every remnant had been removed, he decided to return to the Buddha. On the trip there, however, he began feeling that nothing had changed. He still felt the same way as he had weeks earlier. When the Buddha agreed to see him again, the monk said: 

"Master, I don't understand. I have removed and eradicated all desire from my life, but yet I don't feel any different."
"Ah, but you haven't removed desire from your life. Now, you're merely desiring to not desire." 

If you have ever done or been involved with meditation, this anecdote may be familiar to you. The Buddha's message for the young monk was not so much that desire should be eradicated, but that it is impossible to remove all desire from one's life, anymore than it's possible to voluntarily stop breathing. This story is often told to people who start meditating for the first time and consciously set out to not think during meditation. But by thinking about not thinking, they are in fact thinking. It's impossible to stop. It's only when you learn to accept that you cannot stop thinking that you actually stop thinking.

One of the reasons why people think so much in modern life is because everything happens at a hundred miles an hour. The brain never gets any downtime, because even when you are watching television or reading a book, your brain is still active. Even when you're sleeping, your brain is active, arguably more so than when you're awake. You constantly think because your brain is constantly on the go, 24/7, 365 days of the year. It is for this reason that I, if I were running a large firm, would have a thirty-minute break at noon for meditation. And I would probably be laughed and scoffed at by other firms, but I would say to them in return: 

When is the last time you sat and contemplated nothing?


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## Sam (Jul 18, 2016)

Oh, goody. 

The new-page gremlin is back. *Sigh*


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## escorial (Jul 18, 2016)

Sam said:


> There's a story about a Buddhist monk requesting to speak with the Buddha about his problems. Being a benevolent man, the Buddha consents to this audience, whereupon the young man asks:
> 
> "Master, I've been a monk for many years now, but yet I still feel as though there's something missing. I still suffer."
> "You suffer because you desire, and you desire because you suffer."
> ...



i went to a meditation class just the once..small symbols and incense burning away...your thoughts are like a cloud lifting from the mountain top..stuff...it was enjoyable and funny to me but not my thing....i would so like to contemplate nothing more and i'm heading that way..in the sense that not to think that what your thinking about has to have a point or a why attached to it..pointless thinking is a nice place for me and i want to do more of it....cheers man


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## Sam (Jul 18, 2016)

You don't need to go to a class, though. 

I do all my meditation at home. Half an hour every day. It's a simple as pulling the curtains in a room, lighting a candle, and focusing on that flame while repeating a mantra in your head. Sure, thoughts will cut in now and again, but after a while you'll forget about them. 

People often say to me when I tell them that I meditate: "I didn't know you were religious." 

I'm not. Most religions are talkative. That is to say, you go there to say prayers aloud, or listen to a sermon spoken aloud. But meditation is contemplative. You don't have to say or do anything. You merely have to exist. The word comes from the Latin _meditari, _"to contemplate". And that's all it is: you sit and contemplate nothing. 

You don't have to be religious, spiritual, and nor do you need to take a class on it either.


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## escorial (Jul 18, 2016)

Sam said:


> You don't need to go to a class, though.
> 
> I do all my meditation at home. Half an hour every day. It's a simple as pulling the curtains in a room, lighting a candle, and focusing on that flame while repeating a mantra in your head. Sure, thoughts will cut in now and again, but after a while you'll forget about them.
> 
> ...




yeah...i get that..cool


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## Schrody (Jul 18, 2016)

This is a thread for me, I'm almost obsessed with possibilities...


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## escorial (Jul 18, 2016)

Schrody said:


> This is a thread for me, I'm almost obsessed with possibilities...



yes...not sure if you are a patient or a shrink


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## Patrick (Jul 18, 2016)

The problem with all these spiritual guides is they spend all their time thinking about themselves, and they can babble on about themselves for as long as an Ent deciding on today's dinner. And then they tell you they've found the solution to the ego. Ha! Jesus would just tell you to love the Lord and others with your life. It's amazing what a difference it makes when you start thinking about others more.

I really have no time for all this self-help rubbish.


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## escorial (Jul 18, 2016)

Patrick said:


> The problem with all these spiritual guides is they spend all their time thinking about themselves, and they can babble on about themselves for as long as an Ent deciding on today's dinner. And then they tell you they've found the solution to the ego. Ha! Jesus would just tell you to love the Lord and others with your life. It's amazing what a difference it makes when you start thinking about others more.
> 
> I really have no time for all this self-help rubbish.



self-awerness as opposed to self help would be my goal..you may be comfortable and content with who you are..i don't know but for me a bit of selfishness could have helped me more in the past.....


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## Sam (Jul 18, 2016)

Patrick said:


> The problem with all these spiritual guides is they spend all their time thinking about themselves, and they can babble on about themselves for as long as an Ent deciding on today's dinner. And then they tell you they've found the solution to the ego. Ha! Jesus would just tell you to love the Lord and others with your life. It's amazing what a difference it makes when you start thinking about others more.
> 
> I really have no time for all this self-help rubbish.



Who said anything about self-help?


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## dither (Jul 18, 2016)

I was going to say " i wish i could be helped "  but i don't think i could face it. That would be one helluva mountain to climb.


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## Ultraroel (Jul 18, 2016)

PW, you remind me of the Chocolate Chief Executive at Tony's Chocolonely.

He didn't care what I did at the office, or when I came in or left..
As long as the job was done as good as I possibly could do it. Someone who is looking for intrinsic motivation instead of people who just wait for orders and follow them punctually.

Love the guy, love the company.

Www.tonyschocolonely.com


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## Patrick (Jul 18, 2016)

Sam said:


> Who said anything about self-help?



It's all self-help, self-realisation, new-age malarkey.


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## dither (Jul 18, 2016)

Patrick said:


> It's all self-help, self-realisation, new-age malarkey.



Call it what you will Patrick, i wish i could have been re-wired.


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## Patrick (Jul 18, 2016)

dither said:


> Call it what you will Patrick, i wish i could have been re-wired.



None of us is what he would like to be, not ideally. What does sitting around wishing for things to be otherwise achieve? Stephen Fry would like to have Cristiano Ronaldo's looks and physical ability. He got quick wits (though I am not impressed with the way he uses his) instead. That's life, my friend; it doesn't stop to honour any of our wishes. There's no respite in looking inward the whole time. Open your eyes to the world around you and other people, and you will find yourself wishing you were otherwise a bit less.

Wisdom cries aloud in the street...


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## dither (Jul 18, 2016)

I get what you're saying and how can i disagree?
But i'd rather not go there, just seeing out my time now.


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## Patrick (Jul 18, 2016)

dither said:


> I get what you're saying and how can i disagree?
> But i'd rather not go there, just seeing out my time now.



Stop dithering, man. :^)


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## dither (Jul 18, 2016)

Patrick,

i was about to delete my last post.
I'm hijacking another thread with my negativity.

When i start my bitching and whining, as what was that famous actor's name, said, " somebody stop me. "

Apologies all.


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## Patrick (Jul 18, 2016)

dither said:


> Patrick,
> 
> i was about to delete my last post.
> I'm hijacking another thread with my negativity.
> ...



It's OK.


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## ppsage (Jul 18, 2016)

escorial said:


> not sure what you mean by much PP...?


Just aother friendly grammar reminder.


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## Schrody (Jul 18, 2016)

ppsage said:


> Just aother friendly grammar reminder.



Your post is rather ironic :lol:


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## Schrody (Jul 18, 2016)

escorial said:


> yes...not sure if you are a patient or a shrink
> 
> View attachment 14896




If my mind wasn't so hyperactive, I wouldn't be a writer...


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## Sam (Jul 18, 2016)

Patrick said:


> It's all self-help, self-realisation, new-age malarkey.



What is all self-help, self-realisation, new-age malarkey? 

What are you talking about?


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## Patrick (Jul 18, 2016)

Sam said:


> What is all self-help, self-realisation, new-age malarkey?
> 
> What are you talking about?



Eckhart Tolle's teaching.


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## Sam (Jul 18, 2016)

Patrick said:


> Eckhart Tolle's teaching.



Is that the guy in the video at the beginning of this thread? I didn't even watch it. 

I agree with what you're saying, but what I'm saying is that you don't need teachings, classes, nor do you even need to read the Bhagavad Gita or the Buddhist scriptures. What I was talking about was meditation: the simple act of sitting and contemplating nothing. People scoff at it all the time, but you would be amazed how much white noise is in your life. It becomes more apparent when you sit down to meditate.


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## Patrick (Jul 18, 2016)

Sam said:


> Is that the guy in the video at the beginning of this thread? I didn't even watch it.
> 
> I agree with what you're saying, but what I'm saying is that you don't need teachings, classes, nor do you even need to read the Bhagavad Gita or the Buddhist scriptures. What I was talking about was meditation: the simple act of sitting and contemplating nothing. People scoff at it all the time, but you would be amazed how much white noise is in your life. It becomes more apparent when you sit down to meditate.



He is the man in the video. I wasn't referring to you when I said what I said. I just assumed you'd watched the video in the op and would know what I was talking about.


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## Smith (Jul 27, 2016)

Everything has an inside and outside. That is to say, with thinking too much, there must be thinking too little.

And so the objective is to find the middle, because life is always a balance. You can't find a balance, by thinking about not thinking. Sort of a paradox.

It happens in and of itself.

---

As for this "new-age malarkey", I don't know much about this Tolle guy... there seems to be truth and good naturedness to him though. But I always apply a quote by Alan Watts.

"Anybody who tells you that he has some way of leading you to spiritual enlightenment is like somebody who picks your pocket and sells you your own watch."


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## The Green Shield (Jul 27, 2016)

Yeah, I tend to overthink a lot of things.


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## dither (Jul 27, 2016)

We've all seen the T-Shirts,,, J.F.D.I.

Oh i wish.


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## escorial (Aug 7, 2016)

i've noticed lately in the blog section that some heavy thoughts are being expressed..two that come to mind are Smith and kaminoshiyo....so you pop in and put down your stuff which is cool but i've been looking into Albert Camus recently and some of his thoughts seem to echo along these lines of thought expressed here..which i find a very pleasing coincidence...yeah


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## JustRob (Aug 7, 2016)

I tried to watch the video in the OP but he talked so slowly that I was soon dozing off and anyway I was so involved in the now that I turned it off halfway through, mainly because my angel reminded me about something that I had forgotten to do this morning. 

Tolle appears to be talking about conscious thought, which is something that I prefer to avoid, delegating all the serious stuff to my subconscious mind. That seems to have served me well over my lifetime and it's a better approach than consciously working hard. Some (er, make that many) people think that I overthink things, but that's only from their perspective. My subconscious appears to be able to think things through in a way that even I don't understand, so I just let it run its course. 

I regard the primary task of the conscious mind as being the interface between the senses and the subconscious, so I assume that that is what Tolle means by focussing on now. It has become evident to me over recent years that the subconscious mind does not focus on the present but wanders into both the past and future to achieve what it does, as often they are the areas where most of the relevant information lies. Therefore now can be a blissful oasis of calm where I can consciously acquire new information at a leisurely pace and act when action is necessary. 

I suspect that many people aren't able to deal with their lives in this way because they haven't been honest enough with themselves about their true intentions, so their subconscious minds may be at loggerheads with their conscious thoughts. That is a fundamental principle which governs many everyday activities. For example, one cannot succeed in dieting or giving up smoking if one hasn't honestly registered an intention to do so with one's subconscious. After being a lifelong smoker my father-in-law just decided to stop one day and never smoked again. Equally my angel understands this principle of mentally registering an intention, which is why she has always kept her figure by dieting sensibly. Somewhere within one's mind there is a place where something can state with the authority of Jean-Luc Picard "Make it so!" and it just happens. It's just a matter of finding that place and that button to push.

As you may be aware (If you aren't, where have you been?) several years ago I drafted out a novel without giving it very much thought. At a critical point in that story a group of people discover that there is nothing practical that they can do to get out of their predicament except to convince themselves at the deepest level of their minds that they will. Then, in the words of the old Dick Barton stories, "with one bound they were free!" Shortly after they discover the true nature of the _deus ex machina _that freed them, which is nothing more than exactly that to all intents and purposes. 

In summary, I think that the important things to think about in life are the fundamentals of what sort of person one truly wants to be, one's attitudes and intentions and how well one's abilities match up to those. After that thoughts tend to fall into place and there is no such thing as overthinking, even though sometimes one may be aware that something complex is happening at the back of one's mind to fulfil those intentions. That's my experience anyway and the bottom line is simply to experience life.


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## escorial (Aug 7, 2016)

so you think sub and conscious amount to the same thing..whether you want to or not..?


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## JustRob (Aug 7, 2016)

escorial said:


> so you think sub and conscious amount to the same thing..whether you want to or not..?



Life is easier when one is of one mind, certainly. Inner conflict is best resolved. Achieving that can be a rocky road though, maybe too rough for some.


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## escorial (Aug 7, 2016)

JustRob said:


> Life is easier when one is of one mind, certainly. Inner conflict is best resolved. Achieving that can be a rocky road though, maybe too rough for some.



one mind as opposed to the illusion of having two....it sounds so logical but i guess many out there would disagree with such a notion...or fact


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