“Waiting is not just an empty hope, it is the confidence to reach the goal.” ~ I Ching
The wait – in our estimation, many days – is a bad day for modern society. It’s not surprising that I had to look up ancient Chinese texts (the Yi Qing) To find an appropriate quote to start this article. We do not like to wait! It’s easier to find quotes on the internet about “capturing the day” and Making Something happened.
I have been patient all my life. I want everything to happen to me! I have a specific agenda in my 20s: graduating from college, starting a career, getting married and starting a family. That’s why I declared myself a master and started my closure Goal. When it was “time” to get married, I chose the most suitable person available and went on with it.
I really do not know much about waiting. I think it’s what you do if you do not have the courage or confidence. It is just an excuse not to take action. I know better now.
What I have learned since then is that waiting is one of the most powerful tools we have for creating the life we want.
Ego or mind is not easy to wait. This is the part of those who shout for justice. “Do something! Anything is better than nothing!” And since we are a selfish society, you will see a lot of external voices backing up that message.
It hates uncertainty, and it prefers to make mistakes rather than live in a state of “ignorance” while the path lies.
There is a word I love that describes this place of uncertainty: a small degree. The gap is at the boundary or level between the possibilities. It is a place of pure potential: we can go anywhere from here. There are no bright lights and clear signs that say “Walk this way”.
Gaps can be very uncomfortable and most of us tend to rush through them as fast as possible.
If we can slow down, the landscape will gradually become clearer, the way your eyes adapt to a dark room. We start using all our emotions. I want a bright boulevard for the future, but real life is like a swamp. We take one or two steps in a certain direction and then face another turning point. Our advancement requires a completely different skill set and the wait is one of the most important.
There is a right time for everything and often it is not the time we want (now or maybe yesterday). There are things that happen on a subconscious level in ourselves and in others that prepare us for the next step. Strangely, the time has come to do so, but there is an inevitable feeling about it, as it always means to do so.
Look back at your life and you will see this pattern. First, look at the decisions you have made. How did that become? Then look for when you just “know” what to do regardless of it. What happened then?
The key to the second type of decision is Wait For a deep sense of inner awareness.
That does not mean you are sure that things will turn out the way you want. Or that you do not feel scared. But there is a feeling of “yes, now is the time” in your body that I liken to the urge that migratory birds receive when it is time to leave the city. They do not stand around debating whether to consult maps and calendars. They just To When the time is right.
We are also animals – we have and can cultivate the inner feelings that enable us to know what to do at the right time. But to do that, we must withdraw from the heart. Thinking is useful up to a point, but usually we take it far beyond the useful point.
We go through many options and try to predict the future based on our hopes and fears.
We talk endlessly with others about what we should do, hoping they have the answer for us (and ideally try to get everyone to agree).
We think about what we should do based on a number of external measures, such as common sense, morality, religion, family values, finances, and so on.
And then we usually add it all up and just shoot our best.
A better way is to take what you know (and more importantly, what you Do not Know) and then … wait.
If there is some action calling you, even if it seems unrelated to the question at hand, do it! Then wait again for another urge to move. Actively wait rather than passively. That means keeping your inner feelings motivated or intuitive. Expect the answer to come. As Yi Qing Say wait with “the inner certainty of reaching a goal.”
This is not the kind of coercion and procrastination that happens to us. Want Try something new, but be afraid to step out into the unknown. If your intuition is pulling you in a certain direction and your mind is screaming at you to stop ignoring your thoughts.
There is a slight but real difference between fear (which prevents you from doing what you want to do) and confusion (which warns you that a decision that looks good on the surface is not right for you).
In both cases, look for and believe in the deepest feelings of inner awareness, even if your thoughts are telling you differently. A friend told me that her father’s best advice to her was “Deciding to get married should be the easiest decision of your life.” I want to know when I make my own decisions (not very clear)!
My head tells me this is a reasonable thing to do and he is a good person. However, my gut is far from the plane. I still vividly remember the many inner debates I made about whether to marry him or even the dreams I had that expressed my inner hesitation. Unfortunately, I went with my thoughts on my instincts.
Now I know this: if you have to talk to yourself about something, try to wait instead. More will be revealed if you give some time.
Ignore that voice in your head that says you have to make a decision Now. Do not rush through life. Sit in small spaces and see clearly when you sit with uncertainty. Learn to believe in the larger intestine than the head. Have faith that the right path will be revealed at the perfect time. And then when the time comes, do it as simple and natural as a flying bird.
