How often do you find yourself staring into space?
An untrue and unhelpful piece of received wisdom suggests that staring is a sign of slacking off, lack of focus, or being lost in a waking dream. What if it were something else entirely?
I found myself in the middle of a good stare recently. I’d been writing all morning, was in a lovely mood, and was happy with what presented itself to be written. And then, there I was, in the middle of a good stare.
I must have been in a curious mood (always a good sign) because rather than telling myself, “Snap out of it,” I let myself continue to stare. I let the stare take its course. Eventually, I became aware of letting my attention come back to my surroundings, and I noticed the strangest thing. I felt the way I did after I grabbed a twenty-minute nap. I was completely refreshed and focused. It was like I’d hit my reset button.
What if a good stare is just a reset button that lets you start fresh?
I’ve become convinced that’s exactly what it is. When you’re in the middle of a good stare you’ve gone into the silent, still place that’s the source of every new idea, every fresh thought, everything you will ever create.
When you’re in a good state, you’ve left the world of time and entered eternity. In other words, while you’re in your stare, time has no meaning. For time to exist, there has to be thought. Take away thought, and there is no such thing as time, there is only the naked, eternal now.
We can’t intentionally produce a stare any more than we can intentionally produce an actual yawn. We can do imitations of both, but we won’t get the same effect. You don’t decide to stare, you find yourself in the middle of one.
I’ve learned to take even the onset of a stare as a good sign because it means I’m willing to let my mind slow down and come back to a quieter condition where it can rest and reset itself.
That’s what my mind, your mind, and everyone’s mind is designed to do. When we fail to let our minds wind down, we quickly become anxious and overwhelmed. No one is at their best when they’re overwhelmed.
When you’re staring, you are swimming in unlimited possibilities, which is a great place to find yourself. If you catch yourself staring, let it play out. When you “come back” notice how you feel. That’s the reset button you may not have known about.
It’s a nice thing to have. Use it. Don’t waste it!
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