LIFE IS TO BE LIVED…
NOT ANALYZED
There is a place for thinking.
There is a place for planning.
There is a place for reflection.
But there comes a point when thinking stops helping…
And starts preventing.
TOO MUCH THINKING CAUSES SHRINKING
LIFE IS TO BE LIVED…
NOT JUST ANALYZED
The human mind is a marvelous thing.
It can solve problems.
Create businesses.
Write books.
Build bridges.
Imagine futures.
Discover cures.
Understand mysteries.
But there is one thing the mind often does that works against us.
It thinks too much.
And when it does, it begins to shrink the very life it was designed to help us enjoy.
WHEN WE GO INSIDE
When we retreat into our minds, that becomes our world for the moment.
We leave the present.
We leave the now.
We leave the sights, sounds, people, opportunities, and adventures unfolding all around us.
Instead, we enter a private theater of assumptions, fears, memories, worries, regrets, and imagined outcomes.
Sometimes we go there looking for answers.
Sometimes we go there trying to escape.
Sometimes we believe that if we think hard enough, long enough, and deeply enough, life will finally reveal itself.
But life has a surprise waiting for us.
Life is often found outside the mind.
OBSERVING AND EXPLORING
Remaining objective, centered, aware, and present allows something wonderful to happen.
You begin to notice things.
People.
Opportunities.
Conversations.
Ideas.
Solutions.
Connections.
You start participating instead of merely contemplating.
You discover that many of the answers you were searching for were never inside your head to begin with.
They were waiting for you in the next conversation.
The next book.
The next experience.
The next act of courage.
The next step.
SEEK SIMPLICITY
One of the greatest Pearls is this:
Simplicity is not weakness.
It is wisdom.
Complication often masquerades as intelligence.
Meanwhile, simplicity quietly gets things done.
The more we fixate, obsess, and overanalyze, the more difficult simple decisions become.
Some of the greatest adventures of my life happened without a plan.
A spontaneous trip.
An unexpected conversation.
A chance meeting.
A sudden opportunity.
Life has a way of rewarding movement.
LET THE REAL YOU GO TO WORK
Deep within you are talents.
Abilities.
Skills.
Insights.
Instincts.
Experience.
Wisdom.
The moment you engage life, those things automatically report for duty.
They go to work.
Many people don’t trust that.
They believe they must think first, think longer, and then think some more.
Meanwhile, life is waiting.
In When Will Men Come Back Again? appears one of the most direct Pearls ever written:
“Life is meant for living, not thinking.”
That statement is worth sitting with.
Not because thinking is bad.
Because living is primary.
Thinking should support living.
Not replace it.
ANALYSIS PARALYSIS
There comes a point where thinking turns into hesitation.
Hesitation turns into delay.
Delay turns into fear.
Fear turns into inactivity.
Before long, years have passed.
Dreams remain dreams.
Plans remain plans.
Ideas remain ideas.
The person remains parked at the starting line.
The race was never lost.
It was never started.
FORGET YOURSELF
One of my favorite observations is that some of the best moments in life happen when we forget ourselves.
When we stop worrying about how we appear.
Stop worrying about what others think.
Stop rehearsing every possible outcome.
Stop calculating every risk.
Stop managing every impression.
And simply enter into life.
As I have written before:
Develop an interest in life as you see it; the people, things, literature, music—the world is rich with treasures, beautiful souls, and interesting people.
Forget yourself and great things happen.
THE PEARLS CONNECTION
The Pearls Series continually points readers toward LIFE, LOVE, INTIMACY, and PURPOSE.
All four require participation.
You cannot think your way into intimacy.
You cannot analyze your way into love.
You cannot theorize your way into purpose.
You must live them.
You must experience them.
You must enter into them.
One of the central messages found throughout PearlsForTheSoul.com is:
“You found me… now let’s find you.”
Finding yourself is not accomplished by hiding inside your thoughts.
It happens by engaging your life.
Meeting people.
Taking chances.
Making mistakes.
Learning lessons.
Sharing experiences.
Living fully.
WHAT THEN?
Think when it is time to think.
Plan when it is time to plan.
Reflect when it is time to reflect.
But when it is time to live…
Live.
Step forward.
Take the trip.
Make the call.
Write the book.
Start the business.
Ask the question.
Take the chance.
Speak the truth.
Because too much thinking causes shrinking.
And life was never intended to be observed from the sidelines.
It was meant to be lived.
— Richie
Pearls for the Soul
when you feed the soul, you feed everything.
https://pearlsforthesoul.com
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