Chapter 5

Humans Being Versus Humans Doing

In This Chapter

arrow Finding out about the doing and being modes of mind

arrow Understanding the problems of obsessively doing

arrow Discovering how to shift modes

Human beings love doing stuff. You go to work, have hobbies, socialise, and become an adept multi-tasker trying to fit everything into the day. But what about the being in human being?

Every day, in everything you do, your mind switches between doing mode and being mode. This doesn’t mean that you switch between, say, typing an email and staring into space. Instead, it means being in the moment as you’re doing a task. One mode of mind isn’t better than the other. They’re both helpful in different ways. However, using the wrong mode of mind for a particular situation can cause difficulties.

In this chapter, I explain how spending some of your time just being has huge and far-reaching advantages. I also tell you how to ‘just be it’.

Delving into the Doing Mode of Mind

You know the feeling. You’ve got to get the kids ready, drop them off at school, pay the gas bill, pop that letter in the post, renew the car insurance, and make sure that you call your sister to see if she’s feeling better. You’re ...

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