The Power of the Pause

Allowing the inspiration to bubble up

When I take the time to settle and just be, I make more space for ideas and creativity to bubble up and pop. I discovered this seven years ago when I was writing my dissertation. I would complete a section and almost immediately I would say to myself, “Uh oh, I’m not sure where I’m going next.”

Believing I could “think” my way into and through the next section, I would start “doing” — Opening books looking for answers, rifling through my piles of notes, calling  friends and asking for advice.

And then, inevitably, I would get really frustrated and just STOP. Instead of doing, I would get into a state of “being” —  Taking a shower, going for a walk, getting in bed and napping.  And low and behold, out of nowhere, I would be doing nothing and the next idea would bubble out.

It was in the being, not the doing, that the next idea emerged. Every time!

What I learned through all of that was this…Sure, there are time when we need to DO. However, taking the time to BE first is a much more efficient and effective way to get stuff done. In the being there’s more room for our authentic self, the wise knowing that exists beyond this limited body, to bubble up and for us to actually hear it.

 

do, be, do, be, do…

be.

Interested in hearing more about the power of the pause? Check out my 2010 TEDx Austin talk.

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