Mindfulness: A practical guide to finding peace in a frantic world

by J. Mark G. Williams

When you try and solve the ‘problem’ of unhappiness (or any other ‘negative’ emotion) you deploy one of the mind’s most powerful tools: rational critical thinking. It works like this: you see yourself in a place (unhappy) and know where you want to be (happy). Your mind then analyses the gap between the two and tries to work out the best way of bridging it. To do so, it uses its ‘Doing’ mode (so called because it performs well in solving problems and getting things done). The Doing mode works by progressively narrowing the gap between where you are and where you want to be. It does so by subconsciously breaking down the problem into pieces, each of which is solved in your mind’s eye and the solution re-analysed to see whether it’s got you closer to your goal. It often happens in an instant and we’re frequently not even aware of the process. It’s a tremendously powerful way of solving problems. It’s how we find our way across cities, drive cars and arrange hectic work schedules. In a more refined form, it’s how the ancients built the pyramids and navigated the world in primitive sailing ships, and it is helping humanity to solve many of our most pressing problems.