(Image illustrated and designed by Bjorn Corning)
The struggle of restlessness and having a cluttered mind can often affect people on the path of polymathy. To masters many things usually takes longer than mastering one, but the results are more potent if you are interdisciplinary. By taking our time to relax, it may feel like we are working backwards, however, taking time to enjoy simple aspects of life can help you to recharge in order to do work more effectively.
Our lives are full of trials and tribulations. The daily life of someone who is curious and pursuing the mastery of many arts can be difficult to manage. Mismanagement of time and organization of one’s mind can hinder the focus necessary to continue the pursuit effectively. A cluttered mind which is constantly thinking about many subjects throughout the day will not be able to rest sufficiently and will lead to burnouts preventing one’s own growth and mastery of these subjects.
It may seem obvious to suggest that people should prioritize sleep. This means building a schedule and an environment in which sleep is possible. Unfortunately insomnia is a common problem among many creative and curious people. Great thinkers throughout history have struggled with dealing with the mental clutter leading to restlessness. A notable example of this is Nikola Tesla who despite his great accomplishments struggled with insomnia and lack of sleep. Many people today associate sleep and dreaming with wasting time and laziness but this is far from the truth.
It is important to recognize that taking care of oneself to prevent this restlessness, for optimal use of one’s time to progress in their interests. This can be a sore subject for many on this mental journey. Sometimes we may feel unproductive by taking time to maintain the states of our body and minds and attain rest. This is far from the truth. Without sufficient mental clarity from rest, we are far more likely to feel we are moving backwards, digressing rather than progressing to news levels of understanding and ability. Restlessness will catch up with you and cause insufficient time management and may even disconnect you from the “muses,” or unconscious mind. This will in turn block mental and physical development in your arts, memory of knowledge obtained, and ability to think rationally, observe clearly, and operate in flow states.
When we sleep, we dream, this other state of being is just as important as any other part of our lives. In dreams we explore the parts of our mind that are unconscious when we are awake. Dreams are not simply fictional illusions to be ignored but rather, dreams are when you are able to travel within the world that exist in your mind and which is responsible for your personal and creative development. Dreaming is in fact as real as anything you can do while awake it is simply the real world of your psyche. Each thought and moment you have in life is a real event, including when you sleep. The world of dream explores the unconscious mind. This is the core of your psyche is developed from learned and inherited traits, the mind is then build with archetypal symbols. Spending time in this world will help you develop and better connect to your muses. Therefore, sleep is not a wasteful task that keeps you away from your daily pursuits. Rather, it is exploration of the world from which everything you do flows.
Unfortunately if you are still struggling with restlessness, getting this necessary good sleep can be difficult. Luckily, I have some suggestions to help ease our restless, creative, and curious minds. Making sure you have a comfortable place to sleep is important. That means making sure your bed is made to be an optimal environment to fall asleep; it should be dark and quiet before sleep time. Getting rid of any lights or even wearing some blue light glasses is helpful to the body in order to produce melatonin.
As some remedies, I will suggest various methods for a busy mind during the day and night, overlapping with your sleep time. Meditation in the evening to help you practice the art of controlling your mental and physical state of being. Meditation is truly a skill in which one can get a better control of their mind and is able to clean up their mind in a relaxed state. The skill themselves are to relax, be mindful, notice, and then let go of what unnecessary. The art of meditation will open you up to new possibilities.
(Image illustrated and designed by Bjorn Corning)
Another method I would suggest is to take time practice the first fundamental skill which led to your current multi-disciplinary journey. For some this may be sketching in a sketch book at a café. For others it may be picking up writing and journaling that used to be an escape and medium of expression for you. For others it could be simply picking up guitar and strumming random chords without any expectations. The point here is that you are allowing yourself to clear your mind while leisurely letting your mind explore whatever it is you are doing. When doing this to help declutter your mind and enter a flow state. You should not be super focused on the outcome of what you are doing. Rather allow yourself to just enjoy simply doing and being in that moment.
When using your fundamental practices as outlets of expression while not expecting any particular result, you allow yourself to let ideas that cluttered your mind flow out of you through the medium. You may not even have consciously realized these ideas have been taking up space in your mind, like a messy room there are forgotten items. Putting pencil to paper may help you feel relieved and take a weight off of your shoulders.
I highly recommend that you try to get out of your room and do some of these things outside, in a café, or a new environment to help you get out of a rut. This can be taking a walk, going for a swim in a lake, sit in a café, or spending 30 minutes in a sauna. Anything that gets you away from your typical interests that keep you busy and get you into a new environment in which you prioritize your wellbeing. Be mindful that caffeine can take 10-12 hours to leave the body, just don’t have caffeine too late in the day. Getting sun in the morning can improve sleep at night just like how dark at night helps you sleep. The body has a circadian rhythm that it needs to function to perform well. In a way each individual’s body operates in circular circadian rhythm, which is responding to an exposure to light frequencies. You are operating at a certain frequency based on this exposure to light.
Just remember not to worry to much about getting sleep. Whether sleeping well or developing your mind, body, and mastery of skills it’s not always about the immediate outcome. It is better to stay humble and lighthearted. Ironically, it’s about focusing on the journey and not always the results. This attitude may yield better results.
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