11 Ways To Harness The Power Of Contemplation

You’re probably familiar with the proverb, “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy”.

But there are other ways we need to spend our time too. Obvious ones are eating and sleeping, but there’s another that is often overlooked – contemplation.

The ability to contemplate is one of the reasons we humans have an advantage over our fellow animals – we can think about our lives, ourselves, and our situation.

And this is a tremendous power, because we can use our experiences and knowledge to discover a more effective path through life, instead of largely being driven by our programming (which is not, for humans at least, as set in stone as you might think, as Bruce Lipton’s excellent book, The Biology Of Belief, explains).

By contemplating, we are able to learn about ourselves, solve challenges, and consequently become more powerful versions of ourselves.

Contemplation allows you to notice the negative patterns in your life. It can help you to face your fears or even redefine your life.

It can also be a tool for change – you can choose to get different results in your life, and all it takes is a small amount of directed thinking each day.

Here are a few strategies for applying the power of contemplation to your life.

1. Make contemplation a priority.

   You’re a busy person, so you’re not going to spend time contemplating on a regular basis unless you make it a priority.

   Each day of your life can teach you a lot, but only if you take the time to examine your life on a regular basis.

   So, you should start by deciding to spend some time alone (and preferably without distractions) each day to think things over.

2. Pick a time.

   If you don’t schedule contemplation (i.e. actually assign some time in your diary), it’s highly likely it simply won’t happen – life usually gets in the way.

   Look at it this way, you have a specific time for meals, exercising, watching TV, going to bed, etc. – so why not include a specific time for contemplation, too?

3. Have a purpose.

   This isn’t a time to just stare out the window and daydream (although that has its uses too – see my article about Boketto for more information).

   No, this is a time that should be spent with a purpose, so you should plan how you’re going to use the time before you begin.

4. Examine your day.

   What happened today? What can you learn from it? What went wrong? What do you need to do to fix it? What went well? How can you make tomorrow better based on what you learned today? What didn’t you do that you’d planned to, and why not? And how can you better spend your time tomorrow?

   These are the sort of questions you should ask – and try to answer, of course.

5. Examine your challenges.

   What are the challenges in your life? What led you to this point? What was the genesis of the challenge? How is this challenge affecting your life (positively and/or negatively)? And, perhaps most importantly, are they under your control or not, because if they are not, there’s little point worrying about them?

6. Search for solutions.

   What are some possible solutions to the challenges in your life? What can you do right now? What can you do in the future to avoid a recurrence?

   Rather than distract yourself from your challenges, and maybe try to pretend they don’t exist or assume they’ll sort themselves out (which, unsurprisingly, rarely happens), seek solutions instead.

7. Search for answers.

   Maybe you’re not sure why you’re so insecure in your romantic relationships. Perhaps you have unresolved issues from your childhood. Why do you spend too much money?

   Addressing issues such as these, one at a time, can be a great use of your contemplation time, because when you focus your attention on a single thing, you’re more likely to find the answer you need.

8. Relax.

   If you lead a busy life, it’s important to rest your body and mind each day, so try to take a few minutes and catch your breath.

   Remember, a little time alone can sometimes be better than a therapist.

9. Pray / Meditate.

   For those who are people of faith, this is also a great time to pray.

   And if prayer isn’t your thing (e.g. because you’re an atheist), then you can use the time at least as effectively by meditating.

10. Journal.

    Another way you can contemplate is to use journalling, which is something I’ve written about elsewhere.

    There are proven benefits to this practice, and you might like to read my review of the WordSmith Deck, which is what I used to stimulate contemplation about my life.

11. Use the time however you like.

    You might contemplate your childhood, the meaning of life, examine the previous year, plan the future, or consider your spirituality. You could also think about your mortality or practise your ability to focus.

    This is your time to use as you like – provided, as I said earlier, you have a purpose.

Conclusion

You can’t just go to work, watch TV, spend time with the family, and chase your goals. Well, I suppose you could, and many people probably do,but you are missing out on a huge opportunity by not being introspective and thoughtful too.

A regular session of contemplation each day will help you become the best version of yourself (something I also cover in my 31-lesson Brain Training For Success course).

The key take-away here is that you can live a more successful life and continue to grow each day – even 15 minutes a day can make a big difference. Contemplate that! 🙂

If this has whetted your appetite, you might also enjoy my 10-lesson course on Introspection, which talks about how to become more self-aware.

And finally, here’s a haiku inspired by this article:

Additional Resources

These are suggestions for those who wish to delve deeper into any of the above:

1. The Biology Of Belief