Snap Back to Reality
We are constantly moving forward – onward to new horizons. It seems to be the way humans are wired. Always looking towards the future.
Often we spend so much time staring at what’s coming next, that we miss what’s happening right in front of our face. Sometimes it takes a big or tragic event to bring us back. Other times it’s the pressure we feel at a given moment. Whatever the reason, it happens. Learning to snap back to reality on our own terms is a valuable skill to explore.
Snap Back To Reality, Oh There Goes Gravity….
“…You only get one shot, do not miss your chance to blow
This opportunity comes once in a lifetime…” – Eminem, Lose Yourself
Sage advice from Eminem. Who would’ve thought? But he makes a good point. All we’ve got is right now, this moment. This particular opportunity only comes once. Whether we choose to believe it or not.
Think of our awareness like a rubber band – flexible, continually expanding. We stretch our view, our focus, and our perception. This is a wonderful ability to have – to not only see what is, but also what can be. But just like a rubber band, there is only so far it can stretch – and how long we can hold it – then snap!
If we don’t take the time to snap back to reality on our own terms, it will happen unexpectedly. Stress, life changing events, and pain are often triggers of the snap. Say you’re driving along, daydreaming about an upcoming meeting, when suddenly you ram into a stopped car – snap! – you’re back to reality. When you witness the birth of your baby, you snap back. When you slam your finger in the door, you snap back. All of these things take the stretched band of your perception and snap it back to its original state, leaving it loose and exhausted.
If a rubber band stays stretched too long, when it does snap back, it begins to lose its elasticity. The same happens with us. By constantly living in a future, imagined time we begin to reach the point of breaking, and lose the potential to stretch effortlessly each time. The key is learning to take this “snap back” into your own hands and regularly return to reality – the true reality of what happening right now.
Wow…Trippy…
This may all sound like kooky, New Agey stuff. Actually it’s more like Old Agey stuff. But it’s really just a mindset. Being focused on the future is important, but so is snapping back to right now.
There are lots of ways to do this. One of the most common is to focus on your breathing. Really notice the breath come in and flow out. Or take a few minutes to just listen to the sounds around you. It’s not important how you do it, just that you take some time throughout the day to snap back on your own terms – no crashes, no pain, no stress. Just the act of wanting to, makes it happen. It doesn’t require any big rituals, or beliefs. Just ask “what’s happening right now?” Then listen. You’ll get it. You’ll snap back.
And it’s a good thing, because you only get one shot, this moment only comes once in a lifetime.
Tony D. Clark writes, draws cartoons, designs software and websites, and spends a lot of time talking others into working from home, being creative, and doing what they love. His blog Success from the Nest focuses on helping parents who want to do meaningful work from home and have more time for their families, and their dreams.
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Comments
Ramon Leon says on October 13th, 2006 at 2:31 pm
Nice article, but the line is
“do not miss your chance to flow”
Flow, as in rapping in the zone, being in the moment, the here and now, not blow.
Tony D. Clark says on October 13th, 2006 at 3:32 pm
Hi Ramon – Thanks for the feedback, but I have to disagree. Check out one of the lyric sites or Eminem’s official site. I can’t speak for Eminem himself, but I believe he’s using the term as in “exit” – “blow this place” – meaning to get out of his current situation (from 8 Mile).
But flow would make a lot of sense, especially in the context of the post.
JAbbott says on October 13th, 2006 at 4:01 pm
Sounds like its time for a Google Fight:
http://tinyurl.com/y8tb4b
Ramon Leon says on October 13th, 2006 at 5:03 pm
Wow, you’re right, damn, I always heard it as flow, which does fit this article better…
BooTCaT says on October 14th, 2006 at 8:36 am
being a diehard EMINEM fan , if i dont comment on this , then a punishment from god awaits me .
Those who have read this post , i say the “MOVIE 8 MILE ” , is a must watch .
It depicts
the hard work , he has done ( No shortcuts )
the battles , he practised and fought
the relationships , he ,managed
the friendships ( true ones ) he had had
the fights with rivals that made him hard
And at last the FIRE that really survived constantly , only rising every night due to his Midnight Oil . He wins the battle , against his Rival named “Papa Dock ” .
Actually , i am from INDIA and this film din go nice with the theatres . But i can see people , burning a private copy themselves , to constantly have the fire within them .
Achievers , Energy drink , is what i call this film .
This is what 8 Mile is all about . And ”
Lose Yourself” , is the minimal compilation of the WHOLE FILM and the FIRE , in one song .
So , next time you hear the song , try the MOVIE 8 MILE .
You will feel the fire within you .
Steven Aitchison says on October 14th, 2006 at 8:57 am
I love eminem’s lyrics and he really lit the UK up a few years ago. Great post.
Jeffrey Seely says on October 15th, 2006 at 11:20 am
Great post. The rubber band metaphor works well. When we snap back to reality, it really feels like we relieve tension that we’ve been unconsciously building up (just like the stretching of a rubber band :P)
Tony D. Clark says on October 15th, 2006 at 2:26 pm
@BooTCaT – I completely agree. Even if you’re not an Eminem fan, it’s still a great flick.
@Steven – Thanks. People can say what they will, but he does write some great lyrics.
@Jeffrey – I appreciate the feedback. You make a great point. That feeling of release when you take the time to just be in the moment really helps you to stay sane, even in stressful situations.
jk says on October 16th, 2006 at 2:46 pm
I suggest reading a little bit Nieztche, especially the ‘amor fati’ concept.
Amanda says on October 17th, 2006 at 4:51 pm
hey BootCat I seriously agee with you about the shit about how you are a diehard Eminem fan I swear I am his HUGEST FAN!! Everybody at my school knows about my sexy dude Eminem and how much I love him I have like five million pictures of him in my locker. But the really shitty thing is that I just started being his BIGGEST fan in 2005 so I kind of missed out on shit where he was in every magazine and it is really sad actually, because if it was back then I would have gone to his concerts and bought all the magazines and all that shit but NOW I CAN’T IM SOOOO SAD!!!!!!! ANYWAYS I LOVE EMINEM!!!! AND 8 MILE IS A VERY GOOD FILM I HAVE TWO COPIES OF IT MYSELF.
Amanda says on October 17th, 2006 at 4:53 pm
Oh and I also believe he was a wonder ful MC and lyricist in general, plus he is ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS~~~~~
Amanda says on October 17th, 2006 at 4:53 pm
ITS HIS 34TH BIRTHDAY TODAY, EVERYBODY!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE GREATEST MUSICIAN OF ALL TIME!!!!!!!!!!
Niki Van Cleemput says on October 25th, 2006 at 2:40 am
Hey,
I did some listening and eminem is bringing the right fire in another song…
“Cause sometimes you just feel tired. You feel weak. And when you feel weak, you feel like you wanna just give up. But you gotta search within you, try ta find that inner strength and just pull that shit out of you, and get that motivation to not give up, and not be a quitter, no matter how bad you wanna just fall flat on your face and collapse.”
This is the beginning verse of: “till i collapse”
This not only shows us eminem knows where his fire is, this teaches us that we all are able to get this thing burning and that we all can use it to reach the top .
To reach the top i think its important to
1. Put on the fire inside you
2. Work hard, driven by the fire
3. See how your hard work puts on more fire
4.do other things .
For example if you are trying to write the best blogs all the time from the moment you wake up in the morning till you close your eyes that evening. One way or another you will stop seeing whats good and not, you will loose creativity, you wil forget what you know about the subject just because your mind started to work in one aspect it is good in. If you involve other things then blog writing in your day it will put the rest of your brain in a working shift and not in standby.
The best is opposites of brain things.
Here’s an example , you study math all day, and its not going well. Well stop for 20 minutes and make or listen some music, make a drawing, sing a song, read about art. What even works better is combining things, in the ways that are possible. While studying math for example listen to music (best music for studying is baroque) When you are losing your will to do some work to get to the top, listen to morivational music for example the song in this blog, or the song i used as example in this comment.
So you can see the fire inside you is important, learn you can make it burn by objective thoughts, Positive confirmations, visualisations and more of that … .
Greetz…