I consider myself a creative. Better yet, I consider entrepreneurship a creative endeavor because, more often or not; breakthroughs occur when a business does something uniquely different from the rest. Staying ahead of the game means consistently staying better not just by executing well, but also executing uniquely consistently. Even if you do not agree with me that entrepreneurship is a creative endeavor, consider the fact that I used to do some graphic design.
And to get creative, to figure a unique way forward, my favorite thing to do is to bury my head in my pillow and let my head wander.
And this is why my resolution for 2020 is to do a lot more of nothing.
Work hard, they chant
Society preaches hard work. My mom did it; my university's professor does it, Malcolm Gladwell's book does it, success stories teach it. Bullshit.
Diligence works for non-creative endeavors: Getting As in a school with an affixed curriculum, swimming fast, and winning Olympic medals. And it works because you are mastering your craft.
If and when I kept myself busy, as I have for the past few years, I do exceptionally well in the current focus of vogue. Then it goes out of fashion, and what?
Doing nothing is not doing nothing
When I say that I seek to do nothing, it means not to stay busy and get involved in the day-to-day grunt work. Insofar to say that I will not be setting and specifying tasks for the team.
Instead, I should be staring into space. That is part one.
Part two of doing nothing means giving space for my head to wander; to form connections between neurons. Between memories, data points, and wandering what can be possible.
Thinking is a focused activity. Dreaming is an act of wonder. That is when my best ideas surface.
An environment void of idling
In 2020, I will never use the "I have no time" as an excuse. An excuse used by modern busy bees as they hang that phrase a badge of honor on their lips.
People take pride in filling their days with things. I am no exception. When I am awake, I prepare my kid for school. Right after I am relegated to driving as I drive my son to school, and then myself to work. Back in the office, I am kept abuzz between video calls, slack messages, emails, and lunch. Work ends, and I resume the daddy role. I live in an environment void of idling.
How to do nothing?
Doing nothing means not to do anything physically.
- To not use the phone or the computer
- To not be engaging anyone.
- To not be reading
- To be conscious
Some call it meditation, but I find that to be hipster bull. Just do nothing.
Making idling a habit
I intend to make idling a daily practice. Something akin to my regular post writing to enforce a habit. As to what exactly it is, I have no idea yet. I will keep you updated.