If only it was possible to let the brain go blank!

I hope you all are relaxed, breathing easy and in company of loved ones, if not so at least a good movie. Many of us working professionals are made to sit at home and work in a restricted environment, we are certainly are going through some sense of instability. In such new environment, you might want your brain to go blank. To do that, one has to let go of imagination. Our imaginations work best under the need of a desire. Nowadays, we are encouraged to desire more, and we forget the difference between needs, wants and desires. We cannot let go of our brain to go blank, so what is it that we can do? I hope we find some way around this. I hope you find many takeaways for you in this article. However, no solution is universal.

Due to sense of insecurity we end up being over informed or wrongly informed

When the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) announced a tentative date for the end of clinical trials and fast-tracking of subsequent manufacturing process, an in-depth analysis in news media was done under an apprehension that due norms might not be followed.

When India China standoff occurred, India’s Prime Minister gave a statement while addressing to all party presidents and to mainstream media. Thereafter, in depth analysis in news media was done trying to understand the statements in all aspects.

How do we let our brain think just one thing, because a brain cannot be a blank slate?

Try to observe of what’s happening in the place around you. You can engage yourself in understanding how the city works, about its history, trade, traffic, education etc. It can be a surprising experience when you get to know facts about your place which you didn’t know earlier. The place where I live is nicknamed as the hill city of Odisha. It’s a cool nick name. That’s a good thought to delight the brain. When you think you know enough about your city, you might find some way to engage yourself with your city.

Try to restrict the access to the online content you see and read. This act might be difficult for some to do. So, I can suggest some good content to go for in YouTube. On matters of national security, refer Stratnewsglobal. For a global sense of correct news analysis, you can follow DW News (US & Europe), South China Morning Post (Hong Kong/ mainland China/ Taiwan) and WION (South Asia). For national news, you may refer the news debates conducted by Rahul Kanwal in India Today, Security Scan (Rajya Sabha TV), News coverage of Ravish Kumar on #NDTV and printed content of The Hindu and The Economic Times. For good infotainment, you can follow YouTube channels to the likes of Gareeb Scientist and kurzgesagt (German for “In a Nutshell”).

Individual acts which you and I can do

Work out

It is amazing to see that a lot of people (and their pets) wake up and are on the streets for jogging by 6 am in the morning. Sometimes I mistake it for a protest (pun intended). Looking at the crowd of people and animals, I had to change my schedule. Now I go to run by around 4: 30 am (I try to).

Fact is, working out helps getting rid of a lot of negative thoughts making home in our brain. So make it a habit, more so in these times of stalemate.

Re-organize

One of my best buddies during the academic days needed pep talk every 15 days. On every 15th day, after being inspired in life, my dear friend would re-organize his part of the room, sit and begin his long lost interest in few particular subjects. Every 15th day, he would repeat the same.

Even though we both laughed at these cycles in our lives, today we all have a good chance to re-organize in our lives. Sailing taught me the essence of organizing, because I failed whenever I wasn't prepared. And failing in the middle of the sea is an experience. Not just your daily routines, but your finances, your prospects of career, any pending task at home, any investment you should get your head into. You should mark it to your thoughts, the day the world around you unlocks, the system will be desperate to launch like a rocket, so you need to be well organized than you were everyday till now.

Yoga

Yoga is good, that’s why there’s an International Yoga Day. Even though I am not a thorough yoga practitioner, I like to just sit and close my eyes for some time in a peaceful place (after work out). It’s in these moments you realize how much your eyes were under stress; you can feel the cold wind being breathed in and exhaled. These moments enable your mind to be in control of your physical and mental wellbeing.

At the end of the day, we need to understand “the reason why”. The way I see it, I follow the motto “Aaj Muqabla hoga”. So come what may, a well prepared mind is a less worried mind. I hope you are less worried now knowing that we are all vulnerable to the same flaws but you know your ways to mend around. I hope you find these notes meaningful and you may also find your ways to tackle your situations. Be well, take care of yourself and those around you.

Happy Hunting!