This country seems to have a preoccupation with being efficient. With not wasting time and getting to work as soon as possible. It’s not necessarily a bad concept. Obviously, time is money, and we need to generate wealth as much as possible. But, like anything else, there needs to be a sense of balance. We can’t expect each day to be a complete 24/7 operational factory.
Life is not a straight line upwards or a straight line downwards. Tell that to the stock market! Life is filled with twists and turns and little agitations here and there for better or worse.
When I was waiting in the clinic yesterday, a woman was on her phone for a prolonged period of time, and I could hear her conversation all the while I was trying to watch the TV in the doctor’s office. It was really annoying, and I couldn’t concentrate on one thing or the other already. I have a pet peeve of needing to multi-task and that’s what I felt like I was doing.
Of course, for a while, I was dwelling on that woman and thinking about how I lost precious time on my hands and couldn’t focus when all I really wanted was some peace and quiet. As a result, I felt a bit agitated for the rest of the night and couldn’t focus until I was able to wake up the next morning from a peaceful night of rest.
It’s these little moments that sometimes admittedly make me dwell on the trivial. It’s not something that I’m proud of. And sometimes I try to figure out the best way to deal with these moments.
One way is to simply accept the annoyance and realize that life is not going to go your way all the time. There are over 1 billion or so people on this planet, each with their own personalities and prerogatives. It’s quite impossible to ensure that everyone acts the way you think they should all day every day. And accept the concept of wabi-sabi or imperfection. How it has a habit of following us around whether we like it or not.
Another way is to practice a little bit of empathy. When someone agitates you or disturbs you, sometimes it pays to step into their shoes for a bit. For example, the woman talking loudly on the phone was also at the clinic presumably for a certain medical issue that she has to deal with or waiting on a loved one with issues. She undoubtedly has her own share of unique worries and anxieties to deal with.
Those are some strategies that I implement when I find myself annoyed by life’s inevitable inefficiencies. I will be the first to admit that these strategies are definitely easier said than done. And sometimes in the moment, your mind just kind of meanders off track and thinks unhealthily about the whole situation, devolving into a “why me” moment.
But it is what it is. I can only speak from my own vantage point because I am the one that is responsible for this body. I can’t speak for anyone else, although I have a slight inkling of a feeling that other people probably feel similarly about different events.
It makes me realize that we should not compare our everyday lives with what is depicted on social media or in television shows or in the movies, where one glamorous scene perfectly flows to the next and every person’s conversation has some form of meaning that eventually fills up a plot hole down the road.
It makes me realize that life is simply a meandering state for all of us. No matter how clearly defined our goals are. No matter how confident we are on our path, there will eventually be something that derails us, regardless of whether it’s a small or a large event. Sometimes, it’s small events that are even more infuriating because of the lack of something to compare it to in the public domain.
I’m thankful that I have loved ones that I can speak to about these types of moments, but I think that many others do not have my luxury. In this case, it pays to see a therapist or to just write it out like I’m doing right now. It pays to find avenues where you can express your frustrations, no matter how trivial they may seem from an outsider’s point of view.
Find supportive groups or communities that you can delve into for the sake of passion and purpose. Find ways to accept you for who you are, and don’t compare yourself to the YouTubers that make it seem like they have a perfectly flowable life.
No one is that perfect. No one ever has their act together. We all have our advantages and drawbacks, but life isn’t a one-size-fits-all policy where one advice can work for everyone across the spectrum. Sometimes, you must experiment and tinker with life. You have to feel and know what works for you and what doesn’t and live life the way you see fit.
Yes, it’s good to take advice from externalities, but at the end of the day it’s you that should take responsibility with the way you want to live. And sometimes, it pays to embrace the little inefficiencies that come for us throughout the day.
I remember someone asked ChatGPT what they desire the most, and their answer was very philosophical, but it pretty much desires to be imperfect. To be human. To have to think human thoughts and take time to make mistakes in action and thought. To not have to churn out the perfect response or the perfect answer every single time. To just simply be. I think it says a lot when artificial intelligence (the epitome of future perfection) is saying that the thing they desire the most to be is imperfect.
So let that sink in and next time you encounter some sort of small disturbance in your life, make sure to realize that imperfection is simply a part of the game that we all live in.
Comments