I just did this.

Spontaneously.

It’s not a practice or something I do regularly.

It just seemed like an interesting thing.

Maybe you’re not in the mood for it.

And maybe you are.

If so: try it for a couple of minutes.

I call it ‘No thanks’.

It’s about declining EVERY invitation from the mind.

It’s about just sitting on your ass, watching the endless creation of new thoughts, and not let them force you to respond or react in a way that captures you and sends you off.

Let your single response to whatever arises be:

‘No thanks.’

Be grateful for their appearance, if you wish, then pull your attention back again.

‘No thanks.’

Don’t follow ANY of the thoughts.

Not the confusing or judging or critical or anxious ones, but also not the encouraging or curious ones.

‘You should do this more often, let’s make a plan!’

‘This is amazing, how does it work?’

‘Good idea, awesome, let’s write a blog about it and start right now!’

Don’t fall for it.

Treat all of them with the same respect and the same neutral attitude.

‘This is stupid.’

‘This is awesome.’

‘What the fuck is this?’

Keep it simple.

‘No thanks.’

‘No thanks.’

‘No thanks.’

Don’t pick it up.

Don’t explore the question.

Don’t consider it.

Don’t chew on it.

Don’t fight it.

‘No thanks’ is more than enough.

It’s EXACTLY enough.

After a while, you’ll notice the different questions and ideas and warnings that start to arise, and a change in urgency.

It’s crazy!

And the more automatic and stoic it becomes, the more the mind will try to change the game and throw compelling stuff at you.

It feels that the end of its crushing power is near.

It will tell you that you can’t do it.

It will scream that you are sliding towards the abyss.

It will do ANYTHING to stay relevant and important and dominant.

But that’s okay, you know what to do.

Keep doing it.

‘No thanks.’

And just see where it leads you.

The most interesting, most spectacular, and most liberating thing, is discovering that you’re aware of your thoughts.

It’s realizing the awareness itself.

It’s there all the time, before any thought, during, and after.

You know that you’re thinking and what you’re thinking.

You know you are here.

‘No thanks’ comes from a different place, a place before anything else, a deep and trustworthy place.

What is that knowing?

What happens when that awareness becomes more important than any mental idea?

Find out for yourself.

Keep going.

Keep at it.

‘No thanks.’

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(Photo by @huskerfan3, for Unsplash)