Good-bye, Drudgery
I recently found myself facing a daunting and uninspiring to-do list. After procrastinating for as long as possible and then spending time reflecting on what made the list so unappealing—and paying particular attention to the emotions and bodily sensations that the list evoked—I decided that, indeed, I wanted to complete the list. BUT I wanted to do it in a way that felt pleasurable and “flow-like,” rather than like drudgery.
When I find myself stuck in the proverbial mud like this, I turn to an exercise called “Kylego” (developed by Kyle Cease). This exercise can be incorporated into one’s daily morning journal practice, or used on occasion when we have to endure things we don’t want to do—like file our tax returns or go for a root canal. Using Kylego, we write a script for the day ahead in a way that fills us with whatever feelings we want to have during the day (hello, joy, peace, freedom, comfort!). Like a playwright, we write the script for the day ahead it as if it’s already happened.
Why write out the day as if it’s already happened? Well, it turns out that the human brain cannot actually distinguish reality from our imagination. Brain imaging has shown, for example, that musicians display the same brain activity when they’re playing a piece of music, as when they’re just imagining playing a piece of music. This is the same understanding that leads premier athletes to practice visualization exercises in order to improve their performance, and why we can wake up feeling blue from an event in a dream that didn’t actually happen in reality.
So what did my Kylego exercise look like that day? Here it is:
I woke up with such gratitude for the opportunities that awaited me to serve, to practice gratitude, and experience abundance. I filled my heart with all of these thoughts, sipping my morning tea slowly, and slowing down—reminding myself that moving with intentionality and purpose would ultimately make me more productive. I stretched my body and prepared it for a jog, to loosen muscles and build endorphins. I felt gratitude for the chance to move.
I came back home from my jog, and effortlessly began tackling my to-do list, each item getting checked off easier than the last. I was so lost in “flow” that I was surprised to look up and see that it was lunch time. I stretched some more, put on great music while I prepared a healthy lunch to fuel my body.
I flowed effortlessly into the afternoon, tackling more items on my to-do list before heading out to pick up my children from school. I played my favorite music in the car, had a special snack awaiting them, and greeted them with my total presence and enthusiasm for seeing them.
We drove home, and my high energy continued to flow. I prepared dinner and picked up the house. We ate dinner as a family, and my husband prepared them for bed while I made a trip to the grocery store to prepare for the days ahead. I enjoyed the peaceful, quiet hour at the store, making choices that could feed my family and friends with love and nourishment. When I got home, I enjoyed some time reading until retiring for the evening for a restful night sleep.
That was the script I wrote for my day. And, guess what? While my day wasn’t exactly like I had scripted, it was pretty darn close. (It turned out that by lunch time I was way too hungry to remember to stretch or put on great music, and my pre-bedtime routine involved more binging on Golden Girls reruns than quiet reading. But that’s okay. Progress over perfection, right?)
The point is that my internal shift moved from drudgery to hopefulness, and my inner state was filled with emotions I wanted to feel—joy and peace. The majority of the day went as I’d scripted, and I checked off the uninspiring to-do’s off the list.
Do you have something in your future that you are less than enthused about doing?If so, perhaps try giving the Kylego exercise a try.All you need is something to write with and the ability to imagine your best life.You got this.