How I’m Taking A Break From Politics
Creating a pleasurable yet productive week through lovely background tracks, exploring random breather niches, and meditation habits (not the generic ones).
Politics is an interesting phenomena. It’s amazing how it governs society, creates a system of rules, and incarcerates those who violates it.
Yet these very systems and the people who dictates it have unchecked power that renders it a deceitful system which persists to stray away from the primitive ideal of democracy.
As a result, citizens, whether local or international, are bombarded on the news and media outlets both the autocracy and the greatness of the (many) different parties in the same system.
It can get trivialising to read the triumphs of your preferred political party but can also equally get aggravating when non-supporters spew words of contempt and bitterness of how the said party handled a crisis.
This can get overwhelming.
Because coming from a place without power to help by any tangible way, it is frustrating.
Wanted to share how I avoid this, feel some semblance of normalcy and peace, and focus on myself by exploring new interests:
Tuning Into Lovely Background Tracks 💌
Music has always been a reliable way for me to relax and to just vibe.
While I’ve always found lo-fi/ ambient music as lame (no clue why), I’ve actually converted to one of its die-hard fans.
The following are really lovely tunes that just help me to enjoy living in the moment after a decently long day. It’s part of my ambience playlists and as exam season is right around the corner, the weather becomes more breezy and cozier, it creates an environment for productivity and pleasure.
Meditation Habits 🧠
The purpose of meditating it to allow the mind to focus as a means to relax.
Yoga or breathing exercises has not helped me (so far) and I remain a cynic towards it (though i’m open to changing my mind — feel free to comment down whether yoga/ breathing techniques has helped you).
To meditate, this is what I do:
#1 — Having a water bottle on my bedside table when I wake up
The first thing I do when I wake up is drink water.
Studies have shown that it helps the body wake up by rehydrating the system.
Though to me, it helps me wake up — not because of the science but — because the friction and energy it requires to wake up and drink water is a far margin that by the time I’ve started drinking I have already awaken.
#2 — Happiness List
Every morning, I write 3 things what I am grateful for.
This helps set the mood for the day and acts as a reminder that life isn’t too bad :’) Sometimes I write I’m grateful for eating a juicy apple (which is true!) or when someone responds to my cold email.
I use to write it on a notebook but for convenience, I now start to write on my iPad. It’s all about finding ways that works for you so that it’s easier to stick to these micro habits!
Life is full of great experiences. It would be a shame to simply allow these simple and seemingly small moments into the forgotten.
Write a list! Keep track of the things you’re grateful for and what made you happy that day.
#3 — Finishing the important tasks I have to do before 11AM
When I’m ready to start my day, I don’t make a cup of coffee or read the news.
I get right into the most pressing task I have to do for the day and finish it by 11AM.
This helps me optimise efficiency and skip all of the menial time-consuming tasks that feels like work and productiveness but really is just a buffer in between my unproductive state (i.e. checking and responding to my email, reading random articles, etc — these tasks all feel productive but it’s not. It’s getting in the way of what you are supposed to be doing)
Random Niches/Topics Everyone Should Get Into 🍳
If you won the lottery, would you still work at your job or go to school? If the answer is no, what pursuits would you go explore?
While we’re still in lockdown, use this extra time to explore these very interests.
Whether it’s farming, collecting rare toy figurines or playing the kazoo. Explore it!! What’s stopping you? Use it as a breather — to escape the never ending whimsical nonsense of politics.
For me, if you read this article, I’m currently dabbling myself into startup world.
So I’ve been exploring topics like : building my life around a spreadsheet, SaaS apps, no code tools, Notion, 3D modelling, design, and productivity
There are communities for everything (I stumbled upon a reddit thread filled with passionate people who recovered from hair loss).
If you just do a simple google search, you can “find your people” to enjoy the niche, and actually holding yourself accountable to being more active in the topic.
All in all, while the article suggests that I will eventually get back into reading on politics, I have actually stopped reading the news for 5 months now. So consider the title clickbait.
Reading the news is a major loss of productivity, and a major source of unhappiness.
To break down common myths, you can actually still live on with life virtually unchanged.
Maximise happiness! (and efficiency)
