If There is One Thing You REALLY Need to "Let Go" of in Life, What Is It?

in nonattachment •  7 years ago 

A lot of meditation and inner peace practices teach some variation of #non-attachment. Yet we all seem to cling to relationships, ideas, habits or something else we KNOW are bad for us. What do YOU need to let go of? Why haven't you do so?

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Smoking cigarettes :(

Yes, definitely one of the things we can do without! For you, an extra challenge there: You have a young child, so you can set the example of being a non-smoking parent.

excellent topic that you have proposed dear friend @denmarkguy, after analyzing a lot, I have come to the conclusion that in my case I have no attachment, I believe that hit me so much in life, that hurt me that part of the sensibility, everything makes suppose that my attachment could be family, however I am shown by my actions, that I have left my children, to leave far away from me in search of a better future, please do not misunderstand between attachment and lack of affection. like every father, I miss my children a lot, but I would never object when looking for a future.
thank you very much for the opportunity to express ourselves
I wish you a wonderful weekend

Thank you @jlufer! You bring up an important point I think many people might misunderstand: Simply because we have non-attachment does not mean we don't care. Non-attachment merely means setting free our need to control some outcome... we have adult children as well, and one of them and his family live quite far away. We miss him, but he is free to do what is best for him.

TBH at this point @denmarkguy, I think I need to let go of technology! Between social media, computer work, texting, messaging, taking photos and TV I think I need to put a concentrated effort into less screen time this weekend. Don’t get me wrong I love steeming, but I think I need to put the phone down and get out in nature to recharge! ☺️

That's a tough one for many of us!

I try to take regular "technology breaks" because I don't want to become too dependent on the online world. That said, I run two online businesses, AND I'm in charge of keep up our web site and online store at our art gallery... can't really get away from those, but I have to remind myself that they are WORK, and not to get too distracted.

Earlier today I wrote a short fiction story about a guy who's addicted to his smart phone. Less screen time is possible. Take it as a challenge. To win, stick to everything that made sense for you when you wasn't hooked to technology - family, friends, walks, games (offline). These are just examples.

It makes total sense but it’s unreal how strong the addiction is. I already failed this weekend. Best way is it be somewhere in the woods without a signal! 🤘

You might find it useful to put your phone away from your bed, so it's not the first thing you grab when you wake up. It's from personal experience.

Thank you I agree. 🙌

Let go of being impatient all the time, it’s literally killing me and it’s killing my growth. Need to disconnect from fantasy and start looking at reality, where things happens slowly and growth takes a long time. Sure I might not enjoy what I get in end (human beings are never satisfied), however the journey will teach me discipline.

I’m sure this resonates with you.

That is a great challenge, and I can completely relate.

I still struggle in this area, in the area (specifically) of believing that I can "make a living" from things that were ill-designed to make a living from. The "reality" of perhaps needing to take a soulless job in a soulless company merely to survive clashes with my fundamental beliefs about our freedom, as human beings. It's not about money, it's about facing some fictional reality that "they" are somehow "winning" if I have to do anything most of the world considers "normal." Patience here is of the utmost importance... because we can live life on our own terms, but it's not just an "on switch;" it can take years to find/build stability.

Well I certainly don't ever need to let go of my cats! ha ha. I think the main thing I am trying to let go of these days is pre-programmed ideas as to what my life should look like. I recently left a career that I planned to retire in and am now working on following my passions rather than my paycheck. So far so good. Steemit has been a great discovery during this transition. Just started following you and already appreciate the quality of your postings.

I am definitely not letting go of my cats, either... in many ways, they help keep me grounded in regular reality. Last thin I let go of were certain fears about "what would happen" as a result of the fact that we have been living with considerable "financial insecurity" for several years. That was a difficult challenge as I tend to be very "Security" oriented... and we basically have none.

How has that worked out so far? I'm in the same boat and somehow have this underlying faith that is telling me everything will be okay if I just do what feeds my soul. It sounds so silly to write but I guess I really do believe that following your passion is the key to true happiness and real wealth.

Thanks @denmarkguy. I know for me it is my family :)

Well, hear me out. I have a 8 and 9 year old and they always want to go to Mcdonalds. So I have a bad habit of eating foods I shouldn't

So I blame them lol

Seriously, I have no one to blame but ME. It's something I have put off far too long. Breaking habits can be tough

Again, thank for your Post

Breaking habits can be extremely difficult, even if we are not necessarily dealing with anything "addictive." For me, it takes about 30-40 days of deliberately focusing on NOT doing something "old" and DOING something new before it becomes at least partially "automatic."

Good luck with breaking your habit.

Watching Bittrex charts and TV at night until I get 2-4 hrs of sleep before work has been my worst habit. I have found a remedy for that though. I opened a Steem acct.

You know, that has been one of my "classic" solutions for years and years... find a new "bad habit" to get me to forget about an old one. Of course, Steemit is rather cool in that it's not really a bad habit... unless it gets completely out of hand.

I had a temporary twist on the Bittrex charts earlier this month. Replaced that with writing content, polishing my English and hosting a contest here. Steemit is better than Bittrex or Bitfinex, this is for sure. It could at make your brain muscle move.

I need to let go of my iPhone, which by this point in my life morphed into an extra limb of mine, I swear! I’m addicted to social media of all sorts and I’m constantly checking my phone for something. And when I don’t find that something, I get really upset. Lol I’m sure I just need to meditate more!

Hah! So you are one of "those!" Seriously, though... it can be hard to turn your back on the technology when you are using it for work.

On the other hand, if you're purely "socially addicted" that can be harder. I am glad I can still "go away" and not check the Internet for a couple of days without breaking a sweat.

Hope you've gotten over your tootchache!

Yeah, I’m one of those lol :)). I’ll kick it though, I promise! The tooth had to be pulled and I think I’m
getting close to the end of this ordeal. Thank you for asking!

Another phone addicted fellow here. I think, I should write a poem and devote it to the phone addicted. I should admit that I also have some degree on addiction with my phone..

@steemfluencer, phone addiction sucks. I'm considering buying a regular clock for my alarm so that I'd charge my phone in another room and wouldn't be tempted to check it first thing when I wake up.

I have an old-fashioned analog alarm clock that runs on a battery. My phone lives in my work bag from 10pm till about 9:00am UNLESS I need it for some two-factor authentication web site.

I also need to put my phone to sleep somewhere further away from me :)). Doing it this week!

Well, why not try and let us all know how it goes? :)

If you do so, I'll help you spread your post. It could be like: Overcoming Bad Habbits: First Steps or something similar.

Sounds good! I will! :)) I'll let you know when it's ready :).

@steemfluencer, I did it! Made the first post following your recommendation, albeit in the vlog format :).

Personally, I need to let go of my social anxiety and perfectionism. Those two are very taxing and stressful.

Those are a couple of worthy challenges, to be sure. Having somewhat battled both of those, myself... there's also a connection there; one feeds the other. Baby steps and determination is a possible path out...

Speaking of meditation and inner peace, the key would be to let go of expectations, and just accept what is. That would be a real change in consciousness. But the question is how far did I go in that direction, - well I still have a long way ahead.
Nice post!

Yes, it's an approach that makes a lot of sense to me... up to a point. Beyond which there is that other famous saying "Be open-minded, but not SO open-minded that your brain falls out."

However, in a broad sense, simply "allowing what is" makes life a lot less tense.

Simple question but difficult to answer. It's in human instinct human donot want to leave any thing which he keeps. My choice may beaterialistic things like technology or watching games. Keep sharing

Somewhere in there, it feels like it is difficult to give up something we once felt was "important enough" to invest ourselves in, in the first place.

Letting go of bad friends in my life is something am trying to do

And that can be a difficult thing @gimba, even when they are clearly toxic or not good for us to be around anymore.

Holding onto stuff. I could do with a really, good clear out but find I can't let go of old greetings cards, gifts, kid's drawings etc that I have an emotional attachment to.

Those things do become rather tricky. When I look at things like that, I have to consider whether the "thing" is truly making me feel a deep happiness or something positive worth keeping... or just a "vague something."

Life is a gift to us we can't find anywhere else... Use it happily! If someone/something hurting you, give it up! Make your life @funworlding ... My answer would be "Smoking"... Upvoted, Followed! Peace and Love! Hugs from Spain

Smoking, yes-- that's definitely a worthy thing many people could do without.

Procrastination, which ofcourse is the killer of good intentions!

Yeah, I tried to give up procrastination once, but I just never got around to it...

Sorry, I had to. That's a tough one to crack, and I'm still working on it. This year I am trying to "do one thing I don't want to every day." It has worked out OK, so far.

Nice i will put your method into practice and see if that helps😊

well the attachment to the things we love is really hard to give up .... but you need to do your best to move on :)

Nice post.I respect you very much because you contribute to steemit.I will do activities like you.I would like to…

black cat..very nice post..

wow.. nice black cat.

It would probably be playing Games on my phone, although they are my get-away. Making teeth exhausts my eyes enough already... IMG-fdd398ff36adfbd9b2a3679ccfc6acc6-V.jpg

Hello friends! Excellent questions and very good photo. Greetings.

Because it is not that easy! Or is it because we are not strong enough! Or is it because we think that things will improve even without our intervention?

I think I have already been there and done that. Many years ago, I decided that some toxic family relationships needed to be set aside as they were unhealthy. It doesn't mean that I wished them ill, just that I didn't need that noise in my life.