Not everything requires a response
Read this: What has 4 letters, sometimes has 9 letters, but never has 5 letters.
What’s your response to it?
What could that be that keeps changing the number of letters? Give it some thought.
But then again, does it need a response?
That is a statement not a question. It states that the number of letters in the word what is 4. The number of letters in the word sometimes is 9 and the number of letters in the word never is 5. That’s it. That’s all it states. It’s not a question.
Is it a factual statement? Yes.
Does it need a response? Not necessarily.
In the always-on life we now live, there is pressure to respond to hundreds of prompts – text messages, emails, ads, social media posts, etc. Everything that we give attention to is likely to move us to a positive or negative mindset. With all these stimuli trying to get our attention, isn’t it better then to choose what we will and will not respond to?
Protect your aura
Your aura is your emotional, mental, and spiritual energy. You need to be in full control of it all the time. Don’t open up your aura to people or words that will bring negativity into your aura.
It is especially import to practice this in the work environment where some people you need to interact with may not have your best interests at heart. It therefore becomes necessary to work with people without letting them interfere with your emotional, mental and spiritual wellbeing.
You need to chose how to or whether to respond to their negativity.
Being off is ok
Because people expect us to have our phones on us all the time, they expect to receive responses in seconds or minutes. Don’t feel the pressure to be always on. It may over stimulate you.
It’s important to fit in activities into our days and weeks that take us away from our phones- hikes, books, face to face time with friends and family, etc
But even if we keep our phones with us, it’s good to schedule when you will read / respond to messages, catch up on social media etc.
It might even be healthy to go offline for a few days every once in a while. It gives you a chance to reconnect with your thoughts, meditate, get yourself back on track if you had lost it.
Responses may not always be necessary
Some responses may not be necessary at all. If you see a post on social media from a stranger that you completely disagree with, do you really need to expend energy responding to it? Responding may not necessarily be typing a reply. Responding also includes your internal reaction to it. Does it make you feel angry, happy, amused, disappointed, excited, etc. Those are all responses. It’s great when something make you feel happy, excited or amused. It’s the negative emotional responses that you need to look out for.
Now I’m not saying you shouldn’t respond or reply to it. What I’m asking is, is it worth not just your time but the possible loss of your peace? If you start a debate with a complete stranger online that escalates and steals your peace, gets you all riled up about the matter, it isn’t worth it. You don’t know who is on the other side of the argument. What’s the value of winning or even getting into an argument with a stranger?
If you can get into a debate with a stranger on social media without it disturbing your aura, if you find it engaging or entertaining then, by all means, go ahead.
Like in the statement I started with, about the number of letters in certain words, not everything requires a response. We need decide what gets our attention. Even when something requires your attention, always try to protect your aura and keep a positive mindset.
