What's the most valuable resource that all of us have been bestowed with?
For many years, I had thought of TIME to be the most valuable resource. All of us have the same 24 hours in a day. How we use this time determines the quality of our life.
As I pondered more on this question, I have concluded that more than time, our attention is the most valuable resource.
Attention implies all that is within our awareness at this very moment.
Our attention can be captured by our thoughts, taking us on a time machine ride
- to the past - triggering nostalgia, good memories, regrets, bad decisions, remorse
- to the future - triggering worries, anxiety, uncertainty
Attention can also be captured by external factors
- through the content we consume - social media, OTT, Youtube, news channels, etc
- through people whom we interact with
- through objects in our vicinity
Let's consider this situation - It is a beautiful morning. You have woken up early and have gone for a walk.
What are the things do you notice around?
What do you pay attention to?
Where do you pay attention to?
Whom do you pay attention to?
Do you go on a time machine ride through the vehicle of thoughts?
If so, are you traveling more to the past or the future?
What we pay attention to influences our thoughts and actions in the short run. Over time, what we pay attention to influences our behaviors and our beliefs as well.
If attention plays such a vital role in our lives, shouldn't we protect it with utmost care?
We spend a hefty annual fee on our bank locker to keep our valuables like jewelry and documents safe. Would we hand over the key to this locker to anyone so casually?
But we do tend to hand over the keys to our attention to so many factors every day without giving much a thought - every time we pick up our phone, every time we scroll through social media without any intent, every clickbaity video link we open, etc.
Let's give our ATTENTION at least the same respect and care (deserves even more) we give towards our bank locker.
Let's give authorized access to our attention to anyone and anything that demands access. It just takes a second of awareness to ask ourselves this question - is it worthy of my attention?