Could you live alone, for a month, in the middle of the woods? No phone, no internet, just you and a stack of blank paper?
Could you be content with the simplest of existences as you lived out your days? Basic food, modest furnishings, no music, only the sounds of nature around you? No alarm clock, just rising and sleeping with sunrise and sunset. No sense of time, no sense of urgency, no other human beings to talk or listen to?
When imagining this scenario, what scares you the most? Missing important emails, bills becoming overdue? Missed opportunities? Missing your friends and family? Missing the latest news?
What would you gain? The chance to listen to your mind and calm your thoughts. The chance to go deep into your work with no fear of distraction. Uninterrupted solitude and space to breathe, reflect and dream. Slowness of thought and life.
Some of the greatest writers and inventors of all time seek isolation when they work. They know the product of their solitude will be worth the short-term inconvenience of what they might miss. They pour their thoughts onto the page whilst jotting, journaling and doodling to their heart’s content.
Their fear of unfulfilled potential is greater than their fear of missing out, which makes greatness possible.
