Don’t Just Do It.
Just Do It. Rings a bell? One of the most popular sports brands, Nike has made this line ubiquitous. To the extent that we frequently use it in our everyday conversations. A number of us grew up with this tagline, not just watching the Nike ads on TV but living and breathing it.
Remember that cold misty morning when we were in middle school trying to snooze the alarm again and again, and Dad knocked on the door — Just wake up!
That first swimming class, staring at our trembling reflection in the chilly water and the coach shouted — Just jump!
That Extempore in the English class, quietly staring at our feet and thinking about what to speak in front of the entire class. And the teacher spoke firmly — Just speak up!
That most popular house party, where we showed up without an invitation. When all that boldness about leading buddies quietly into the party vanished in front of the big-built host. And the pushy friend hiding from behind quietly pushed — Just go man!
Those spinach greens on the dinner table, sneaky eyes escaping Mom’s gaze and the fingers and fork tossing and turning the greens into a mesh. And the Mom screamed — Just eat!
Those trembling lips on the first date, almost following a zig-zag path with a clear plan to miss the target. And the girlfriend cutely held the chin — Just kiss!
Just sleep, Just run, Just go, Just read, Just think, Just try…Just Do It. Somehow these were the catalyst words of our everyday life, yet also occasionally succeeded in transforming the latent potential energy of thinking into kinetic energy of action. Inertia into Doing.
And no doubt, this push was needed. Else, why would this be a brand worth billions of dollars! That sudden push from that crazy friend behind our back and into the pool, did help us realise that water is cool. That wake-up shout from Dad, when we realised early mornings are indeed crisp and refreshing.
But what if Sun said — ‘Just sunlight’, for a day! What if that kind fruit tree announced — ‘Just Fruit’, for today. And the clouds announced — ‘Just rain’, today. And every other natural body, the Earth, Moon and everything else. Or our own body — “Just breathe’, today! Nature honours and demonstrates continuity, an infinite continuum, a practice that it does in such a subtle and beautiful way. Almost as if hiding the secret of ‘Doing’! Are we ever able to witness a flower bloom from a bud, a leaf grow from nowhere or got the faintest whiff of the rotation of the earth? Yes, a high-speed camera put out through the night would indeed playback the frames of a flower blooming, the act of ‘Doing’ but the subtlety of how nature does it is a marvellous act of patience. We go to bed one night and wake up with nature completely evolved consistently working through the night. Just as quietly nature does it, there is something for us to learn from it.
As I experimented with actions and the ability to continue to do the important ones, I quickly realised that for every ‘Just do it’ action, the real deal was to continue to do it after the start. Else it would always crash as a false start! Indeed popular scientists have proven this with many positive habit books displaying a ‘21’ on the cover page, continue anything for at least 21 days to make it into a habit. Yes, there is likely some truth to it. However, My experiences with starting and doing things have taught me over time that it is always about an infinite continuum. Continue to practice and continue to do things after those starts with no end in sight.
The important insight here is that every step and every next step almost follow a Fibonacci series math pattern feeding into the ability to grow, irrespective of whether it was a step up or a step-down. This is how that first kiss, bloomed into a healthy loving relationship with its ups and downs along the way.
Disclaimer: This doesn’t apply to taking a big bite into a sumptuous fried meal and gorging for eternity! But yes, it does apply to trying creative recipes and continuous practice with cooking a healthy meal every day.
So as we try to embark on a new journey to learn and pick up great new things in our life, Don’t Just Do It! Keep Doing…
