 I want this recording to be a way for you to shift mindset when you notice that you're struggling with inactivity, indecision or procrastination. So kind of save this one maybe somewhere and when you notice that you're struggling, come back here and I'm going to listen to this. So this is almost going to be like a guided meditation or a way to deal with the inner dialogue that is leading to the problem. So I just want to start now. I just want you to get comfortable and just take a few nice deep slow breaths before we start. And if you feel like you want to close your eyes you can do that. It's not totally necessary but it can be good to shift the attention to the inner landscape. Now what we're going to do here is we're not going to try and get you productive. That is something that will come very very naturally. Instead what we're going to do together, me and you, is we're going to look at the thoughts that are leading to the stuck feeling that you have. Maybe just start off by just acknowledging what it feels like to be stuck. Where in your body do you feel stuck? Because it can be a sense, almost an emotional or physical sense in the body sometimes. Feeling stuck. And I want you to notice that there may be thoughts there in your mind. You know those thoughts that are saying I have a lot to do. I have so much to do and for you personally they will take their own form to do my college work. I have to get to those emails and I just want you to allow yourself, give yourself permission here to just watch those thoughts. Invite them up. You may even notice that they're very closely linked to that stuck feeling. Allow those have to thoughts. Those should have done thoughts. Need to do, must do, have to do. Probably feels like a kind of a stressful anxiety type feeling. Maybe even a frustrated type feeling, irritated and see if you can give yourself permission just for these few moments we're together. As we look at this, give yourself permission to be irritated, frustrated, disappointed. Now as you notice those thoughts you may also start to notice additional thoughts that are of a slightly different texture, different energy. And those are thoughts that you might notice which are saying something like I don't want to do it. I'm not ready to do it. I'm dreading doing it and notice that they are of a lower kind of vibration or frequency. They're not worse, they're just different. There might be a feeling of helplessness with those thoughts. Now allow those to be there. Just give them a little space, a little permission for this. And you will also notice that the other thoughts that we looked at initially the have to, should do, need to do thoughts are still there. They actually haven't gone very far, right? So we're just noticing here, we're noticing there are have to thoughts and we're noticing that there are don't want to thoughts. And you might start to notice that this is kind of an unwinnable game here as you just, from a relaxed place, just notice these two thoughts, these two types of thoughts. It's kind of unwinnable, right? I mean, I have to do it, but I don't want to. I should do it, but I'm dreading it. And what we're bringing awareness to is of course you feel stuck. It has to be perfect, but I'm not good enough. Can you just start to allow a realization that that's an unwinnable game? And of course you feel stuck with that feeling stuck is the same reaction to this. You're supposed to feel stuck right there. You may also feel that while you've been struggling with this, you've been arguing with yourself. You've been changing your mind seemingly from I should do it, but I don't want to arguing with yourself. And I'm going to introduce an idea now. And the idea is that you have not been arguing with yourself. What's been happening is those two seemingly contradictory types of thoughts have been arguing with themselves. And as we sit here together and we look at it objectively, we can actually see that there is an argument happening there in the mind and we're not here to stop the argument, by the way, because it has nothing to do with you. We give the argument permission. We stop taking sides. We stop taking sides and we let both of them speak. You might begin to realize that the argument is happening automatically. You're not really choosing the thoughts from either side of the argument. They have to voice and I don't want to do it voice. Notice that it's just kind of happening all by itself, leading to those emotions and that inevitable stuck feeling that you have inside. I want you to let it argue for a little bit. Don't repress it. In fact, invite it to get even more tense. I don't want to. I have to do it. Anxiety, guilt. Now, the idea I'm going to introduce here is that this has nothing to do with you. This is exactly like being in a room with two people having an argument and you're sitting listening to the argument. It's a little bit like being in a room with two children who are having an argument. They're not getting along very well. And maybe the best thing to do is to just let them have that argument. This is so beautiful, guys, because what you don't have to do is figure it out. You just let them argue. You just let them argue. You may feel that the voice that is saying, I have to do it, is maybe more reasonable, more helpful. But look at the control that it's asserting. It's quite controlling, right? It's almost demanding. And I wonder if it's really that helpful. The other voice that says, I don't want to, may partially be a reaction to that. So maybe we can withdraw our allegiance to either side here. See them as both two sides at the same coin. Nothing at all to do with you. You're not choosing it. You didn't initiate it. You can't stop it. And that's good news, by the way, because you're off the hook. You don't have to figure it out. The more you see it as not you, that's what we're looking for. And if you can see it as not you, either of them, you just take your hands off. Let it be there. You're perfectly safe. You're perfectly capable. All you need is a little bit of encouragement and to not be pushed around a little by believing that voice is you. And just take a deep breath and notice if there's any expectation that the voices may be gone. We don't even need them to be gone. I have to do it. I don't want to. I have to do it. I don't want to. Let it be there. It doesn't have to go anywhere because it has nothing to do with you. Just a drama that all that entails. My point is it's not needed. It's not very helpful. It's not a good way to navigate your life. It's not, it's innocent. But it just doesn't really work, right? Has it really worked that much in the past? Have listened to that half-to-voice all the time? If it's not you, you might say, well, what is it? Just mental activity. It's just mental activity. And again, you know it's not you because you didn't wake up and say, I'm going to have a lot of half-to thoughts today, or don't want to do it thoughts. It's mental activity. And when you become free of the half-to voice, you start to notice something within you and your innermost starts to remind you automatically that everything's okay. Everything's okay. We can do it out of that pressure. The truth is all the things you've ever done are not because of the half-to-voice or the I don't want to voice. They're done in spite of that. You're just living your life doing what you're doing. And as you're doing it, or maybe before you do it or after you do it, those voices run a commentary over the top of it. So you don't need to figure out how to be productive. You just figure out the operating system of this mental activity is right there. It's over there. I can see it now. It's not me. And I don't really have to pay much attention to it. I don't even have to stop it. Deep breath. You might start to notice more other types of thoughts start to emerge. Things like, maybe I can relax. I wonder what I could do that would be easy. I wonder what I wouldn't mind doing. Wonder what wants to be done. Wonder what I'd like to do. Maybe guilt-free play would be useful right now. Maybe only committing to small, easy, achievable things would be doable and helpful. Maybe the next easy step is right there in front of me. Maybe I don't have to struggle. Those are your thoughts. Those are our thoughts. That's natural. So if you had your eyes closed, I invite you to open your eyes. Just take a moment and a nice deep breath, move your body a little and realize the problem was never productivity. The only problem has ever been mental activity from the past and you're free. It was never your fault. It was never your fault.