Sex, Drugs & Rock-n-Roll
Wine, Women & Song
Live in the Moment
We have seemingly endless ways to describe living a sensation-driven life. The sense of abandon from our responsibilities when we go dancing, ride roller coasters, go whitewater rafting, and similar activities do have a place in our lives.
The dopamine rush inhibits our prefrontal cortex so you live life in the moment. Whenever we are about to embark on one of these activities you hear “Have a sensational time!” No one ever says, “Have a cognitive time!” when we are about to engage in more thoughtful, meaningful experiences.
And yet…
The wild, fun times are not what we most value in whenever life reminds us of what really matters.
A ring is just a pretty, shiny, circular object to a child living a sensation-driven existence absent meaning. The meaning comes later from our cognitive understanding of the significance of the ring in representing that the wearer is married.
The best life is one where you can be both cognitively-driven and sensation-driven at the appropriate times and be both frequently enough that you are both connected to the people, places and things that give your life meaning while not getting so caught up in meaning that you cannot put the past and future aside and enjoy this moment.
At the other end are people too focused on keeping the good times rolling and hopping from one sensational experience to the next. Part of the joy of life is having a sense of identity that comes from a connection to your past and future.
To balance these two priorities in your workouts, your social time, your moment-to-moment existence start to notice the times when you need some lightness and when you need some quality-time.
And just maybe, start occasionally wishing someone a “cognitive time” with an enthusiastic tone.