Turning Inward The Practice of Introversion for a Calm, Joyful, Authentic Life

I never want to get so woo-woo about like saying a deep breath in that it doesn't actually even my belief in that it's important to step back from panic and like it to use your word the nightmare situation I never want us to be cavalier about sometimes we need to be in a fight position we need to be ready that said there is so much value like any any great strategist will tell you like you just said to have a moment where you pause and give kind of um a nebulous space where you don't have to know the idea you don't have to you aren't grasping for the for the answer but that kind of open space to where the strategy the answer the solution arises organically like that is again that's so valuable and it's it's definitely harder to do when you're the one who's more like when it's an existential question however recognizing that it's possible just knowing that it is within our capacity especially when you know we have a you know a moment in the day say after exercise or in the morning when you're brushing your teeth to just say like like the title of the first the intro chapter is called you'll be okay and that that is a big statement again not to be cavalier but that ultimately realizing like we do have a lot of power within we do have a lot of power as a community and that to me alone gives me a lot of um peace and calm it doesn't fix everything and and turning inward is not meant to be a panacea it is however an opportunity to just do it a little bit better to maybe just navigate it a little bit more intelligently and mindfully

I appreciate this idea because I do think there are times when you know our students talk to us about this like everything feels really overwhelming it can be very difficult to understand how one person can make an intervention that is meaningful against what feels like just a rising tide of crap and you know turning inward recognizing that you can only manage yourself in this situation and and do what you do I think is incredibly liberating I mean it doesn't have to be disempowering I actually can be incredibly empowering to sort of I can get my side of the street correct and figure out how to work with other people who are also trying to get their side of the street correct and maybe together we can clean up a lot of different streets and you know I thought that was a very powerful part of the book like you're responsible for yourself but all of those people responsible for themselves working in concert can actually be quite forceful

I also love until you said that most I hadn't had this thought but the book has this like wonderfully capacious approach to meditation like it is not you don't have to have a special mat you don't have to sit in a full lotus position you don't have to try to think about it's like there are many no it or could be for us doing for turning and bow nine I'm doing exactly listening to it can be a form of meditation why doesn't my peloton dot show about every time I show up in this room where's my red dot wait so many times make that happen to get out the club we need I love that yeah I listen I think I love all of that and and not to blow smoke but that is what you do that's what you do for me you know I remember Kate when you were on uh as recline show I believe and and you do it on this you all three do it on this podcast all the time the decision and the clarity that you all bring to these incredibly complex topics for people like myself you're absolutely doing what meditation is meant to do it's you know allowing us a gateway to a feel a little bit better because we're human beings love to feel a little bit of control a little bit of orientation so absolutely your you are doing that and how do you maybe do it a little bit more how does anyone do it a little bit more Kate to your point I think for me it's as simple as say say you scrolling through Instagram takes you out of your head and that's what you need to escape or a glass of wine or a running on a treadmill doing a peloton yoga class I think if someone says look I am doing this for the purpose of feeling better I'm doing this intentionally to get out of my head so that when I finish perly is point earlier so that I'm assuming that my ideas are going to be a little bit more crystalline and useful have utility when I get done then it is absolutely meditation

I feel so blessed with like my mom used to my grandfather passed away before I was born he and my grandmother were both actually pilots in the 1950s and they were in a plane crash before I was born and um my mom actually had an 11 year old sister to raise and she spoke about my grandfather in such glowing terms of that at his at his funeral the janitor and the mayor were both there and and she always said and says to this day you know that humility is one of the highest virtues that we can attain or we can possess and you know it's not my place to say that that's not gonna happen with some people on the court but I do believe that there is a strong link between humility and beginner's mind I bet all the justices especially if you said to them you know in a private or you know kind of saves base if you will like humble in the face of history humble in the face of the constitution and what is it that they see themselves in service of that is they're willing to say you know what I don't know everything I do want to I do want to have a beginner's mind if it makes America if it makes this country that we all love a better place a more perfect union some avenue with that to get to beginner's mind so it's not just this kind of axiomatic thing that they'll dismiss