“At dawn, when you have trouble getting out of bed, tell yourself: “I have to go to work—as a human being. What do I have to complain of, if I’m going to do what I was born for—the things I was brought into the world to do? Or is this what I was created for? To huddle under the blankets and stay warm?” —But it’s nicer here.… So you were born to feel “nice”? Instead of doing things and experiencing them? Don’t you see the plants, the birds, the ants and spiders and bees going about their individual tasks, putting the world in order, as best they can? And you’re not willing to do your job as a human being? Why aren’t you running to do what your nature demands? —But we have to sleep sometime.… Agreed. But nature set a limit on that—as it did on eating and drinking. And you’re over the limit. You’ve had more than enough of that. But not of working. There you’re still below your quota. You don’t love yourself enough. Or you’d love your nature too, and what it demands of you. People who love what they do wear themselves down doing it, they even forget to wash or eat. Do you have less respect for your own nature than the engraver does for engraving, the dancer for the dance, the miser for money or the social climber for status? When they’re really possessed by what they do, they’d rather stop eating and sleeping than give up practicing their arts. Is helping others less valuable to you? Not worth your effort?” – Marcus Aurelius
As much as we all need to eat and sleep, these necessities can become indulgences.
And if we take them to the extreme, they can stop us from doing what we’re meant to do — help others and work for the common good.
For example, imagine a world without good literature, or art or the sciences, or without jobs and vocations.
It would be a dull, boring world.
We were all put on this earth for something, a calling.
Oversleeping, overeating, and being idle prevent us from fulfilling our specific missions in this world.
Oversleeping steals precious time we could spend on meaningful tasks.
Overeating makes us overweight and can have damaging effects on our health, like diabetes, heart disease, and strokes.
Being idle wastes time for no good reason. It’s not that our lives are short; it’s that we waste a lot of them.
Marcus tells us to observe the ants and how they accomplish their individual tasks.
If ants can go about their specific tasks, then why do we find it so hard to get out of bed in the morning?
We should spring out of bed to achieve what our nature demands.
Of course, to do anything worthwhile in this world is no easy task.
But when you have a why for your life, a mission that you clearly set out to achieve, you should be able to get through any obstacle, even if that means getting out of bed in the morning.
Jesus said, “Man does not live by bread alone.”
We crave much more than food and sleep.
We crave meaning, serving others, and working to make people’s lives easier, whether that’s through information (writing) or inventions.
How I focus on the sustenance of the soul.
Work and helping others are sustenance for the soul.
Benjamin Franklin said, “to serve the common good is divine”.
And that’s precisely what sustains our souls.
How I practice this advice with fasting:
1️⃣ – I get up early, drink black coffee, and water.
2️⃣ – I start going about my day with the common good in mind, I write, I read, I pray (I’m a Christian, so I pray three times per day and go to church some days).
3️⃣ – Once I’ve completed my work for the day and read, etc, I then break my fast and eat a meal. I will then relax, have downtime, and spend time with friends or family.
Of course, we all love food and love to relax, but if we are gluttons for these, we neglect to work towards proper sustenance of the soul: Helping others and serving the common good.
And that’s why I follow my fasting routine. Doing so helps me prioritise my tasks effectively. Which, for me, is my writing, reading, and work for the day.
I’m not saying I fast every day, but it’s something I’ve been doing for a while. It’s really helping me prioritise my most important tasks, which are writing and reading, because I want to be the best writer I can be and thus have a positive impact on others.
However, whether you choose to fast or not, the point remains simple.
Prioritise good works and deeds every day.
Our ability to serve the common good is what makes us different from animals.
Even animals eat and sleep.
However, what they lack is a mind like ours.
Therefore, they are unable to have a significant impact on the world like we do.
We are born with these extraordinary minds for a reason.
We must use them.
The bottom line 👉
Although eating and sleeping are requirements, we don’t experience true meaning and fulfilment from them. So make sure you place limits on them. Doing so will free up time for you to excel in your profession and serve and help others.
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