You never get it done
"Once you consciously observe, from your own creative perspective, how each new achievement leads to another new desire, you will begin to personally understand your part in this expansive Universe ... you never get it done because you never cease your awareness of the contrast out of which is always born a new idea or desire" (85).
"And as you begin to relax into the idea that you are an eternal Being, that your desires will never cease to flow, and that any desire that is born has the power within it to attract (by Law of Attraction) all that is necessary for the expansion and fulfillment of itself, then you may remember the immense Well-Being upon which this Universe is established, and, you may then relax into the eternal nature of your own Being. It is then that you will begin to enjoy your journey" (85).
"If your goal is to, finally, once and for all, achieve all that you desire, you will find yourself unable to ever fulfill that goal ... You cannot ever get it done because you cannot ever cease to be, and neither can you ever halt your awareness. Yet, out of your awareness will always be born another asking, and each asking always summons another answering. Your eternal nature is one of expansion—and in that expansion is the potential for unspeakable joy" (85).
— Ask and It Is Given, page 85
I am guilty of thinking I'll get it done
Especially when my to-do list gets long. I think to myself, "I have a lot to do. I just need to put my head down for the next week and grind through it all. Then I'll be able to relax, once it's all finished."
Whenever I do this, one of two things happens:
The to-do list just keeps growing. I work hard for one week, two weeks, and then the next thing I know I've been working at a breakneck pace for a month. This is when I'm most at risk of back pain, neck pain, bad mood, burning out, etc.
I actually get most of the list done and I feel like I can relax for a little bit. Then, it happens exactly like the book says, "Each new achievement leads to another new desire." While I'm relaxing, I think of new things to add to the to-do list.
Kirissa tells me I hold my breath. Some days we work from home together. I'll be at my desk in the living room and she'll be at the table in the dining room and she'll say, "You're doing it again."
Apparently what happens is I'll start working on something (e.g., sending an email) and I'll hold my breath until I finish (e.g., when I hit send).
I don't do it consciously and I wasn't even aware that I was doing it until Kirissa told me. It's probably a primal thing, similar to how your heart rate increases and your muscles tense when you're preparing to fight.
I think I do the same thing on a more macro level. My body sustains a state of readiness (tense muscles, etc.) when I'm working hard for weeks at a time. This is one theory I have for what causes the pain in my back and neck.
But I won't
"You never get it done" is a good mantra for me to remember.
I think I'll get it all done, but I won't. For example, I used to be a big fan of the FIRE movement. I thought I could work a high-paying job that I didn't enjoy, save a high percentage of my income, and then retire early. I wrote more about this here.
But this was all based on an "I'll get it done" mentality. I thought I could finish doing work that I didn't enjoy, retire, and then finally do work that I actually enjoy.
"Be present" also applies here.
What I'm doing when I make myself feel bad in the present in order to achieve a goal in the future is prioritizing the achievement of the future goal ahead of my present self.
But the only reason I'm pursuing the achievement of the goal in the future is to make myself feel good. If pursuing the future goal makes me feel bad in the present, then I'm achieving the exact opposite of what I really want. I wrote more about this here.
Enjoying the journey
"You never get it done because you never cease your awareness of the contrast out of which is always born a new idea or desire" (85).
There will always be more to do because there will always be more that I want to do.
When I think about things this way, the world feels like a creative playground. There's all this stuff, and I'm consciousness in a body such that I can affect the stuff, and I have desires to affect the stuff, and when I affect the stuff in ways that I desire, then that makes me feel good. That's pretty cool.
This "desires never cease to flow" perspective is a good replacement for the "get it done" mentality.
The to-do list just keeps growing, and that's okay. That's actually awesome.
It's not so much about getting the whole to-do list done as it is about what I'm adding to the to-do list and how I feel when I'm working on the to-do list.
What I really want is to feel good.
And that good feeling isn't something I need to prevent myself from experiencing until my whole to-do list is finally done.
Each individual item on my to-do list can align with a desire that makes me feel good.
And the process of working itself can feel good too.
Then it becomes this relaxed flow of new desire, manifest, feel good, and then another new desire.
Where this might align with mindfulness
At some point, you probably don't even need the to-do list. The universe has an intelligent flow for asking-answering, desiring-manifesting.
You don't need to plan for steps one through ten. You just need to focus on your present desire, and then the universe will take care of the rest.
Perhaps there's a possible lifestyle where your sole focus is on your present desire until it manifests, and then you focus on the next desire.
This seems to align with mindfulness. You're really just being aware, and part of your awareness is the feeling of your desire.
Remaining questions
Does making a to-do list for the purpose of achieving a future goal disrupt the flow of desiring-manifesting?
Can you still plan for the future while practicing manifestation?
How much work is required of you personally in order to make the manifestation happen?
What happens if you have a present desire that will actually be bad for you in the future?