Breaking Newton's Law

Anybody who studied introductory physics in high school will recognize Newton’s “first law of motion”, which basically says that a body at rest will remain at rest while a body in motion tends to stay in motion.

This rule is obviously true for humans as well:  we tend to build up a momentum in whatever we are doing – and whatever we are not doing.  A person who starts exercising is likely to continue to do so once the rewards of this habit begin to show themselves, such as increased vigor, a healthier body, reduced stress, etc.  Similarly, lethargy works the same way: below a certain point of momentum it’s just hard to “get going”.  I’ve previously written about the fact that a plane doesn’t fly at 40 miles an hour.  Below a minimum speed it’s impossible to achieve enough “lift”.  In human motivation this is sometimes called laziness, but I prefer to think of it as simply a lack of momentum.

 

As in so many things, an extreme at either end of the spectrum carries a certain amount of risk. Once lethargy becomes a lifestyle little is accomplished, which contributes to a lack of meaning in life which in turn opens the way for emotional difficulties to slowly develop.  This is when it is time to heed the warning to “don’t just sit there, do something!” On the other hand, a person who is rigorously exercising needs to take an occasional day off to let the body rest and heal.  Some people are practically workaholics and struggle to take care of themselves.  Their need is to relax, unplug and "don't just do something….sit there!”

    

But there is another level of human behavior where Newton’s law doesn’t apply.  It’s the reality that all people are constantly shifting from one state of activity to another.  It doesn’t take much reflection for this to become readily evident.   You eat when you are hungry and stop eating when you are full.  When you grow tired it’s time for sleep and wake up when you are rested.  When the world intrudes it is natural to seek some solitude for awhile until the inevitable point when the desire returns to re-engage “life on life’s terms”. From this perspective, day-to-day existence is a constant shift between starting and stopping.

 

I’ve previously discussed that one measurement of sanity is appropriate use of limits and boundaries.  Sometimes people need a lot of practice and assistance to stop acting, thinking or feeling a certain way.  At other times the greater challenge is to take our foot off the brakes and charge as fully as possible into new frontiers.   In either case there comes a strategic time for defining the direction and form to the change that is bound to happen.

The way to guide this transition as productively as possible is to practice continual self-awareness.  It is so easy to mentally “check out” and let the inevitable energy shifts just ebb back and forth like the tide without sailing across the water to a desired destination.  Developing conscious mindfulness is the way to manage and adjust the inevitable shift of energy between one state and another.

Some type of 'jolt' to the system is almost guaranteed to engage the gears in a new direction.  This may be as small as a conscious decision to set the alarm clock fifteen minutes earlier than usual in order to meditate on the day ahead.  On the other end of the spectrum, a crisis that disrupts the foundation of your life can be the impetus for an entirely new way of living.  The trick is that it’s not the event itself that changes the flow of energy through you.  It’s the decision that comes from within that makes all the difference in the world and stands Newton on his head.  This is the time when “hitting bottom” can lead a person to the crucial crisis of meaning that is capable of changing an entire way of life.

But the impetus for shifting direction doesn’t have to be so dramatic.  The only action that is necessary is the simple decision to do something different.  It hardly matters what it is.  Any change in a part of a system will influence the system itself.  All it takes is finding the “difference that makes a difference.”  The conscious decision to "lean in the opposite direction" can cause an object at rest to rocket into another dimension.  

Some laws are made to be broken.