Book of the Week: 'The Untethered Soul" by Michael A. Singer

I first heard about this book on the Braungardt Family podcast. Tanner, middle child and the YouTuber, read the book as he battled anxiety and the constant pressure of being an online personality. I, however, came across the book when I was walking through the Harvard Coop the day of the Patriots sixth championship parade.

Yes folks that is correct I had walked all the way from Boston Common, down the Mass Ave Bridge, through Kendall and Central Squares and all the way into the Harvard Square - that's how I came face-to-face with "The Untethered Soul."

Philosophy books are not typically my cup of tea, but  since I heard so much about the book from listening the the podcast (it's really good and insightful ... you can check it out at Mom I Wanna Be A YouTuber) I had to see what it was all about. Plus the quote on the front of the book by Deepak Chopra is pretty deep.

It's not a hard read at all, but there is so much philosophy that it does require you to read some paragraphs multiple times for things to fully set in. And like other books I previously wrote about, there are things in this book I can relate to and am trying to work on getting better.

The main thing is staying open and resisting the temptation to close, that's where true growth comes from. No one likes to get hurt and feel pain, but the more receptive and open we become to feeling that pain the more we are truly beginning to grow. The longer you try to protect yourself from the pain, the more insecure and closed you remain. And the most important thing to remember is that, "you are not your thoughts, you are the awareness of your thoughts." Being aware that YOU are the one thinking about them.

As a society we want to try to protect ourselves. We don't want to feel the pain so we construct external things to protect ourselves from it ("the thorn"), and we do this for every little problem. So it becomes a real-life game of "Whac-A-Mole" - when we're done dealing with one problem, another problem comes up.

I can relate it to the first video I made at Harvard. I had A LOT - and I mean A LOT - of things I need to correct. See the list of six things that needed to be adjusted in the video may have been a shot to the ego, I knew in the long run it was going to make me better at making videos. It is what needed to be done in order to grow and be better at making videos.

If you're someone who enjoys meditation and mindfulness, then this book's for you. You will really come to understand why you do the things you do and what the subtle reasons behind your fears.

Of course, Coach York's 24-hour rule philosophy comes into play later in the book. Jerry York is the winningest coach in college with over 1,000 victories between stops at Bowling Green, Clarkson and his alma mater, Boston College. He was able to achieve such a milestone because he preaches the 24-hour rule. The rule is as simple as it seems: whatever happens to you (good and bad), you then have 24 hours to reflect on it. Once those 24 hours have gone by you have to move past it.

Fixating on a past result is worthless, because as Rafiki from The Lion King said after he smacked Simba in the head his walking stick, "it's in the past." Same goes for the future, don't spend too much time thinking about the future. Focus on the now. The Precious Present ... also a Coach York classic short story.

And also who knew the Timothy Mouse from Dumbo was such the philosopher?

Listen to the audio version of Michael A. Singer's "The Untethered Soul" on your ride to work, a long walk or during your daily work outs by purchasing on Audible.com.