The Fine Art of Doing Nothing

By Lisa Lieberman

People say “you're a good for nothing bum” as if it's supposed to be an insult.

Actually, doing nothing is a lot harder than it looks.

Some of the hardest jobs I've ever had have been the ones where there there's nothing much to do. Time passes so slowly when there's nothing to do.

Doing nothing can feel very satisfying, though, at times.

When you do nothing, expecting nothing, and achieve nothing, you've reached your goal.

But when you do something expecting something and nothing happens, then that's when you run into disappointments.

I've always thought doing nothing is underrated.

Just look at rocks. Rocks are pacing themselves. They don't feel the need to do or say anything. And they live forever. As a result, they get to see a whole lot more action in their lifetimes than most of us ever will.

The same is true for turtles that never seem to have very much to say and spend most of their time secluded in their shells. They can live for over a century.

Bees and ants should serve as an example of the futility of action packed lives. Once bees leave the safety of their hives and begin working nonstop, they only live a few weeks. The same is true for ants.

I try to take all this into account whenever I begin to think of doing something over nothing. I try to think of how every time I lay in my hammock instead of going out into the world, of all the hundreds of bugs and ants I save by not stepping on or hitting them with my car. For every time, I opt to say nothing, I think there's one more person I haven't risked offending by saying something.

People say when you avoid taking risks that “nothing ventured, nothing gained.” That may be true, but “nothing ventured, nothing lost” is also true.

Practice doesn't always make perfect. Especially if you're doing it wrong.

Whereas the old saying goes, “a stitch in time saves nine,” it can also be said that a “stitch in time wastes 99.”

Nothing can be a very safe and worthwhile thing to do. Whoever heard of a 53-year old man dropping dead because of a heart attack because he was so stressed by doing nothing?

Although doing nothing has its pluses, nothing can be a very onerous task.

You don't see convicted criminals given action packed, activity filled days as punishment. No, when they're punished in prison, they get solitary confinement with nothing to do.

So when people try to insult me by telling me I'm doing nothing, I just tell them to just be glad that they're the ones doing something and I'm the one doing nothing.

(Readers can e-mail Lisa at lisal@thegrid.net.)