A few accidents in life that later prove to be one of the best blessings. This incident of my phone falling in a waterfall was one of them
In 2015, I realized I needed a radical life change. I didn’t have a career I loved; didn’t have friendships who inspired me; I wasn’t in a relationship that fulfilled me; and didn’t have a true home or community. I knew there was more to life- than you could have all these things- but knew that I needed to make some major shifts to get there.
So I bought a one-way ticket to Bali and found this Air B&B at a Balinese person’s house in the jungle where there was not a single foreign person and decided to spend some time there to clear my head. This is where one of the best accidents that happened to me – my phone falling in a waterfall!
My Experience There
At first, it was extremely hard. I was isolated and no one around me spoke English. My phone fell in that very waterfall and I had no communication with the outside world (which obviously drove my family insane.)
But it was exactly what I needed— to rip myself apart from society so I could begin to question which beliefs were truly mine and which I had taken on from someone else.
Over the next four months in Bali, I rethought everything- my relationship to money, purpose, men, friendships, freedom, truth, family.
I realized that the stories I was playing in my head, “I need to find a corporate job,” “My husband needs to support me,” “Life is sacrifice,” “The purpose of life is just to survive,” “Only one in a million can become a published author,” were exactly what was holding me back.
So I threw them away, into that waterfall with my phone, and washed away any lingering fears that were holding me back from being my highest self… and that’s when my world as I knew it fell apart. This is why my phone falling in waterfall was the best thing that happened to me.
Listen to this episode of Highest Self Podcast sharing my entire story and what happened next that brought me where I am today.
Listen on iTunes and SoundCloud
Today in my yoga class, I received the message that now that my upcoming book Eat Feel Fresh is written; and I’m heading to India to shoot the photography and film a pilot for an upcoming travel show. And it’s time to drop my phone back in the theoretical waterfall.
The truth is we live in a world with way too much noise; and that is keeping us from reaching our truths.
Never before have we lived in a time where we are constantly so distracted. We look at our phones and see thousands of images, stories, outfits, couples, scandals, and all other things that have nothing to do with us. And it’s not natural.
Why you should drop your phone in the imaginary waterfall
We were not meant to know so much about what is going on with everyone at every moment. We were not meant to look down at our phones and have 30 emails and texts to respond to each hour. It’s anxiety-evoking, numbing and keeps us from becoming our highest selves.
We don’t even know what it’s like to be bored anymore. Every time we are waiting for an elevator or inline, we pick up our phones to distract us. But what we don’t realize is that moments of genius comes in those moments of boredom.
Think of all the imaginative visions you’d create in your mind as a child sitting in the car staring out the window. We no longer allow ourselves to have those bored moments because we feel like every moment should be distracted by content.
I encourage you to also take a good look at your social media habits. And perhaps take a break this so you can be more present with your loved ones and most importantly, yourself.
We don’t realize how dependent we are to these little things in our hands. The average person picks up their phone over 100x a day. Let’s pick up a book, a conversation, a memory, something with more value than hitting refresh on our home page.
And to all content creators—imagine the amazing high-quality evergreen content you could create. Content like books, podcasts, and videos that you could create in the time you spend on social media; content that has a shelf-life of about 3 seconds.
You may like: The Surprise Of My Dreams – How I Got Proposed To In Bali
Cheers to a year with more clear, focused intentions (and less time on the Gram!)
Namaste and wish you a mindful year,