Just imagine what your life would be like as a creative person, as a leader, as a productive person, as a producer, as a human being if you installed a weekly ritual of going for a walk in the woods. And to me, it is like a tonic from toxicity.
I used to do it once a week. I used to do it Sunday mornings. Now I probably go out to the woods three or four times a week, and I actually schedule it as part of my
refueling time on my weekly schedule.
And what do I do? I get into my car. As I drive, I turn on my audiobooks. I listen to whatever audiobook I want to listen to that day. Could be on productivity, business building, relationship building, psychology, family life, legacy, whatever it is. And I drive about 45 minutes to this place, and it’s these deep woods.
And I have my hiking boots on, and I have my walking gear, and I’ve got my water. And then I walk in the woods and it’s probably an hour walk.
And what do I do? I smell the smells and I look at the flowers and I savor life. And I look at the trees, and sometimes I get to see the sun setting, and I simply just notice. How often in your days do you notice? Do you notice the glory of life? Maybe it’s the lilies. Maybe it’s the way the sunlight looks as it comes through the trees. And what happens is you literally shift from a messy mind or a chattering mind, and you start to just be.
And that’s when you get great ideas. And that’s when you start to think about your life. And that’s when you get to know about your character. And that’s when you
can ask yourself some big questions. That’s when you can course correct. Maybe your life hasn’t been going so well, so you decide to make some changes. But during those nature walks, you get so many great ideas and you start to reconnect with the glory of
life.
And I often carry a piece of paper and a pen with me because I don’t want to bring technology out into those woods, and I write down ideas as I’m walking because they just come to me. Your brain shuts down, the prefrontal cortex starts to shut down,
and you actually tap out of logic and deep into the finest place of thinking that lies within you. And so the point is simply this, build a ritual to go for a walk in the woods at least once a week. You’re going to get so many great ideas. You’re going to refuel your energy, you’ll release stress, and you’ll start to become even more of a greater human being, which is my greatest wish for you.