Effortless Effort

A counterintuitive approach to achieving flow.

Photo by Pixabay

I love counterintuitive things for their power to create dramatic change.

One counterintuitive idea I initially struggled to understand was wu-wei (ooo-way).

While wu-wei literally translates from Chinese as 'no trying', some describe it as effortless effort or trying not to try¹.

If you are in wu-wei you aren't doing 'nothing'; you are acting out in something like a state of flow.

You might be creating art, writing, running, or other things without strenuous effort.

We often link trying or effort to things being hard.

Trying hard requires a lot of energy and can be exhausting. We are often tense when we are trying or working hard.

Wu-wei is about being relaxed.

Relaxing is the opposite of working hard. Most of us think of relaxing as lying on the couch, muscles relaxed, not doing anything.

Of course, relaxing and trying hard seem like completely contradictory things.

What if we try hard while relaxing?

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An Experiment

Sit in a comfortable position. Relax the muscles of your shoulders, neck, jaw, and head so that you're sitting upright but relaxed.

Now read the beginning of this article, while keeping that relaxed posture.

Take deep, easy breaths. Feel peaceful while focusing on reading.

Be aware of what it feels like to focus on an activity while not tensing up—doing something like intensely reading while remaining calm, peaceful, and relaxed.

That is wu-wei…effortless effort.

This time, repeat the exercise, drinking a glass of water or slowly walking around the room.

Try any number of things while remaining upright and relaxed. Do all of these while remaining calm, peaceful, and relaxed, spending only the effort necessary.

Trying not to try seems counterintuitive, and it is, of course, which is why it is so powerful and a pivotal behavior to living into Ikigai.

🌀 Reflection:

• I will share more about wu-wei in future articles, for now practice what you’ve learned today. Look for opportunities to relax and be totally into what you are doing.

• Notice times when you are in flow naturally. What are you doing?

1

Trying not to try is a term coined by author Edward Slingerland in his book of the same title.