Doing nothing is active listening

Last updated Aug 15, 2023

• Source:
  • Smile Indias; Sources/Interdisciplinary Approaches to Creation & Innovation - Class
  • Jenny Odell, How to Do Nothing (Book)
• Keywords: Cards/permanent notes
  • #personaldevelopment #mindfulness
• Relevant Notes:
  • Cards/Doing nothing is self-care

_“I hear, see, and smell things in a world where others also hear, see, and smell me. And it takes a break to remember that: a break to do nothing, to just listen, to remember in the deepest sense ==what, when, and where we are.==

I want to be clear that I’m not actually encouraging anyone to stop doing things completely. In fact, I think that “doing nothing”—in the sense of refusing productivity and stopping to listen—==entails an active process of listening that seeks out the effects of racial, environmental, and economic injustice and brings about real change. ==I consider “doing nothing” both as a kind of deprogramming device and as sustenance for those feeling too disassembled to act meaningfully.”