The Privilege Of Spontaneity
Spontaneity is one of the greatest things any of us can ever allow ourselves the pleasure of doing. Most of the time, being spontaneous really means being random, but being random is fine. It is more than fine. Life is so focused around routines that it is no wonder more people don’t go mad. We go from school to college to work to retirement. We set our alarms at 6.30am every day, leave the house 8am, get to work at 8.45, go to Subway for lunch, leave work at 6pm, have dinner at 7.30pm, watch our favorite Netflix show and go to bed at 10pm. That is the humdrum noise of so many lives, lives full of stress; so why not be a little bit spontaneous. Better yet, be spontaneous with your best friend.
This could be your wife or husband. It could be your college roommate. It could be anyone, but be spontaneous with them. Doing it alone is amazing in the sense that you have done it alone and learned something new about yourself. But doing it with a friend brings that element of silliness into it, that little bit of fun that doesn’t get allowed out when it is just you. But what random spontaneous things can you do?
Well, chances are you have resisted the urge to do a lot of these in the past, so next time you feel that bubbling energy that says “do it, do it, do it†why not give in and have a laugh. You’ll feel so much better after a good ab-aching giggle. Trust us.
Spread Happiness
Speak to random people, but do it with an infectious glee. Say hi to people passing by on the street, or start up conversations with those sat around you on the bus, or on the subway. Too many people are afraid to step outside their comfort zones in this sense, but meeting people and making brief half-hour friendships is so an incredible thing to do. There is a word, Sonder, which is the recognition that each passerby has a life as complex and vivid as your own, so why not hear their stories. If you’re not feeling brave enough, or don’t know how to break the ice of random conversation with random people, then why not pretend you don’t know the area. Ask them for advice on where to go and what to see. You’ll be amazed at how such a simple segue will lead into a good old laugh.
Dual Headphones
This is one of our favorite random activities, but go and by an earphone splitter so that both of you can listen to the same music, plug it into your iPhone and head off on a walk. Take it in turns to choose a song, but do it alphabetically. This is such an epic and subtle way to make incredible memories. You’ll see your surroundings in a whole new light, unable to talk to one another, as you listen to each others song choice and look at your surroundings, taking it all in. You’ll see things you never saw before, in see things in a whole new way. You’ll give songs new meanings and you’ll bond with one another without even speaking; it is totally random, and spontaneous, yet incredible too.
Road Trip
Do it, just jump in the car and drive. Put $20 worth of fuel in the tank and go as far as it will take you. See what you stumble across. See what adventures you end up going on. If you see something that catches your eye, then stop and check it out. The other thing you can do to add to the total bonkers-ness of it all is to each pack a bag of totally random things to make the journey that much more memorable. Take candyfloss with you. Or pack a couple of longboards. Go online and see what dashboard items you can get, because there are some incredibly fun things out there. What’s more, they can be cheap too; some companies offer $5~$90 OFF – Custom Bobbleheads Unique Craftsmanship. Why not pack a tent and turn your spontaneous road trip into a spontaneous camping trip. This is your chance to travel with your best friend without going far, enjoying your own neck of the woods, bonding, and laughing, and do it for no good reason. That is what makes this a privilege, is the fact we can do this sort of thing, knowing some people can’t.
Street Musicians
The world is full of talented people. It is packed full of them. Yet all too often we don’t actively look for them, or we don’t give them the time of day, or we don’t see their talents because we are too busy caring about our own little world. So why not stop and take it all in for a minute? Why not go and find street musicians in your area, sit and watch them, dance, sing with them and drop a couple of dollars into each hat. Seeing your favorite band live is a gig that probably costs upward of $60, and yet for $10 you could go to five live gigs. If you can’t spare that amount, though, why not come up with a totally random points system based on your preferences, and then go back and tip the performer you liked best – you never know what might happen. Stop and listen to each one, that will make their day more than you know, but then score them based on song choices, instruments, energy, style, and anything else you can think of.
Events
Every city has an array of stuff going on, so why not go to the first event you walk past or hear of. Head to the local tourist office and ask them to pick a random event that is happening in town today. It could be an environmental march, it could be a seminar, or the opening of a café, or even an art exhibition. It doesn’t matter what it is, it just matters that you embody spontaneity and go. Who knows, you may learn something incredible. You may find you love a certain niche of art, or have a preordained love for a new food, or anything. The thing to remember is that life should be about new experiences, so throw yourself into them as often as you can. We are all learning about ourselves, and that never stops.
Dress Up
Too many of us take life too seriously, so why not go the other way and be as silly as possible. If you have a dressing up box then great. If not, raid your wardrobe, or your parents’ wardrobe, see if there are any decidedly dodgy and retro clothes that you can wear. Why not go one step further and have a 1970s inspired photoshoot. Take what you can find, head to a fancy dress shop, get some wigs, head to local landmarks and hold a hippy-inspired photoshoot. One day you’ll look back at these photos and smile. These will be the good old days when you were carefree and happy. So be weird, be wild, be odd and be you. Trust us. You’ll only regret it if you’re not.
The world is so full of opportunities to say yes, but all too often we don’t. We forget to live in the moment or get the most out of everyday. We believe in things like Carpe Diem, but the reality is very different. Imagine if every morning you woke up and found $86,400 in your bank, with one catch; anything you don’t spend that day is lost. It doesn’t carry over to the next day. You can’t save it, you can only spend it. Well, you would spend every cent, right? Well, we have 86,400 seconds to spend each day, so why not spend them with the same mentality.
Now go and be spontaneous.
Tia, and TipsfromTia.com is trying to keep you looking good and
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