Summary
Robert Rickover and Imogen Ragone explore a new paradoxical Alexander Technique self-direction: "I'm not thinking." They discuss how this deceptively simple thought can produce immediate relief from excess tension and mental noise. Imogen describes experiencing moments of relief and letting go when using the direction in stillness, constructive rest, and during activities like walking. The conversation goes deeper in part two, connecting the direction to F.M. Alexander's writings on mind wandering in Constructive Conscious Control of the Individual, and to Eckhart Tolle's observations about incessant mental noise in The Power of Now. Robert argues this may be the most fundamental direction possible because thinking is at the root of everything we do. They also reference Missy Vineyard's work on paradoxical directions and discuss how "I'm not thinking" can interrupt unhelpful mental loops, reduce mind wandering, and create moments of mental stillness without requiring forced concentration.
Key Points
- "I'm not thinking" is a new paradoxical Alexander Technique self-direction that can produce immediate tension relief
- The direction works by sending a message to the unconscious mind to let go of unhelpful thought patterns
- It is the most paradoxical of all paradoxical directions because you use thinking to deliver a message about not thinking
- F.M. Alexander wrote extensively about mind wandering in Constructive Conscious Control, seeing it as the root cause of harmful concentration
- Eckhart Tolle describes the inability to stop thinking as a "dreadful affliction" that most people don't recognize
- The direction can interrupt negative mental loops like rehashing past events or imagining unlikely scenarios
- Soft delivery without expectations is essential — no barking orders or checking for results
- Can be combined with the question "what's the next thought going to be?" to extend its effect
Key Moments
The paradoxical direction "I'm not thinking" and how to use it
Robert introduces the new Alexander Technique direction "I'm not thinking" and sets up the two-part discussion — first how to use it, then its deeper implications.
"And I guess I'll spill the beans and say what that direction is. And it is, I'm not thinking. I'm not thinking."
Immediate relief and tension release from "I'm not thinking"
Imogen describes her experience using the direction — a moment of relief and letting go of excess tension she didn't know she was holding, effective in stillness, constructive rest, and while walking.
"I experienced the kind of moment of what I would call relief. And relief is really a letting go of some excess tension that maybe I didn't know or maybe I did know that I was holding on to."
Alexander's warnings about mind wandering and the connection to Eckhart Tolle
Robert connects the direction to Eckhart Tolle's observation that the inability to stop thinking is a dreadful affliction, and to Alexander's view that mind wandering leads to harmful concentration.
"Not to be able to stop thinking is a dreadful affliction. But we don't realize this because almost everybody is suffering from it. So it is considered normal."
How "I'm not thinking" interrupts negative mental loops
Robert explains how the direction can stop unhelpful mental patterns like rehashing past negative experiences, and how combining it with the question "what's the next thought going to be?" extends the effect.
"I've caught myself kind of rehashing some negative experience that I had in the past that's long gone and getting into it. And then I remember, ah, I'm not thinking. And sure enough, that thought doesn't have room to get there."
