How Daydreaming Is Beneficial To Well-Being And Human Progress

Did you get in trouble for daydreaming at school? We all lose track of the moment from time to time and become immersed in our own imagination. We either reminisce or fantasise, playing back what we remember or inventing what ifs and if onlys. Sometimes we put our imagination to use and give ourselves an inventive goal with the information that we know. No matter what the imagination and the mind's eye is being used for, the principles are the same. The skill of using the imagination is how we create new principles and objects. Our ability to create systems with rules and to produce structures and items that do amazing things based on known principles is phenomenal. Doing this is extremely difficult, too.


The imagination offers a genuine respite from unpleasant circumstances or thoughts. Sometimes we can escape a waiting room or an evening of boredom by letting our imagination take us somewhere else. Of course, there are all kinds of things out there to help us do this like music, books, and films but we don't need these things to let our imagination take over. So not only is the imagination a route to new invention, it's also a backdoor to the present situation. We can take it to where ever we want.


Imagination helps us to change the way we perceive things. Sometimes we need to imagine a different perspective before we see it in reality. The way other people look at the world is not always the same as yours and in these cases we must be able to imagine what it's like for them or we we always act contrary to their needs. Empathy is what keeps us together and enables care beyond familial relationships and this is based on the imagination. When we feel another person's emotions, we imagine them from their perspective. Sometimes it is so strong that the feeling is as strong as if it were our own.


Planning and implementing ideas involves thinking about the future and choosing which future processes will be required. By being able to imagine this in full, we can choose the best route for this time even though we are not there yet. We can achieve our results faster because we are able to foresee the work we will need to do. By assessing the various methods available to us we can decide how to best move forward. Daydreaming is the only way we will ever draw this map through time.


So it's not all fun and games. Sometimes the imagination can give us trouble. When we can't control the things we imagine for what ever reason, this can become problematic. We become the boat on the ocean of our subconscious and this takes away our ability to hold our mental processes. The inside influence from an untethered imagination can be extremely harmful. Catastrophism and wallowing with outlandish paranoias can easily push you in every possible direction. Even if you are able to filter this from your outward expressions, the inner work of keeping it in check is exhausting.


This is why the art of using the imagination needs to be paid attention to and definitely not ridiculed when done inappropriately. We need to educate each other in the way to harness this utility of mind in order to use it for our best interests.  
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