Leo Babauta from Zen Habits is writing new book, The Effortless Life, publicly on the web (using a shared Google Doc in case you are interested). Reading it this week, I was reminded of the Tao concept of Wu Wei.

Wu Wei is literally translated as 'non-doing' or 'non-action' but the meaning is closer to 'action of non-action'. What appears to be a clear paradox - how can you have action of non-action? – is actually describing a state of ‘flow’ and ease when our actions are effortlessly in alignment with the ebb and flow of life, the natural world, and the rhythm of our bodies.

Much of our time at work, and in our lives, we are taking action. We are setting ambitious goals, deciding on priorities, and writing long to-do lists of tasks. As a productivity geek I will admit that I am as guilty of this as the next person - in fact this is part of what I teach!

However, sometimes I feel that I am pushing too hard up against the world, constantly striving, continually running. Can Wu Wei teach me another path?

This is what I have been experimenting with this week. Whether it's a summer slump or post-holiday blues, for some reason I have been finding it hard to get though my Big Rocks and daily allocated tasks. As a pretty focused and motivated person, this was initially worrying. But a strange thing happened. When I started to deeply listen to what I wanted to do, rather than what I thought I should do, things just got done. They may not have been exactly my planned priorities for the week, but there were still important work.

In the practice of yoga, this concept of non-striving is very important. Yoga is a delicate balance between effort and relaxation. Too much effort and you will hurt yourself. Not enough effort and you will not progress in your practice. One of my teachers talked recently about not falling in love with the shape of the pose. What he meant was that with the right effort the shape will come, but if we focus on just throwing ourselves into the shape, we have lost the benefit of the pose.

So in our busy and action-orientated world, how can we incorporate a little Wu Wei into our life? Here are seven ideas I have been playing with:

1. Instead of being a slave to the alarm clock, get up when you wake up naturally. (Obviously don’t do this if you have a train to catch or an important meeting first thing!)

2. Kill your to-do list and implement the One Thing System. Get up in the morning and decide what it is that you are excited about. Do that One Thing while your energy and motivation is high. Spend the rest of the day doing other tasks.

3. Rest when you feel tired. Don't keep working because it's work time. If you feel like a nap in the middle of the day, take a nap. Go to bed when you are tired, not before.

4. Work on setting an intention for your business (read my previous post on Intention, Alignment and Letting Go) but then letting go and not being too attached to the outcome.

5. Practising 'non-doing' in meetings; instead of trying to fill the space with words, try to use the space to really listen to what the other person is saying. You might be surprised at the insights you will gain.

6. Listen to when you are trying too hard. Take a step back and breathe.

7. Take the motivational signs and project reminders (or is this just me?) down from the walls around your desk and work in a clear and Zen space. (This is something I have been trialling since I got back from holiday and I like the headspace it’s giving me, especially when it comes to writing or thinking.)

Do let me know your thoughts on Wu Wei in the comments. An interesting idea or a waste of time?