Time to Stop and Breathe

Has it been one of those weeks where everything comes at once? where everything needs to be done now? If so it’s time to stop and breathe!

I’ve had to tell myself this a couple of times this week, the reason being, I’m feeling stressed! I have a deadline looming for the completion of my book which is to be published in February and it looks like I’m not going to make it!

Now is when I have to pull on all the wisdom that I’ve learned over the past couple of years the wise words of writers, poets and business men and take their advice

“The time to relax is when you don’t have time to relax”
Sydney J Harris

Ensure relaxation time is included in your day, although it may be difficult when you have so much to do, it is the way you will work to your maximum capacity and produce your best work. By relaxation I mean nourishing habits, not playing computer games, or watching mindless TV while drinking beer, try the more wholesome forms of relaxation, they work better in the long run.

Branson’s number one productivity tip = “Work out”

We know the truth but don’t always want to admit it; just like relaxation when we feel stressed one of the best things we can do is exercise. But it’s usually the first thing to be dumped. Try and include exercise in your day, it is the best remedy for stress and it also gives you more energy which will help you to complete your tasks more easily.

“With the past, I have nothing to do; nor with the future” I live now. Ralph Waldo Emerson

Living in the present moment is a great way to avoid stress, stress is caused by thinking about future outcomes that we cannot control by living in the present moment we avoid creating unnecessary stress about things that haven’t yet happened. Worrying about outcomes is a waste of time, stay focused on the process which in my case is the writing, the outcome will follow. I’ve written a popular post on lifehack.org about this called How to Practice the Art of Detached Focus.

“For breath is life, and if you breathe well you will live long on earth” ~Sanskrit Proverb

The all important breath, don’t forget to stop and breath, breathing deeply relaxes our worried heads and calms our pounding hearts. Linda DiBella describes some of the benefits in her article Take a breath

The last thing you can ask yourself is “What is the worst that can happen? When you answer this question you will realize that the worst outcome is actually not so bad and doesn’t’ merit you having a heart attack or even loosing sleep over it.

So now I must take my own advice and organize a tennis game for tonight and when I come home I am going to relax in a warm bath all the time staying present and breathing deeply!

What do you do when things get too much? I would love to hear what you do to distress and unwind


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Comments (2)

A very timely article. Was contemplating whether or not to go to the gym as I’d planned to do, but it has been a long busy week, so I’ve listened to my body’s wisdom, which tells me I need to rest, so 30 minutes meditation beckons instead!

Good point James I rarely use meditation in the evening for unwinding, I meditate in the morning before my brain switches on but I think I might start including it in the evening routine. thanks for that

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