When you’re stressing out it’s so easy to procrastinate and take action on everything but that one thing you need to. In other words, you sabotage yourself. When you’re not hitting your numbers and can’t seem to close the prospects on your list rather than listen to the mind chatter that beats you down take a break for a minute, an hour, a day, to regroup and shift your focus.
Before you take your break, take a moment and write down everything that’s on your mind. The to do’s, the questions, the worries, fears, write it all down until your mind silences. Trust that it’ll all be taken care of and allow yourself a timeout to do one of the suggestions below or one of your own choice.
Now, pick one activity that is listed below that pops for you:
1. Breathe
Find a space where you can be left alone for 2 minutes or more. Take at least 5 deep breaths from the top of your head to the tips of your toes. CLICK HERE to listen to a guided 2-minute breathe audio if you need help.
2. Go outside
Being in nature calms us down, especially when we live in big cities with lots of people. So, go to the closest park, forest, beach, lake and spend some time just taking in the beauty of nature; the flowers, trees, birds, wild animals, … listen to the sounds, take in the colors and surroundings… people watching can be fun too.
3. Move
4. Call a trusted friend
…or a co-worker… in this era of texting and emailing it’s easy to get isolated. You need a people-fix now and then and connect in person with another human being. If all else fails, go to the nearest coffee shop and see who you can talk to.
5. Google
Look up funny videos that make you laugh. Humor is personal so use your imagination. Here’s a couple of classics that get me going:
Now go find some that make you laugh.
6. Play music
There’s something for everyone. While you’re at it create a feel-good playlist that you add to over time. Pick songs that energize you, and if you have an instrument play it!
7. Get a massage
… or some type of bodywork like an energy session, there are many to choose from, try something new. Let your mind disconnect and your body relax.
8. Meditate
Google guided meditations online if you don’t already have a practice.
9. See a movie
Go to the movies and see something that inspires and appears to be fun to you right now. It can be a kick-ass action movie, a comedy, whatever strikes your mood. There’s always Netflix and other streaming services – binge alert
10. Read a book
… or listen to a podcast that inspires you.
Once you’re done, revisit that list you wrote down, take a piece of paper or open a document on your laptop/tablet and draw four columns.
Place each item into one of five columns.
TODAY
Pick the order that feels most fun.
What is the item that pops when you look at your list?
Start there and pick one at the time.
THIS WEEK
Sort in order of importance and once again, pick the one that you feel drawn to first.
Kick resistance out of the door by starting with the fun stuff.
1-3 months
Do you need to do this task or does it belong on a wish list for a rainy day? If so, add another document.
Delegate
Who would be happy to help and also great at what this task is? Who in your community stands out? There’s nothing like delegating to people that take joy in what they do, especially when it’s not something you’re good at or simply don’t have the time to do.
Disregard
Go through this list one by one and ask “will doing this task help you achieve your targets or is this a distraction? Distractions stay in the disregard column and if it’s a priority then move it to one of the other colums.
Try it, and let me know how it goes!
Learn how we can work together HERE.
