A few weekends ago I was in Berlin for an event of a group of young entrepreneurs. We had a great time. We talked business, but also about our daily routines and how we manage to be our best every single day – where possible. I learned a lot, I can tell you.
One of the best ideas that one of Dutch friends gave me, was to develop a morning ritual. Now, I heard lots about morning rituals. To me, it often sounded a bit spiritual, so I shied away a bit. I do have morning habits to get me going like doing sports, but that’s about it.
Doing exercises pumps me up. My heart, my lungs, my whole body gets in action while my mind is still trying to wake up. So, since I knew that Dutch friend of mine was not necessarily of a spiritual nature (nothing wrong with that, just not my route), I asked him what he does each morning.
He told me that he started meditating regularly one day during this summer. And the more he shared, the more I realized he is not talking about meditation in Buddhist style, no. He talked about a guided meditation thanks to an app on his phone created by a British meditation expert. It sounded mainly like a breathing exercise. Now this intrigued me. Why?
Well, I have been trying quite a few different relaxation exercises in my life (like Autogenic Training), but what I found out was that I wasn’t that good in guiding myself through these exercises on a regular basis. And I simply stopped doing it. So, this idea of someone guiding me through a simple meditation exercise each morning sounded like a great incentive for me to get back into it. The last argument which he presented to me (although I was already convinced to do something) was that it only takes 10 minutes to do.
That is it. Only 10 minutes. No matter what priorities, I should find 10 minutes of my day to dedicate purely to myself, shouldn’t I? So, I downloaded the free app and started the meditation exercise the first day after our event.
The Benefits
20 days fast forward to today, I am not only still doing these exercises (Yes!), I am well into them. Each and every morning. What has changed?
Well, despite the fact that it has only been three weeks, I realize more and more what benefits these 10 minutes of relaxation have. My mind not flying in all directions simultaneously. For 10 minutes, I am not trying to do everything at once. Not trying to solve important issues. No. I just sit there, focused on myself.
Above all, right now, it allows me to connect my mind more with my body. Too many people live in their heads, I don’t want to be one of those. I am also noticing what amazing work my mind “delivers” each day. The amount of thoughts, ideas, worries etc. it processes every minute, every hour on each day. Mind blowing 😉
Believe me, I don’t want to sell meditation to anyone here. You might have noticed, I have not even mentioned the name of the app. Because it does not really matter what kind of method you use to get some quiet time for yourself. Maybe you are someone who needs a guided meditation, maybe you don’t. Maybe you have different ways to relax each day. For the ones who are curious to check it out, the app is called Headspace.
Your Turn
What are your ways to relax each day (maybe you already use something like Headspace)? How much time do you take for yourself? If you don’t find time to relax, what little thing could you do today to free some time? Please share a line in the comment section below right now.
Speak Your Mind