You have heard it a million times before, but did you PAUSE long enough to actually hear it. We are currently surrounded by a frenzied talk, hilariously enough the frenzy is about yoga, meditation, mindfullness; in short some of the least frenzied activities I can think of. It’s being prescribed for health and wellness, as an opposing force to the rate of technology and the pace of the modern world.
While I fully support and agree with those benefits, I find a few other side affects to be even more valuable. A renewed connection to our own breath and heart beat, to our children, to our families, to the moments of our life, to our neighbors, to our memories.
How well do you remember the things you rush or multitask through, I have never received a warm fuzzy feeling inside from checking email, while making dinner, while preparing for the morning meeting. This type of chaos has only ever given me a headache and the resulting half baked performance of all three tasks and me looking like an airhead when I ask a question about something that was clearly stated in that email.
Yet, when I just focus on dinner and cook with the ones I love, I hear stories and really listen to them. I do not need to be told everything twice. I can later focus all of my attention on the other work in a separate moment and deliver exactly what my clients want.
And the email, well I have never met an email that couldn’t wait. I check them in the morning and the evening and no one expects me to be available 24/7. If they did they would call me, YES I said it, they would pick up a phone and call me. They don’t, no email is an emergency. In fact, the person on the other end could use the extra breathe, so let it sit until a specific time each day when you check emails. Feel the pressure to reply, create an auto reply that let’s people know what time you check emails and only set it to reply on weekdays.
TAKE THE WEEKEND OFF (EVEN IF YOUR WEEKEND IS TUESDAY & WEDNESDAY) Give yourself a break, enjoy your life, remember things again and connect in person.
