All too often, our day rushes ahead of us. We forget to just pause. Live in the moment. Life is busy and can be incredibly overwhelming with work, family, children, friends, pets, caring for others and just getting things done. We know they mean well. But there’s nothing more frustrating than being told to “slow down” or “take it easy.” We all know we need to do that. The question is how? Well, simply put… just stop. If only for 5 minutes in your day. Trust us, your world won’t crumble if you stop for a few minutes. Pause, reflect and simply be. No worrying about the laundry, your impending deadline at work or what’s for dinner today. By pausing, just for a moment, you start to check in with yourself and notice how you really feel. It helps you to reconnect with yourself,
I find these little tips help you to live more in the moment in a positive way:
- Every day for a week, wake up and before you leap out of bed take 6 deep breaths. Breath in what you want to feel for the day and exhale any negative thoughts. Try to focus on your breath and use your positive affirmation to anchor your mood for the rest of the day. I love to follow this with the 5 Tibetan Moves which you can find on Mind Body Green. These moves help to awaken your body and are thought to help you look and feel younger too. Yes please, we all want that! If you have children, you can get them involved too. Or choose a time in the day where you have a moment; it’ll all take only 5 minutes. Yet the difference is much greater.
- Try the Headspace App for a week and see how you get on with their Mini Mindfulness Meditations. Alternatively, ‘Start Where you Are; A Journal of Self Exploration’ by Meera Lee Patel is a fantastic book that can help you harness how to be more present.
- Listen to your internal language and the conversations you have with yourself. Notice when you are sabotaging yourself, or not accepting compliments. Acknowledge it and allow the thought to pass by without judgement. This will help you to gradually move away from negative language. It’s a fantastic tool to yield more self-love and respect, which ultimately leads to a happier, stress free life.
- Keep a little ‘living in the moment’ notebook. Write down all the tiny things that make you feel good, smile or that you’re proud of. They can be really small like pretty flowers or something more significant. Writing it down helps you to become more present. It also helps develop
appreciation for the things that make you happy, shifting your outlook to a more positive one.
- Try a digital detox. Turn off all your digital devices for 30mins a day. I love doing this before bedtime. I experience a much deeper sleep. Buy an old school alarm clock or a Lumie light and leave your mobile phone furthest away from your bedroom. This really helps your mind and body to fully switch off and relax.