Author: Pedram Shojai / Source: Lifehack
An author, filmmaker, and founder of a health and wellness platform at the cross section of health, environmentalism, and conscious capitalism. Read full profile
Time is the currency of life—we have a certain amount of heartbeats with which to savor it.
In today’s hectic world, it’s also more scarce than ever.
We watch the clock in a meeting, waiting for the hands to move so we can go home. When a deadline approaches, we wish for more hours in the day. We squander what time we do have on mindless pursuits like binge-watching the latest show on Netflix, scrolling through Twitter, then later feel guilty or not spending enough time with our kids.When we don’t have a connection with the flow of time, we lack purpose. We move through our days aimlessly. We feel worse, and our personal and professional lives suffer.
But when we adjust our relationship with time and find our center, we can take ownership of our commitments and our lives.
Here’s how to stop time and live in the moment:
1. Real Gratitude Takes Time
Gratitude is good medicine and is always time well spent. It helps relieve stress and build positive energy, and it gives us great perspective on life.
Every day, you should take some time out to be grateful for what you have. Here’re some ideas for you:
40 Simple Ways To Practice Gratitude
2. Nature Is Our Guiding Light
In nature, things move with the sunlight and the seasons. Society artificially compresses time. Tapping into nature’s rhythms will connect us with life around us and feel more energetic and productive.
3. There Is a Time to Hustle and a Time to Chill
If you’re hustling 24/7, it wreaks havoc on your mental and physical wellbeing. It’s crucial to carve out down time to slow down and breathe.
Bring a blanket and book to the park, or take a long walk without your phone.
4. Anxiety Is Mostly a Waste of Time and Energy
Worry steals joy and negatively impacts decision-making. It’s understandable to often feel overwhelmed by life’s unknowns, but spending all day worrying about something that “might happen” is a waste of time and energy.
Acknowledge the frightening thoughts, and move on to the task at hand. This anxiety coping mechanism can help:
Anxiety Coping Mechanisms That Work When You’re Stressed to the Max
5. Discover What You Want
Make a list of all the things you want to do, including exercise, personal time, family time, reaching, yoga etc.
Take a look and make sure it reflect your desires for self-care. If you did these things, would you feel calmer and happier? If so, add them to your calendar and prioritize them.
This guide can help you discover what you truly want:
How to Get Motivated and Be Happy Every Day When You Wake Up
6. Exercise Doesn’t Have to Be a Grind
Exercise isn’t about quantity—it’s about quality.
Are you focused? Can you breathe into and slow down that bicep curl? If so, then a few solid reps do the trick, and you can move on with your life and use the extra time to read a book or take a nap.
7. We Need Space to Digest Thoughts and Emotions.
When you aren’t digesting your thoughts, you create a backlog of mental suffering that keeps you from being present with your friends and family.
To fix this, allot time to process your feelings. A hike in nature is a great time to work through that emotional turbulence, in turn allowing you to be more present for the rest of your life.
8. Sitting Is the New Smoking
Numerous studies are linking a stagnant lifestyle with a high rate of mortality. Get up and move around frequently throughout the day to improve your body’s functions and overall sense of wellbeing.[1]
9. Meal Time Should Be Ritual Time
Our ancestors spent hours preparing meals and enjoying them with loved ones. Today, we scarf food down in our cars in between meetings.
We should return to seeing mealtime as an opportunity to slow down and nourish our bodies, absorb nutrients, and relax into the digestive process.
10. Cut the Fat
We all have people in our lives who sap our energy without giving back. Draw boundaries and take your time back.
If you aren’t sure how to get rid of these toxic people, take a look at this:
15 Effective Ways Clever People Handle Toxic People
11. Family Time Means No Distractions
Instead of multitasking on work emails when you’re with your family, give them your all.
Walk the dogs together or have dinner without devices. Work to get in quality time with your family every day, even if it’s just a few minutes.
12. Communication Isn’t What It Used to Be
Today, the vast amount of our communication is electronic. But it’s important to interact face-to-face to really connect.
Wake up and pay more attention to your in-person communication, focusing on things like body language and eye contact. See how much better you feel.
13. Make Hay While the Sun Shines
Not all time is created equal. There are times of the day, times of the week, seasons of the year, and even eras in your life when you need to lean into things and devote more hours to your career or projects.
So plan your day for maximum productivity and leisure time.
14. Mix…
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