“The time to relax is when you don’t have time for it.”
Sydney J. Harris
Summer is here, and for many of us it is a time filled with slower paced days, so in theory it is the perfect time to start focusing on taking extra good care of yourself— unwinding, decompressing and recharging.
The question is, how can you do this, not only in the summer, but all year round? Keep reading because that’s exactly what this blog post is all about!
Do nothing— It is easy to get trapped in the mindset that you have to do something all the time otherwise you are falling behind and not being productive. This way of thinking obviously adds lots of pressure and stress. So this summer start to try and doing nothing at all from time to time. Just go for a walk, then sit on a bench to take in the wonderful landscape. Or lie down in the grass and just watch the clouds go by. Savour those special moments, and feel all the stresses and tensions flow out of your body and mind.
Disconnect..from technology— We highly recommend trying this one out, especially if you tend to spend a lot of time online or talking on the phone. Start by staying away from your emails and phone for maybe 6 or 12 hours, then go ahead and check them again. You may be surprised to see that you haven’t missed much by not being available all the time, and that your stress levels have dropped quite a bit and it feels easier to fully focus on the things that are important to you.
Take your self-appreciation inventory — Half of 2017 has now gone by, and perhaps there may have been moments of disappointment. Perhaps you were disappointed in what you did, or didn’t get to do. Take a break from that mindset and ask yourself: What can you appreciate about what you have done and accomplished over these last 6 months? It doesn’t always have to be big things. And don’t forget to also appreciate the effort you put in even if things didn’t go exactly as planned.
Just say no- to the stress of the “Summer should’s”— Days filled with things you “just have to do before the summer is over” are draining, and they will leave you more tired than you were before your time off even started. Avoid these things by asking yourself: Will this matter in 5 years? Or even 5 weeks? Zooming out like this makes it easier to find a more mindful perspective on things, and helps you to see the real value of doing something.
Spend more time doing what you love – No matter what that might be. Think about how you can fit more what you love doing, into not only your summer, but the rest of your 2017. Take a couple of minutes and sit down with a pen and a piece of paper, and write about what you spend your time on during a normal week. Then find 1 or even 2 things that you think you could probably spend less time on so that you have a bit more time and energy over each week for more of what you love doing.
These are some tips to get you on the path of making more time and taking care of yourself. Tell us what do you have planned this summer to help make yourself a priority all year round?
