The Agile Lifestyle

Mindset

Meditate / Gratitude / Declutter

Meditate

There is no one way to meditate. At the core, it is taking time away from busyness to focus internally.

Find time throughout your busy day, whether it’s five minutes or an hour, to remove yourself from distractions and just breathe. Close your eyes in a comfortable position where you know you’re unlikely to be disturbed and just focus on the breath. Focusing only on your breath will help you to relax and to notice thoughts that come to you. Let them come and go like passing clouds. Just breathe.

As this becomes more comfortable, you can layer on. While focusing on your breath, you can incorporate visualization, mantra, loving-kindness, spiritual, progressive relaxation, movement, reflection, bathing (sound or forest) or transendental practices, just to name a few.

If you’re just beginning to meditate, start small. Adding a few minutes into your day is a great launch point. If you’re well versed in meditation practice, excellent!

Meditation helps your mindset by taking a break from the normal to reflect and energize from the inside out.

Gratitude

Giving gratitude to yourself and others causes a feel-good chemical reaction in your mind that makes you want to do it more often!

Even if the person your sending gratitude does not know it, you still experience the pleasure and release of acknowledging something for which you are grateful. You can also be grateful for a situation or encounter that was either positive or negative due to the learning experience you got.

Showing gratitude toward yourself can include using less harsh language toward yourself. It can be a moment when you tell yourself good job. You can be grateful for a way you handled a situation or what your body is able to do for you. Being grateful to yourself encourages you to reflect on your experiences and determine ways to do better going forward.

Showing gratitude toward another person can include gifts, hugs, undistracted time, telling them why you are grateful, the list goes on and on. Even a simple smile in the direction of someone for which you are grateful can go a long way!

Declutter

When you are able to remove and simplify, you have more space in your life to focus on important things without being distracted by the clutter.

Decluttering means removing and getting rid of things that are no longer of use to you. This can include your:

Once you’ve decluttered, make a conscientious effort not to fill it back up again with the same stuff. That stuff served you in the past. See what you need for the future.