slow down

Even on the busiest of days it helps to remember that a few hours from now, no one will remember that you took two minutes longer to do something because you weren’t rushing down the hallways. Take time to walk slowly and the mood of your entire day will change.

That sounded a little too new-agey, but it’s true: forcing yourself to slow down doesn’t mean you get less done. It just helps remind that slowing down a few minutes here and there helps keep your blood pressure lower.

Almost every day after I’m done eating lunch, I’ll go outside and read for 15 minutes and then walk around the lake by my office. It’s made a huge difference in my ability to not feel rushed and tense during the day and my afternoons are a lot easier to get through when I can start them off this way.

Over the past month or so, I’ve been making a very conscious effort to just move more slowly. I walk more slowly, try to think about fewer things, and not feel so guilty about taking longer to get some things done. As a result, not only have I felt noticably more relaxed, but I’ve actually become more productive. I’ve been more mindful as I’m doing even menial tasks around the house, and thus doing those things has become a bit less of a task.

It’s a good feeling to start feeling in control of things again.

One of the things that’s helped me slow down and focus in the past has been deep breathing and meditation. Now I’m not exactly the new-agey type, but it seems to work strictly from a physical perspective to calm you down and feel more centered.

The three techniques I’ve had good results with in the past (and need to revisit):

• The Caodai Technique [ref]

  Following is a simple description of steps involved in this CaoDai meditation technique. Meditate upon the breath in this way for an average of twenty minutes to half an hour initially daily:

  1. Sit with spine and head straight, eyes half open, not focussed on anything, mouth closed and relaxed, with the tip of the tongue lightly touching the roof of the mouth.
  2. Inhale gently, directing the breath past the “Phach Cung Hoa”, the fire center of the heart, (where it is imbued with the fire principle) to the “Phach Ha Dinh”, the lower center at the navel (sacral plexus).
  3. While holding the breath for two seconds, transfer the energy of the inhalation into the “Phach Cuc Am,” the extremely yin center at the base of the spine.
  4. Exhaling, direct the energy from the breath up through the spine into the “Phach Cuc Duong,” the extremely yang center at the top of the head. Along the way the breath is imbued with the water principle, and the “steam” (from the fire principle) helps the third eye to begin to open.

• Dr. Weil’s 4-7-8 breathing
  1. Inhale as you count to four;
  2. Hold your breath for a count of seven;
  3. Then exhale as you count to eight.

• Wai Lana’s Rest and Relax
  I’ve never gotten into a state of such relaxation as I have with this CD. It requires some time (at least 30 minutes), but is pretty amazing.