Take Five

Busy, busy, busy.  We are all so busy, we are like bees swarming around all day and have no time spare for anything or anybody, and even less time for ourselves.  So, since we are so busy, I thought I would like to take five minutes of your time to share five B's with you.  I want you to take these five little B's and try to implement one into each day of this week.

Here goes:

Breathe.

When you wake up, I want you to first of all take a deep breath.  Let it fill your chest, let it fill every space within your body, hold it... hold it... and breathe out.  Empty your lungs and with it also exhale all your worries, that tension in your shoulders and all the stress that has accumulated in your thoughts.  Again, breathe in, let fresh oxygen fill your lungs, allow it to flow into your body and let the morning light follow it into your eyes, your mind and your thoughts.  Hold it... hold it... then slowly let it out.  Let all the negativity flow out with the carbon dioxide.  Do this a few times during the day when you have a quiet moment, whether it is between calls, or answering e-mails or before going into a stressful meeting.  We think of breathing as automatic and we hardly spare it a thought, but the truth is that we hardly ever take deep breaths.  Breathing deeply helps to improve blood flow and reduces blood pressure and it can help to clear our minds.

Be Gentle.

Life is demanding.  We are constantly under pressure to perform better, deliver more and act faster.  In the process, we also demand more of ourselves and there is no harsher critic than the one within.  Be gentle with yourself, give yourself credit for what you have done.  Stop focussing on your mistakes and shortcomings.  Stop comparing yourself with others around you, but celebrate your uniqueness.  Be gentle, also with other people who share your space.  Stop looking at their imperfections, but look for ways to encourage and inspire them.

Be Aware.

We rush through our days at such a speed that life becomes a blur along the way.  At the end of a hectic day we can hardly recall what the weather was like, what we had for lunch or whether that new guy in the office were even at work today.  We never noticed the sad look in our child's eyes.  Slow down and take time to walk through life in the present.  Get off the speeding bus and pay attention to what is happening around you and within you.  Become aware of your heartbeat, your intuition and the space around you.  Be alive in the moment.

Be Open.

We are so occupied with the daily grind and chasing deadlines that we have little time to explore new avenues and we are often too tired to give any thought to new ideas. Do you remember a time when you were filled with enthusiasm and the thought of trying something new filled you with excitement.  Time and the pressures of living have a way of dulling our zest, and we become rigid in our ways.Our lives become stagnant.  It is important to challenge ourselves daily o become more open-minded.  Having an open mind can open up new horizons and give us new outcomes to old problems.  An open mind is invigorating. Being open-minded sets us free from a life of boredom.

Be still.

Life can be demanding and very, very loud.  It can drown out our own voice, the call of our own hearts.  We run the risk of becoming deaf to the voices of our loved ones, and even the voice of our own dreams.  We have to actively step outside and close the door to the demands daily living screams at us.  We have to take a moment to be still, to once again hear our own heartbeat, to listen to the whispers of our hopes and dreams and hear the song buried within our heart. Be still and re-connect with yourself.

Just five little things, but they are sure to make your week just a little more pleasant, a little more focussed on those things that truly matter.  Be blessed this week.