Let’s face it! We’re all busy! Even when we get the chance of down time, we look around for things to do and fill the gap. We don’t have to look hard. There’s always something to do and so the story goes.

Doing is what we live by. “Busyness” is what defines us. There will be time, in the distant future, to do the “soft stuff” or . . .  so we tell ourselves. There will be time to take care of ourselves, connect with the people in our lives, read a book, listen to music, take a walk without a destination or sit and watch the sunset.

Right now, there are places to be, problems to solve, calls to answer and emails to reply to. We got to go, go, go! Life keeps moving and we have to get with the program.

What if we stopped – even for 5 minutes – and paid attention to how we feel, how our body feels and the messages we receive? What would happen then? Would the world end?

Do you realize that most of the time, we’re not even aware of our breath? The same breath that sustains us and keeps us alive . . . and we don’t even notice.

Would you like to experience the power of conscious, mindful breathing right now, right where you are?

Go ahead and take a few deep, conscious, cleansing breaths. Then, let your breath settle into a comfortable rhythm and turn your attention to how you feel.

• Where in your body do you hold tension?
• What kind of thoughts are going on in your head?
• What kind of self-talk is going on in the background? Become aware of the messages playing.

You don’t have to do anything about it . . . just watch it all happening. Then . . .

• Gently breathe into the tension until it dissolves;
• Watch your thoughts but don’t follow them, breathe into them and let them go;
• Don’t worry, nothing major is going to happen during your 5 minutes of mindfulness and stillness.

You can do this exercise for 5 minutes or more. You can repeat it as often as you’d like. Take notice of what happens when you give yourself the gift of your attention.

• What kind of insights are you gaining?
• What happens to your energy level?
• How does your body feel?
• How do you respond to whatever comes your way?
• Does your perspective change?

Our sense of well being is our personal responsibility. The more we take responsibility over the quality of our life and experience the happier and stronger we become.

Taking a few minutes to be with ourselves and listen carefully is the least we can do!

© 2011 Yota Schneider, Open for Success. May be distributed if full attribution is given and copyright notice is included. Contact yota@openforsuccess.com

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