How to Relax: Stop Being Busy, Take a Break and Get Better Results While Doing Less

by Martin Meadows

If you wake up and don’t feel control over your day, guess how it will influence the rest of your waking hours.

The state in which you start your day shapes your state of mind for the entire day.

Meditation is one of the keys to an empowering, calming morning routine.

The simple act of sitting still and focusing on your breath can decrease the symptoms of depression, anxiety, and even alleviate pain.

The key in meditation is to focus on the present moment and the sensations traveling through your body while you sit still.

Note you can also use meditative techniques during your day. Each time you get distracted, return to your breathing, regain focus and go back to what you were doing. Over time, your default response to getting distracted will be focusing on your breathing instead of on the distraction.

The second part of the ritual should incorporate some kind of positive thinking to get negative, nagging thoughts out of your head.

It takes seconds, and the positive state you’ll enter thanks to this simple practice will tremendously improve your mood. Don’t underestimate the power of gratitude – it’s more impactful than you believe.

A week of sleeping four or five hours per night (a deficit of about 24–30 hours of sleep) is equal to an impairment caused by four to five glasses of beer. Two weeks of sleeping four to five hours per night makes the symptoms double.

When your body craves more sleep, your attention, alertness, concentration, and problem solving are all impaired. You learn less effectively and are more likely to be depressed. Your skin ages more quickly. With long-term sleep deprivation, you’re more likely to be obese11

Your habits also influence the level of noise around you. Consider not turning on music, the radio, or a TV at least once a week. Sit in silence and enjoy your meal or read a book without distracting yourself with noise.

There are many more studies proving how beneficial spending time in nature is to human health. Science shows that being in nature regularly is without a doubt one of the best ways to prevent stress and reduce current levels of it.

Charlie Hoehn, bestselling author of Play It Away: A Workaholic’s Cure for Anxiety38 claims that acting like a child and allowing ourselves guilt-free play is the most effective way to reduce anxiety.

Most of us suffer from a deficit of guilt-free play. Grab your friends and do something fun you haven’t done for a long time (or ever). It’s one of the most effective ways to reduce anxiety.

Often, the biggest stressors in our lives are in our heads instead of coming from our immediate surroundings.

A boss who yelled at you for making a mistake often doesn’t even remember it the next day, while you replay it in your head for the next two weeks. A nasty remark

Now change the perspective of this thought in your mind by looking at the scene as a spectator instead of in first person.

haven’t watched news for many years, and I don’t miss anything. 99% (if not more, but that’s just my opinion, and not scientific evidence) of reported news have no impact whatsoever on your life. You’ll learn about the remaining 1% from your friends and family.

Putting things off is like preferring to avoid short-term pain now in exchange for even bigger pain later.

variation of this approach is to ask yourself if you can do something just for the next minute or two. Once the time is up, ask yourself if you can do it for another minute or two. Soon, you’ll get engaged in your task and keep going.

Single-task. Multi-tasking doesn’t work, and the more things you’re trying to juggle at the same time, the lower the quality of your actions.

Few things are worse than living an overly busy and stressful life. You owe it to yourself to slow down and recharge your batteries.