Downshift

These are stressful times for just about everyone I know. The perpetual news about job losses and a deepening recession can cause our minds to speed up and many of us put blinders on to get us through another day. It’s easy to lose sight of our goals and motivations, and we instead become mentally stuck in fourth gear, going through the motions of life at 80 miles an hour as time zooms by.

While we as individuals have no control over the external forces of the economy or over how those around us behave, we have complete control over our own outlook. One thing I do when my brain gets sped up and I feel overwhelmed is to downshift for a few minutes, by closing my eyes, taking a few deep breaths, and thinking about why I started my business in the first place. Thinking about my motivations calms me and reminds me why my business is important to me.

You don’t have to be a business owner for a mental downshift to be effective. This technique can be used by an employee before a performance review, by a student in the midst of finals, and by you, doing whatever it is you do.

Take five minutes today and answer this question for yourself: Why was it important for me to do what I do in the first place? Write your answer down and put it somewhere in plain sight of your desk so the next time you get frustrated and caught in the moment, you can remind yourself why this is important to you.

Photo by NathanFromDeVryEET via Flickr.