Good Morning/Evening, friends. Here I am, sitting on my bed on a cold rainy Saturday afternoon. I might not post this on a Saturday, but I just wanted to set the vibe for you. Typically when I first wake up, I immediately look towards my espresso machine, but today I decided to drink water and then sip my coffee in the late evening. I did this so I could have a more active and productive day. I usually wake up late these days, but I also love taking afternoon naps, turning my productive day into a lazy day. Bummer, right? Same. There are some days I don't want to leave my house and catch up on some work, and this weekend is definitely one of those weekends. Fall is here, and the days are already getting shorter every day, which makes me want to hibernate the entire season. This also inspired me to add a new category to my blog called "Lifestyle" to create an aesthetic lifestyle and set you up for success for the upcoming days. Today, I will be sharing five mindful techniques with you that have helped me be more present in the moment and add a little charm to my personality.
Breathe In The Present Moment
When your first wake up in the morning, you probably have a skincare regimen, pick out your clothes, pour a fresh hot cup of chai or coffee, and then look at your phone. STOP right there. Let's go back. Wake up again, do your skincare routine, pick out your clothes, pour a fresh hot cup of drink, and breathe. Take a couple of deep breaths in the morning before you start your day. At this moment, I want you to let go of your past, present, future worries and focus on your breathing. Your mind will start wandering, but I want you to try to refocus. Try to breathe with your eyes closed. Doing this will activate the senses that you barely use. An alternative way of mindfulness in the morning can be a walk with no music and focusing on the sound of the birds and traffic on the streets. You can also try to fill out some sort of gratitude or goals journal in the morning to activate inner creativity. For a lot of Muslims, this mindful time is during Fajr. The beauty of that time cannot be put into words.
Trust me, doing this in the long term will add a calming effect to your personality. You will start having a fresh perspective on life and won't be bothered by minor problems in life.
Get Rid Of The Phone
This kind of sounds weird coming out of a Gen-Z kid, but social media can be too much sometimes. I took a break from social media back in 2020 when news started making me anxious. It was a tough time for everyone, and while I believe in being aware of the situation around us, too much information can overwhelm us. I uninstalled my apps and started to monitor my social media usage. I unfollowed many people I didn't care about and tried to keep my Instagram feed as clean as possible. I even have a two-hour limit set on my social media apps at the moment, but not going to lie, I mostly surpass that. But I want to highlight the part where putting your phone away plays a significant role.
Let's say you are at a dinner with a friend. This friend is talking to you, but you keep checking your phone. If I were that friend, I would ask you what's so important on your phone that you can't put it away. It's insulting to use your phone in front of someone when they are talking to you. If it's something important like a text from your parents, excuse yourself. Otherwise, it makes the person feel very invaluable.
Schedule Some Downtime For Yourself
This downtime can be any activity to relax. For me, on some days, it's cooking. I think it's very therapeutic, and I act like I am on a TV show when I'm cooking, so it makes it even more fun. Some of my friends love going to the gym and working on themselves. Think about it this way, life is pretty unpredictable, and you might not always have control over your situations, but you can always control how you react to them. Try to establish a go-to technique that can calm you in a stressful situation. Don't think of it as time-consuming but more of an investment in yourself. Habits like this will earn you points in the well-being sector and teach you to handle whatever life brings.
Set Up Yourself For Success
When you get home from work/work from home and stop working, get your things ready for the next day. This can include preparing lunch, packing your gym bag, picking an outfit, or a to-do list for tomorrow. This will help you stay organized and knock the mundane tasks out of the way. Then you can dedicate the rest of the night to your family or just chill on your couch, watch a movie, call a friend or write a blog 👀
Don't Overthink
Listen, man, just don't do it. Negating the Nike motto here, but it's not worth it. Do think before you speak but don't overthink it. All it does is create this vagueness in your mind, which reduces your confidence. If you're worried that you might say the wrong words, just put the little disclaimer out there, so something like this, "I'm not sure if I'm saying it the right way, and by no means do I want to offend you." Overthinking takes the valuable space in your brain that can be used for much more important matters. If you're worried about impressing someone, trust me on this, if they like you, they will fight for you and try to question your weird sense of humor.
In Concluussse
Life is short so you have to take care of yourself. For people who live alone, you have to be accountable for yourself. Life is very stressful at times but try your best to find that sweet balance. Mindfulness makes you more present in the moment and think clearly.
Till next time👋🏻
This week I'm just google-ing how to get rid of allergies :(
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