You're running so fast and juggling so many balls in the air at once that you're scared you're going to trip and fall flat on your face. Your report for work is overdue, but you've had to take time off to plan for your dad's care. Your teenager is falling behind in her classes, while your youngest has seemingly endless appointments for his new braces. And your ex is late again with the child support. Your clothes don't fit since you're been eating so much to calm yourself down. So why oh why did you volunteer to head the company picnic this year?
Crazy busy. You get a sick feeling in the pit of your stomach when you see your to-do list. There's no way you can possibly get everything done to everyone's satisfaction. And where on that list does it say to take time for yourself? As if you had time for that!
As Simon and Garfunkel sang, "Slow down, you move too fast." But how, exactly, can you do that?
By learning to meditate.
Right. As if you could go sit in a cave like a yogi.
Guess what? You don't have to leave the world to meditate. A few minutes in your bedroom at the start of the day is all you need. Despite my totally crazy busy schedule, I have not missed a single day of meditation in over 30 years!
Here are five tips to get you on the right track:
- Make it the first thing you do in the morning when you wake up, before you leave the bedroom, before you check your email or your phone or the kids. Even 10 minutes of meditation in the morning will put you in a much calmer and more spacious place, and the rest of your day will go so much more smoothly.
If you establish a daily meditation practice, pretty soon, 10 or 20 minutes will fly by. It will not be another chore on your to-do list, but something you look forward to each day. Your life may still be crazy busy, but you'll sail through it with far more equanimity. You'll sleep better, lose weight more easily, have less anxiety and more joy, and even be smarter! Plus, you'll be sending a peaceful energy out into the world, doing your part to help humanity.
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Deborah King is the author of the New York Times bestseller "Be Your Own Shaman."
