Be where you are, otherwise you will miss your life🧘

Never be in a hurry; do everything quietly and in a calm spirit. Do not lose your inner peace for anything whatsoever, even if your whole world seems upset. - Francis de Sales

Moving to the other side of the world, starting an online endeavor from scratch, try, fail, and try again. I often feel like there is not enough time in one day. I usually get 8 hours of sleep, leaving 16 hours to work, play, exercise, have fun, and otherwise live. During these 16 hours, I recently noticed, whilst reflecting, that I find myself lost in thought, stressing, and overthinking each day for a considerable time.

To get out of my own head, worry less, and enjoy life more in general, I try to implement mindfulness in my daily life. Usually, I find myself thinking about work, and things I have to do today, or in the future. I worry about my to-do list, about unfinished tasks, thinking of my responsibilities to my students, friends, family, partner,... If not the future, then I spend time in the past. Reliving things, like the lesson I taught and how I can make it better or about the actions of others. I spent so much time thinking about the past or the future, that I forget to enjoy the present.

According to a Harvard study, 47% of people spend their time awake lost in how to live life instead of living it.

I have tried to implement mindfulness more and more since my time on the island Koh Rong Sanloem, where I reconnected with 'the now'. Whilst I'm not practicing mindfulness for too long yet, I can already feel changes in my daily life. It actively helps me to focus my awareness on the present moment instead of lingering in the past or worrying about the future. It provides joy and relaxation during my free time and increases my productivity and mood in general.

A wise man said: "Worrying does not take away tomorrow's troubles, it takes away today's peace."

The more I worry, the more stress I feel in my body. The stress comes in different forms. I'm more quickly irritated, I can't sleep, I feel tired, not motivated, tense, or I grind my teeth. These are all signs of an abundance of stress. Stress isn't the problem, it is the amount I experience. A small dose of stress is healthy and beneficial. It boosts my performance and stimulates me to get my work done, as effectively and productively as possible.

This is especially true for my blog posts. I set my self-imposed deadline, every Sunday to create and publish a blog post. It motivates me to write the posts on time because it gives me a small dose of stress. Usually, I find that because of the deadline, I work more effectively on my posts. By being mindful, I can focus better on one task at a time. This results in completing tasks in a quicker phase and helps me to use my time better in general.

In other words, it is not about having no stress, but managing my stress and keeping it within bounds. By being mindful, I acknowledge the stress that is needed, while keeping my attention on the present. Making sure that I won't overthink. By overthinking, I spent more time thinking of a task and self-propagating stress, instead of doing the task. This is just a loss of time and energy. However, ignoring things that are causing stress is not an option. It needs to be addressed. The point is to deal with it and move on with my life.

If a problem is fixable, if a situation is such that you can do something about it, then there is no need to worry. If it's not fixable, then there is no help in worrying. There is no benefit in worrying whatsoever.” - Dalai Lama

My mindfulness practice

I create a to-do list every evening, for the next day. Setting goals, and organizing plans, thoughts, and ideas. This is a new addition to my mindfulness practice, but one that helps me a lot. I used to repeat the things I had to do in my mind, creating stress. The list helps me to stop worrying about things I have to do or may have left unfinished. I prioritize tasks of course, preparing a class for the next day has a priority over continuing to work on my online Dutch course that has no definite deadline yet. This practice gives me peace of mind through the night and for the next day.

The first thing I do in the morning is meditation. I sit up in bed, in a comfortable, and quiet environment. I start every meditation by taking 3 deep breaths. This relaxes me fully. I keep on taking deep breaths in and out and focus on my body. First, I focus on my belly, expanding with each breath in. When I've found a good rhythm, I check my body and try to fully relax. I start with my head and face, try to relax every muscle I don't need, and work my way down my spine. During this process, I try to concentrate on the motion of breathing and focus on creating a long, slow, and steady rhythm. Thoughts will come and go during my practice. The point isn't to stop thinking, but to acknowledge them and let go.

Mens sana in corpore sano (a healthy mind in a healthy body) - Juvenal, Roman poet

During the day, I try to stay active as much as possible. When I teach online, I'm always standing up and explaining things with big gestures, I ride my bicycle to go for a drink or to grab some food. I go to the gym 5 times a week and I try to be in the pool at least once a week. If I can't leave the house for a day, or if I'm not able to do any physical exercise, I feel miserable and lazy. It strongly affects my peace of mind. Being active is something that energizes me during the day and helps me sleep better at night.

Thanks to mindfulness, being present, and doing things with intention, I enjoy life on a deeper level compared to when my mind wanders and I'm not fully there. By focusing my attention on what I am doing, I enjoy it more. I enjoy going to the gym, reading my books, watching my series, preparing my classes, and teaching. I do these actions with full intention, my mind is in 'the now'.

But Hey, don't take my word for it.

Go and find out yourself!