5 ways to a more peaceful you

From my garden.

Yes, I am back :-) Thanks to all who mailed and pinged and texted asking if I am okay. I indeed am. That is if you don't  count a hurt leg due to which I could not walk, a change in residence with a million boxes to unpack, a hundred thousand chores to deal with plus a 3rd book to write and also nursing a broken heart.

Okay-- I lied about the broken heart  :-) heh heh..But the rest of it is indeed what has been happening in my life, and  S-U-P-E-R-B-U-S-Y does not even begin to describe even a tenth of what I am going through.

I am sure you have been super-busy too, at least at some point in your life
How does one find inner peace and stay calm and composed among such a chaotic schedule and when things don't go your way? What can one do to instantly better the situation?

The first thing is to accept that certain things are indeed beyond our control and there is nothing one can do about it. This is really hard to do, especially if you are the kind of person who wants to control every outcome.But this acceptance itself brings a certain amount of calmness.

The second is to do something about the things you can control. Doing the following when things become 'too much' usually works for most. I can vouch for it as I use these.



1. Go unwired for a few hours:
 Completely switch off from all electronic stuff. No i-pod, no laptop, no cell-phone. Work can wait. Nobody is going to die if you are unreachable for a couple of hours. (of course choose a good time to do this). When you do this, you begin to listen to your inner voice--  your soul, which speaks to you. Usually, in our daily bustle of living we truly forget to listen and our inner voice gets drowned. Going unwired might feel very uncomfortable at first, especially if you are an internet addict. But trust me, the experience is liberating.


2. Clear Clutter:
 Clear all clutter from your drawers, from your cupboards. Neatly organise your physical surrounding. If you have no use for something or if you have two of something, give it away. Do not keep ANYTHING just because you feel it might come in handy sometime in future. If you haven't used it in the past 6 months, you don't really need it. And you can always buy a new one in case a need arises that urgently. It's not worth holding on to clutter. A neat organised home does wonders for your inner peace.


3. Pencil in one thing that satisfies you--then do it. 
Think of one thing that makes you feel really happy. Maybe it is a chat with a good friend,maybe it is making a card, maybe it is a very simple thing like sipping chai and staring out of the window when it rains. May be it is patting your dog or playing with a toddler. Maybe it is calling up your grandmother and telling her you love her. Try and remember the last time you felt really happy --what were you doing? Now pencil in that in your day--and then DO IT!
 

 
4.Ten minutes of 'peace time'
 Sometimes having children around you all the time can be overwhelming. Sometimes having your own family members around you ALL the time can be irritating too. Ask for 'ten minutes' (or twenty or even an hour if you have that luxury) of 'me time' where noone is allowed to disturb you. Lock yourself up in your room and use this time exclusively for yourself.

5. Journalling
So many great visonaries, leaders and new age gurus have stresssed and stressed the importance of journalling,. I do keep a journal (in fact I keep several) and the benefits of this are really manifold. To know why journalling is important and how it can help you lead a better life, read this brilliantly written piece by Steve Pavlina. The article also has a link to another piece which explains how you can use journalling as a problem solving tool.


So this is how I have been able to preserve my sanity despite all the happeings and non-happenings in my life ;-) :-)

How have you been?  What have you been upto? And which of the tips above are you going to use today?
If you care to share, I am listening.