What’s Holding You Back? Discover the Secrets to Personal Growth 🌱

Foreign world. And it is our wonderful Wednesday and this week for me has been extremely busy. You know, when we thinking about finding that workplace balance, being able to even focus on self care and that sense of mindfulness can be a lot for us. So in the chat as we're waiting for some others to come in, I want you to rate yourself on a scale from 1 to 10, how busy has your week been? And then. Hello, Michelle. And also how often have we had those distractions? Right. My birthday was yesterday and I had a couple of events going on.

So be sharp. Good morning. You think about those distractions and I tell you what, being able to practice mindfulness, being able to focus on what's important is definitely critical. So for today, I want to focus on what we can do and how we can practice. Oh, B sharp says a six. So it's been pretty busy for them. Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you. I actually had a wonderful birthday with some great and wonderful friends. And when we, you know, last time we talked about those personal board of directors and your go to people, I was able to celebrate my birthday with mine.

So Michelle, we're glad you're here too. And it was wonderful. It was, it was definitely a wonderful experience to be able to celebrate. But today as we're talking about mindfulness in a distracted world and strategies that we can use to make sure we stay present in that moment and we stay focused. So we're going to talk about something that has definitely affected all of us and it's going to be that sense of distraction. So tell me, have you ever felt mentally drained, like your brain is running a marathon but you're really not going anywhere, you know, so we feel ourselves moving, our feet are moving, but we're still in that same spot.

And that's because constant distraction isn't just annoying, it's definitely having a toll and an effect on our mental health. So when we're always jumping from one thing to the next thing, our stress level rises. Right. And our anxiety spikes and we struggle to be fully here and fully in that moment. But there is good news. And the good news we're going to talk about is mindfulness and how powerful it can be when it's time for us to hit that reset button. Myers, thank you for joining in as well.

So when we think about mindfulness, I have a super simple technique that I want us to use. So we're going to jump in and we're going to talk about it. So when we talk about mindfulness and how it affects our brain and our mental health, our brains aren't designed to process so much information at one time. You know, we talk about that soda bottle in those moments where we have so much going on, we're stressed, we become that soda bottle. And when you shake that soda bottle, what usually happens, it's going to blow.

And if we do not practice mindfulness, if we do not try to slow our brains down, it will definitely take over. So when we talk about our brains processing information too much all at one time, we think about social media. You know, we think about those notifications on our cell phone and that constant information that's very overloading for us. And what is the result? And you can make comments what the results may be. It could be us feeling restless, it can be us feeling overwhelmed, it can be feeling anxious and definitely feeling exhausted.

And if you've ever noticed your state of irritability and that sense of feeling overwhelmed is constant, then we need to practice mindfulness so we can be in that moment and we can lower that stress level. We can become more calmer, but then be able to take back our life and being able to write that narrative. So one technique that I want us to take a look at is called the 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 mindfulness activity. So I want you to think about your five senses. When we look at listening, hearing, smell, see, taste, touch, I want you to think about those senses.

So when we think about five, four, three, two, one technique, this is how it goes for five. We're going to look around and name five things that you see. So wherever you are, and as long as you're not driving so you're safe, I want you to look around and name five things that you see right now. And if you want to put them in the chat, feel free to put them in the chat. If you just want to say it out loud to yourself, do that as long as you're participating. Four, listen for four sounds that you notice and hear around you.

It may be the birds chirping, it may be a loud vehicle. It may even be your kids. So think about, in those four things that you hear, what are three things you can physically feel? You know, it could be the texture of your clothes, it could be your feet on the ground. Or even, you know, if we're outside and we feel that breeze. Thank you. Sharp. Sharp says trees, the sky, her hands, her water bottle in a car. But those things that we can physically feel. Two, identify two things that you can smell.

You know, and I'll take the good, the bad, and the ugly. With the smells. But what are at least two things that you can smell? And then for number one, I want you to acknowledge one thing that you're grateful for in this moment. So if you can put in the chat one thing that you're grateful for in this moment. You know, and for myself, celebrating a birthday yesterday, being surrounded with people who I love but love me more, it was wonderful. Because with that sense of community, it was that sense of gratitude and being thankful for the things that I do have as opposed to things that I do not have.

Yes, Sharp. Three healthy children. Absolutely. Um, so those are the things that I want us to practice when we think about mindfulness. And you know what? It can be that simple, you know, but this little reset that we just discussed definitely helps us stay grounded, lower stress, and then it brings you back to the here and now so we can be in that moment. So as we're here and we're talking about things, I want you to think about practicing that technique on a daily basis, especially when we have that sense of feeling overwhelmed, that sense of irritability when people become those innocent bystanders, you know, had nothing to do what was going on, but in that moment, they became it.

Because we were so frustrated, so they became innocent bystanders. So we yelled at them. Instead of us taking in that sense of mindfulness where we're using our senses. And I love that activity, because when we get down to one, you're acknowledging those things that we're grateful for, the things that we do have, as opposed to the things that you do not have. So this is my challenge and my ask of you today. At some point today, when you're feeling anxious, when you're feeling overwhelmed and you're feeling.

I am frustrated and annoyed, I want you to take that deep breath, and I want you to use your senses in that 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 technique, so we can be able to decrease that heart rate. We can be able to slow down our brain and be able to hit that reset button. One thing I want you to remember, protecting your mental health doesn't always mean you have to make these big changes. Sometimes it's just those small moments of awareness that can make the biggest impact. So mindfulness is not about being perfect.

It's about being present in that moment. And when you slow down, when you allow yourself to slow down in that moment, you're giving your mind the rest it desperately needs. So I want you to take that deep breath and release it. I want you to be kind to yourself, and I want you to know that you deserve those moments of peace. So if this episode helped you, I definitely want you to share it with family, share it with your colleagues. Shared with someone who needs a reminder that it is okay to hit that pause and hit that reset button.

And as always, take care of your mind. It's the only one that we have, so we have to make sure we take care of it. We have to make sure we practice mindfulness, the importance that we live in the moment and always remember to be courageous, remember to have compassion, remember to build those connections. And always be true to yourself. See you soon.