Today’s Quote

“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”

– Steve Job addresses Stanford University

Time to Be Present

I was shopping in Coogee Village a week or so ago and ordered some Danish fetta at the deli. The assistant promptly started to select and wrap some fresh salami very thoughtfully completely unaware of my attempts to attract her attention. When she passed the package over the counter I kindly reminded her I wanted fetta…it took 3 repeats until she finally realised what she’d done and apologised. “I don’t know where my mind has been today” she said shaking her head.

We’ve all done that at some time or another…forgotten what we are doing, gone onto “automatic pilot” or been pre-occupied by worries or other people.

These are all signs of being OUT of present time. It can cause accidents, communication issues and all sorts of costly problems.

When we are stressed the left side of the brain, used for strategies and plans, goes into “standby mode” and the frontal lobe, used for most recent memory does too. That leaves the back left quadrant of the brain ruling the roost. Argh! This is the part of the brain that the neuro-scientists tell us is the home of fear in the brain. So we go into Survival mode. The choices we make are then based on what will keep us alive rather than what will help us THRIVE.

What helps to re-organise the brain in stress? You guess it!

Headholding and breathing…adds blood flow to the areas in the brain in “stand-by mode” re-activating them. This brings you out of the times in the past when stress overwhelmed you, and out the future where (in stress) you think the past will repeat itself.

So you arrive in the here and NOW where you have the choice to thrive.

Some clients have reported back they feel more stressed and upset at times when they headhold and breathe. The important thing to remember is to CONTINUE and to BREATHE…until you breathe the stress out…I’m told it can feel a bit like childbirth…. You know you are breathing through something you can’t stop and you get a great result when the stress is over!

NEXT! Water! Rolling it around the mouth triggers the receptors that send it to the brain, hydrating it and helping you to think clearly.

These explanations, of course, are just the tip of the iceberg of what is really happening in the brain and system. The bottom line is – they work!

On the same day that I visited the deli, just a little further doors the street, the store assistant smiled, asked lots of questions to ensure they were providing what I needed and added a whole lot of unexpected value to the service.

That is the benefit of BEING Present! A richness to life and the energy and presence to notice and take the opportunities life has to offer.

So that’s your homework…practice Being Present. Until you Are.

Looking forward to seeing you an appointment or workshop soon,

All the best,

Deborah