Improve your life in one minute a day!
Ready, set, goals! In this post, I’m offering three self-care and self-work techniques which will help you take major steps toward improving your life. And the best part, each one takes just one minute!
If you struggle with overwhelm, anxiety, stress, and burnout, these tools are a great place to start in bringing more balance, ease, and joy to your life!
I’m sharing three of my favorite tools to help you quiet your inner critic, and move away from frustration, stress, anxiety, and overwhelm. And create your inner sanctuary by bringing more relaxation, ease, and joy into your life. And the best part of all, each of these take just one minute!
First up is the Audible Exhale
If you’re a regular listener of Solicited Advice, or have been reading my blog for a while, you’ve probably heard me mention this technique!
But in case you’re new here, or you need a refresher, check out the video above (the audible exhale starts at 0:44), or use these written directions and let’s take a few audible exhales together.
Take a full complete inhale through your nose. Fill from your belly all the way up until your collarbones lift. Exhale through your mouth with an audible hhhhh sound (this is a sound of relaxation, not frustration).
Repeat that twice more.
The audible exhale is a great way to trigger your body to move from the Sympathetic Nervous System or fight, flight, or freeze response to the Parasympathetic Nervous System or rest and digest. And this shift comes with a multitude of benefits mentally, physically, and emotionally. Check out this blog post for more information.
Action step: The Audible Exhale
The audible exhale is a great practice to use as a triage tool. Take several audible exhales anytime you start feeling stressed, frustrated, overwhelmed, or anxious.
Even better, use it to help maintain your balance by taking three audible exhales throughout your day. Try taking three audible exhales while you’re getting ready in the morning and before going to bed each night.
Want to take it a step further? Set a timer on your phone or computer to go off every hour. Pause what you’re doing, take three audible exhales, then return to what you were working on.
Next, start keeping a one-minute, multi-year journal
Despite taking only one minute each day, this journal can be an incredible tool in helping you to make major shifts in your life.
You know that moment when you look at an old photo of yourself and realize how long your hair has gotten, or how your daily arm exercises have transformed your muscles? We all have trouble noticing the small daily changes. Only when we can reflect back on some sort of documentation like a photo, video, or journal entry are we able to see how much things have changed.
A multi-year journal is a powerful tool, serving three functions.
It will help you to recognize where you’ve changed, it will paint a clear picture of where you still have room to grow, and, it serves as an early warning system, alerting you to annual events and seasons when you’ve struggled in the past so you can bring extra focus to self-care during those times.
Action Step: The Multi-Year Journal
I spent days cutting paper, drawing lines, and adding dates to create my first multi-year journal. I know you don’t have that sort of time, so I’ve designed a printable journal that you can send off to your local copy and print store and be ready to go! Get your multi-year journal in my Etsy store.
Once you have your journal, build a routine that helps you remember to add an entry every day. I keep mine beside the bed and it’s part of my evening routine. You might even put the journal on your pillow each morning so you have to physically pick it up and move it before you can get in bed at the end of the day.
The third technique is the mindful moment
Just like with the audible exhale, this is something you might have heard me mention before.
A mindful moment simply requires you to pause long enough to take note of what you’re experiencing with all five senses. What do you taste, smell, hear, see, and feel. Describe those sensations to yourself with as much detail as possible.
This simple act of observing the world around you with all five senses brings you back to the present moment.
This is powerful because the present moment is when we are most likely to experience peace. By regularly practicing a mindful moment, you help to keep your attention in the present and away from worry which lives in the future, and regret which lives in the past.
Action Step: Mindful Moment
Like the audible exhale, this is a great tool to use in moments of stress, overwhelm, anxiety, and fear. When you begin to experience these sensations, simply pause and focus in on the space around you, or one specific item, with all five senses.
And just like the audible exhale, the mindful moment is even more powerful when you use throughout your day.
Experiment with taking a mindful moment when you take the first bite of food or sip of a beverage. Or pause and take one anytime you cross a threshold, walking from one room to the next, or between inside and outdoors.
Try incorporating one or all of these techniques into your everyday and see the impact that just a few minutes each day can make on helping you build a life you love!
