Is your day “out of alignment”?

by Wendy Keller, resident on Planet Earth

For the last 18 hours or so, my life was out of alignment.  From being seconds too late to make the green light to conference calls that cancel at the last minute, people who aren’t doing what I think or expect they should, to missing the phone call by 10 seconds.  I was feeling half-a-beat off.  I had to fix it – right away.

What do people DO when their life is temporarily off-kilter?

Here’s what I found helpful. Maybe it will help you, too. Hope so!

1.  Recognize that something’s a bit off.

No point in pretending.  Take a breath, realize that your mounting sense of frustration is very real and very annoying, and make a decision to DO something. Anything! Start by trying the suggestions below.  What have you got to lose?

2. Get away for a fixed period of time.

When times like this happen, my natural response is to throw in the towel and just quit trying to force things to change.  But I’ve learned over the years that instead, if I say, “OK, 10 minutes to see if I can fix this” results in a much better day overall. I step away, ideally outside, take some deep breaths, and focus on what I want next, not what’s gone wrong already.

3. Feel your body from the inside.

Focus your mind for a few seconds on your breathing.  Then think about how your feet feel..,your ankles..your calves…your knees…and so on, moving up to your head.  Don’t let yourself get grumpy if one or another part of you also feels out of sorts. When you hit an out of sorts part, imagine you are breathing health and strength into it, then continue your mental journey to the top of your head.

4. Listen to, look at or feel nature.

I don’t mean stare at the plant on top of your file cabinet.  Step outside for a minute.  Pay attention to the air quality, the velocity of the wind, a tree or a bird.  Put your 100% focus on that for a few deep breaths.

5. Tell yourself you are aligned now and things will flow smoothly.

And it’s likely they will now!  Be responsive to the people and situations in your environment. Stay alert. Look for things that are going right. In a very short period of time, you’ll find that they actually are.

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