Home Biz 101: Breathing
Yes breathing. We can’t say it is over-rated as it is actually life. We do take it for granted though. We are busy breathing morning, noon and night and we don’t take any notice of it. However did you know if we do remember to be aware of our breathing it can make a big difference in how we perceive and react to situations?
Particularly when people are stressed as in starting a business or because they are learning something new, this the very time when they go to pieces. They don’t see what is in front of them but start to flounder around and make mistakes. Obviously if they can read the directions or follow the instructions they would be better off.
Sometimes in order to be able to function properly we need to calm down. There is too much noise and chaos when we are stressed and it is no wonder that we only see or hear half of what is there when our minds and bodies are so busy trying to navigate through all the emotions. We can only do so many things at once!
However, if we could remember to just focus on our breathing for a second, it has so much power. Do you hear it? Feel it? Good you are still alive. Now if we can take at least one deep breath we would calm down one octave. Better still if we could take the time to calmly take 3 deep breaths and let it out slowly, we could be on a whole different plain.
Of course according to the degree of stress, the more time you can spend being conscious of and controlling your breathing, the better off you will be. It is really sometimes difficult to remember to ‘carve out’ a special time to do exercises – even what amounts to a few minutes for breathing.
Once we are able to see the value when we do breathing exercises on the fly (and just a couple as described), then maybe we will like it so much that we will make time to start and/or end our day with a few minutes to focus on our breathing.
For now though, let’s not worry about getting into a sticky commitment and just remember that when you feel stress, focus on your breathing. Try to take at least one deep breath before you speak or act. You will begin to see a big difference. It may even protect you from serious health problems brought on by stress.
