Having enjoyed such a wonderful extended summer, October now brings the typical autumnal mornings mist and fog.
And not to be confused with ‘brain freeze’ – the oddly pleasurable experience of eating ice cream too quickly!
As much as we’re living in the era of information, social media and the pressures of a connected 24/7 21st century lifestyle, typically this presents its own problems and challenges with extra pressures, stresses and overwhelm, often leading to total information overload and the ever-present new phenomena of FOMO (fear of missing out).
It’s the point where you feel your head is so congested and overloaded it might just suddenly explode! Trouble is when you focus on too many different things at once; nothing gets fully completed or achieved. Have you felt exhausted at the end of the day, frustrated with all the things you meant to do but failed to complete? Your head swimming with disappointment and negative self talk.
This reminds me of the fable of a wealthy king, who had so much money and power he demanded a full banquet to be presented to him each meal. But was so overwhelmed by the choices, failed to make a decision on what to eat first, consequently the food quickly became spoilt and he ordered it all to be taken away. The wealthy king starved because he was overpowered and paralysed by having too many choices, the fog of indecision shut down his ability to choose what to eat.
Not such a cheery tale, but I find using analogies a very useful tool in helping people understand what’s really happening when overloaded by choice, multiple decisions and ‘to-do-lists’ not to mention all the other things they have to manage on a regular basis.
The power of our mind is so incredible, but most of the time its unknowingly crippled by being full of unhelpful ‘baggage’ (or garbage) that only serves to weigh you down, affecting focus, concentration, creativity and even the ability to think clearly.
It’s the reason that rational thinking disappears and irrational behaviour kicks in.
Think back to the last time you were stressed or overwhelmed – it’s likely you behaved or communicated out of character – a misty emotional mind can create someone you don’t recognise as yourself. You may have seen the TV advert with Joan Collins doing her unmistakeable cattie behaviour – then she eats a chocolate bar and reverts back to the real person! Well, man or woman, it’s likely you’ve had your own ‘diva fit’ from time to time and it’s probably happened during times of stress, pressure and a foggy brain.
With more coverage in the media about the psychological condition of hoarding, I’d like to raise awareness of how our minds become a hoarder of thoughts, feelings, emotions – the incessant collection quickly becomes problematic if not dealt with properly.
When teaching kids and teens about dealing with their ‘inner chat’ or the thoughts/things in their heads, I get them to imagine their thoughts are like school books in their bag. The more unhelpful or unchecked thoughts = more books in their bag, which they have to imagine carrying around this heavy bag all day. Exhausting and such a waste of energy!
You could imagine a similar scenario with groceries in a bag or saving too much on your PC hard drive or mobile device, it’s not long before problems occur or it just shuts down.
One of the short-term and temporary solutions many people use to handle life (and you may be the same) is to multi-task – simple right? Wrong! Women are known for their ability to multi-task. But it is not a solution for either females or males as a long term solution.
Perhaps the most stark and candid research done on office workers in London in 2005 was the unequivocal affects of multi-tasking on the brain. Using MRI scanners to monitor brain activity, the average workers IQ dropped 10 points – and here’s the shocker – this is more than double the drop that occurs when someone smoked marijuana!
This is undeniable evidence that multi-tasking slows the brain and stuns productivity – ironically, where you thought you’re saving time, is actually wasting brain power and arresting the ability to perform at your optimum.
In simple terms, more than one task splits the brain and prevents total focus. As much as we’d like to believe otherwise, we can only fully concentrate on one thing at a time. Try and think of two separate things at exactly the same time and you’ll understand what I mean.
It’s not uncommon for resistance to creep in here; ego can be the fr-enemy (friend/enemy) of performance and best walked away from! You may think you can push against the grain and achieve more by doing more – because that’s the kind of society we’re becoming, so why not test it for yourself.
Here’s something to think about this month…
• Whether at home managing family life or work with a to-do list or action planner – choose just one thing at a time, fully complete it or to the point of where you want to be.
• Then and only then move to the next thing.
• Notice any differences in your level of focus, natural creativity and energy.
• At the end of the day/week/month how much more have you achieved and more importantly, how much better do you feel and how much more time do you have?
Clear thinking gives you better choices on how to respond, act or react, feel and achieve what you want.
We all have mind ‘baggage’ relating to business, family, events, challenges, etc. that affects our thoughts and behaviours. But we can let it go.
When you want to concentrate your mind, want clear thinking and focus, try this…
- Quieten the Mind. Stand or sit quietly for a few moments to regulate breathing and prepare yourself. Begin to breathe more deeply but naturally into the lower abdomen, breathing in through the nose and out through the mouth. Just start following your breath by finding a rhythm that suits you. Just follow your breath without following your thoughts or inner voice. Any thought that comes to mind, accept it’s there, acknowledge it, but do not follow it.Repeat the following affirmations. Recite aloud or in your head. Practice with feeling, power and with belief:* i Release
* i Flow
* i Let Go
Until next time, enjoy a mindful October.
————————————————-
Hello, I’m Annette Du Bois, author and Mindfulness expert. Using simple and practical Mindfulness techniques I help adults, kids and stressed out executives to better manage stress, cope with emotions and feel more able to deal with the challenges of everyday life. Please contact me info(@)mindfulnessmeditationzone.com for more information about local sessions, mental toughness for business or how it can benefit kids and teens.
