The Warm-Up
Most athletes begin there day with warm-up exercises before they start to practice. Even in yoga, aerobics or pilates, there are 5 to 10 minutes of stretches and movements to get the body ready to exert itself. We’ve been learning that our brains do not need to figure out the mysteries of the cosmos the moment we get out of bed. Okay, maybe we’re not working on the secrets of the universe although some people are, we sometimes do start thinking about the day and what we plan to accomplish that day the moment we wake up.
Often in the past, these massive thoughts were enough to make us want to hug a pillow tight and stay safe in bed. Lately, we’ve been doing something a little different, well at least this year. We hold off on having massive thoughts of the sometimes scary pressures of the day and warm-up with something easy.
Coffee, Coffee, Coffee
For example, one of our first thoughts of action is to make the first cup of coffee. For us, it is a very pleasurable thought to wake up to the first cup of coffee in the morning. As we turn on our positive speaker of the day, it is not difficult to wake up and prepare for the day thinking about getting our first cup of coffee. As we work towards our primary mission of the day, we dress, make the bed, plan lunch and packing up everything we need for work. With our minds fixed on these simple tasks, we seldom forget our personal needs for the day.
Now that we are all warmed up and in a calm and somewhat happy state of mind, we can start thinking about the plans of the day and goals to be accomplished. At this point, we are far away enough from our pillow, so a retreat is no longer an option.
In the same way, at work, we start with a few easy tasks to get a feeling of accomplishment. As we feel our momentum pick up, each new job or task can be increasingly harder until we get through everything we need to do for the day.
Just like an athlete, we follow these steps:
1. Warm Up
2. Start Slow
3. Increase Intensity Steadily
4. Reach the Goal
Be Well, Have Gratitude and Spread Goodwill