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Lyn Bailey – Life by Design

Tag: entrepreneurs

  • Why Don’t I Finish What I Start?

    Why Don’t I Finish What I Start?

    Why Don’t I Finish What I Start?

    Maybe you’re reading this article as you are about to abandon the twelfth project you’ve started and left unfinished in the last three months. Maybe you’ve never been able to finish something you’ve always wanted to complete. Either way, there are reasons you don’t finish what you start, and it may not be for the reasons you think.

    Procrastination

    The number one reason you probably aren’t finishing what you start is that you are probably procrastinating. To solve your procrastination habit, you need to know why you are procrastinating. Are you constantly being distracted by other tasks? Do you harbor a fear that you won’t like working on your project? Once you get to the bottom of your reasons for procrastination, you’ll better be able to combat it and conquer it. Then you’ll be able to work more on the project you want to finish.

    Lethargy

    Another reason you may not be finishing what you start is that you suffer from feelings of lethargy. Lethargy is when you have no energy because you have lost enthusiasm for the task at hand. You might have lost enthusiasm because you’ve been working on the task too long and procrastinating, as mentioned above. You feel that you are unappreciated for your efforts. You can conquer lethargy by breaking tasks into much smaller pieces and rewarding yourself along the way.

    You Overestimated Yourself or the Project

    When you start something new, you are often fueled by excitement, and this may lead you to misjudge a project and the work it will take on your end to complete it. Then, during the project, you may realize you don’t have the capabilities or time to finish what you started. The best way to solve this problem is to be more realistic while planning a project. Make sure you carefully lay out your entire plan to see the project more clearly and solve future issues before they occur.

    Overall, finishing all the projects you start is difficult, but this doesn’t mean you should give up so easily. Instead, work to find the reasons behind your procrastination and lethargy and work to solve them. You can also boost yourself by considering every project you start more in-depth at the beginning of the project. Pretty soon, you’ll be well on your way to finishing that one project you’ve just never gotten around to.

    What have you started and not finished? If you would like some help in getting back on track with this project then click HERE to book a FREE Discovery Call with me.

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  • Why Can’t I Follow Through?

    Why Can’t I Follow Through?

    Why Can’t I Follow Through?

    Do you struggle with the act of following through?

    Not finishing what we start is a common problem many people face in their life. It can quickly become a problem as these tasks stack up and start to weigh on us. While there are many reasons we may put things off, here are several of the most common.

    You Are Stuck In Your Habits

    One reason you may not be able to follow through with something new is that you are stuck in old habits. You might be unconsciously doing the same things you’ve always done, and thus you get the same results – failure to follow through.

    To remedy this problem, you need to break your bad habits and build new helpful habits to replace them instead.

    You Aren’t Being Proactive

    Another reason you might not be following through with commitments is because you aren’t being proactive. Maybe you are just sitting around hoping that something or someone will come along and force you to follow through. Newsflash – that isn’t going to happen.

    If you want to follow through with something, you need to be proactive and ultimately actively involved in trying to follow through. Taking action is the only way you will ever become better at following through in your life.

    You Have A Negative Mindset

    If you have a negative mindset in life, it can be very difficult to follow through with commitments. When you spend your whole day thinking of negative thoughts, the thought of following through with something seems so daunting, and negative.

    For example, if your goal is to work out every day to get into shape, but then you spend all day thinking about how you hate working out, how you’ll never be in shape, and how you won’t ever be the person you want to be, you can guarantee you won’t get up off that couch and go exercise. Instead, it’s time to try approaching your goal with a positive mindset.

    Overall, following through isn’t always the easiest thing for us to do. If you find yourself stuck in old habits and have a negative mindset, you can almost guarantee that nothing will change when it comes to your ability to follow through. So, if you want to be someone who follows through, it’s time to be proactive and take steps to change your life today.

    What have you started and not finished? If you would like some help in getting back on track with this project then click HERE to book a FREE Discovery Call with me.

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  • What Can I Learn From Tasks I Fail to Finish?

    What Can I Learn From Tasks I Fail to Finish?

    What Can I Learn From Tasks I Fail to Finish?

    It’s quite likely there’s been a task you’ve failed to finish at some point in your life, whether it was a project at work or maybe even one in your personal life.

    However, although failing to finish something isn’t a great feeling, there are many ways you can learn from the tasks you fail to complete.

    How Not To Do The Task

    The first thing you will learn from failing to complete a task is how not to do it. This lesson might seem a little silly, but it matters – a lot. Learning what not to do, is an essential part of the learning process. The next time you aim to complete this task, you know what actions and behaviors to avoid. The more times you fail, the more ways you learn how not to accomplish your task. 

    You Will Learn Something About Yourself

    Whenever you fail at anything in life, it will teach you a lesson about yourself. Failure – and more importantly – your reaction to failure will teach you a lot about yourself. It will be an insight into your ability to deal with obstacles. You can also learn about your ability to bounce back from failure. Most importantly, failure can reveal weaknesses you need to address or strengths you never knew you had.

    That It’s Time To Move On

    Sometimes, when you fail to finish a task, it may teach you that it is time to move on. While on the one hand, you don’t want to give up; on the other hand, you need to examine if it is worthwhile pursuing in the first place.

    This lesson is especially true if the reason for failure is completely out of your control. Maybe there isn’t a market for that new product idea. Socio-economic issues that you can’t do anything about might impact your career. These are times it might be time to move on.

    It’s also important to examine if your goals still reflect your current values and needs. If you regularly fail to complete a task, maybe it is because it isn’t that important to you anymore?  Why waste energy on tasks that don’t reflect who you are?

    Conclusion

    You will likely come across a task you cannot finish at some time during your life. Don’t fret, though. When you fail to complete a task, it can teach you several important lessons. You can apply those lessons to your next task to ensure you can complete it and finally achieve success.

    What have you started and not finished? If you would like some help in getting back on track with this project then click HERE to book a FREE Discovery Call with me.

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  • The Top 3 Reasons We Don’t Finish What We Start

    The Top 3 Reasons We Don’t Finish What We Start

    The Top 3 Reasons We Don’t Finish What We Start

    Do you feel as if you are constantly leaving a trail of half-finished projects in your wake? Are you the type of person who has one project in particular that you’ve always wanted to finish but just haven’t gotten around to it? If that sounds familiar, keep reading to find the top three reasons you tend not to finish what you’ve started.

    1. You’ve Lost Motivation

    When you started the project, your enthusiasm for starting something new first motivated you. However, if you haven’t seen any results in some time, this may have caused your motivation to lower. The best way to combat this loss of motivation is by breaking your project down into more manageable pieces and rewarding yourself along the way for steps well done. Conquering these more manageable pieces will help keep you motivated even when the project is long.

    2. Negative Thoughts About The Project

    Another reason you may find it difficult to complete a task is because of the way you think about the project. When it comes to mind, do you think you will never finish it or is your mind filled with thoughts of how hard the project is? Both are negative paths of thinking, and they will keep you from finishing the project. Instead, it’s time to transform your thinking to be positive regarding the project you are trying to complete. A more positive outlook will give you new energy and motivation to complete the task.

    3. Lack Of Discipline

    Another reason people can’t finish the projects they start is a lack of self-discipline. A person with self-discipline doesn’t give up when the going gets tough. They also tend to avoid procrastinating or slacking off. If this sounds familiar to you, it’s probably time that you work to cultivate self-discipline in your life. Boosting your self-discipline will ensure you can start finishing all the projects you start.

    In conclusion, finishing what you start is quite often difficult. The most likely reason you cannot finish projects is probably one of the above reasons. If you want to enjoy feelings of success, it’s time that you get to the bottom of your reason for not finishing a project and then work towards conquering the reason. This way, the next project you start, or one you have left uncompleted, will finally be done. After all, it’s always better to be late than never finish at all.

    What have you started and not finished? If you would like some help in getting back on track with this project then click HERE to book a FREE Discovery Call with me.

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  • 5 Essential Tips to Finish What You Start

    5 Essential Tips to Finish What You Start

    5 Essential Tips to Finish What You Start

    Do you struggle to finish projects? Are you currently struggling with a specific project (or ten) in your life that you can’t seem to finish? Let me guess, do you have more than a few household tasks on your to-do list?

    Don’t worry – you aren’t alone. Many people struggle to follow through on their tasks. Here are five essential tips to help you finish what you’ve started.

    1. Make A Plan

    First and foremost, the number one way to finish everything you start is by making a plan before you start. A well-thought-out plan ensures you will be aware of the work your project requires and have an idea of how you will proceed. It is also a good time to break the project into smaller chunks to make it easier to conquer. Don’t forget to take some time to brainstorm potential problems you may encounter along the way.

    1. Take A Break

    If you feel overstressed at some point during your project, and it leads to other negative feelings like frustration, it’s okay to take a break. A break is a great way to refresh both your body and mind. Get hydrated, move around, find some time to take in the present world around you.

    1. Identify Your Distractions

    Maybe you’re finding every reason under the sun not to work on your project. It’s time to identify these distractions and how they may be affecting you. If the distraction is easily removed, remove it. If it’s more of a mental distraction, it may be time to look into something like meditation to help you clear your mind. Whatever your distractions are, it’s time to identify and eliminate them so you can focus on your goal.

    1. Track Your Progress

    Many projects remain unfinished because they are long, and you lose sight of the end goal somewhere in the middle. To maintain motivation, you need to track your progress on the goal as you go. You may even want to consider rewarding yourself for a job well done at certain points to maintain your motivation.

    1. Visualise The End

    Even if you are tracking your project, you may find that you’ve lost sight of your end goal. This is why you should frequently spend time visualizsing your end goal in your mind. It will help you remember why you are working on your goal in the first place.

    Finishing what you start is never easy, but if you follow these five essential tips, you may find that you can finish it with ease the next time you start a project.

    If you struggle to finish what you start, click HERE for a FREE Discovery Call to find out how to complete your projects.

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  • 7 Questions To Ask When You Think You’re Procrastinating

    7 Questions To Ask When You Think You’re Procrastinating

     

    Do you sometimes find yourself making that second cup of coffee instead of taking action to get you moving towards your desired outcome? If so, you are not alone. I have done just that this morning. My intention was to get this blog written and published today. I had set myself a schedule to do this from 9-10.30am. So, what did I do at 9am? I made myself a cup of coffee, then decided to read  some emails, did some Facebook posts, chatted to a friend I finished my coffee, then decided to make a second one. I realised that I was procrastinating. Why was I doing this? I asked myself the first question below.Is writing a blog exciting enough to get me out of my comfy chair to sit at my desk, The answer was NO. So I asked myself what would make writing a blog my exciting for me. The answer that came up for me was this. “I am writing this blog to help those people who are holding themselves back from achieving their full potential, so that they can start to take action to turn their dreams into reality and make this the best, most successful and productive year of their lives.” Now, I am excited to be sitting at my desk writing this blog post starting at 10.30 with enthusiasm and gratitude.

    If you struggle with procrastination, you know the detrimental effects it can have on goal achievement. But instead of beating yourself up for failing to get going, consider a different approach. Here are seven questions that will help you overcome procrastination and achieve higher levels of success.

    1- Do your goals excite you?

    First, ask whether your goals excite you. You may think you’re procrastinating when the problem is you’re not motivated.

    There are tasks we all have to complete daily. Not all of them are thrilling. But if your goal is to finish your book by the end of the year, for example, and you find yourself struggling to get going? Consider that the problem may be that you lack passion for the project itself, not your overall drive.

    To remedy this, think of other tasks in your life. Are you generally unable to get going? Or is it with just one or two things that you find dull and boring?

    Perhaps you need new goals.

    2- Are you healthy?

    Next, ask yourself if you’ve taken care of your health. It’s much easier to find the energy to work on long-term goals when you’re eating nutritious foods, drinking enough water, and getting enough daily exercise.

    On the other hand, if you’ve got too many poor habits like drinking too much alcohol, remaining sedentary, and eating poorly, your issue could be your health.

    If you can improve your health and wellness routine, do so. See if that helps give you enough energy to avoid procrastination.

    3- What could you get done if you quit procrastinating?

    Third, it’s time to daydream for a second. Think of all the juicy details behind what you might be able to accomplish if you quit procrastinating.

    Could you finally have that dream body you’ve been craving? Might you get that promotion at work? Will you, at last, start your side business?

    Sometimes all you need is a gentle reminder of how good life is on the other side of effort.

    4- Can you reframe it as an opportunity?

    Next, you may find it useful to reframe the situation. Let’s say you dread going to the gym. Could you think of how lucky you are to have such an opportunity, instead of thinking of the negative?

    How fantastic is it that you have the funds to afford a gym membership? How grateful are you that you have a healthy enough body to move around, run, lift, stretch, and sweat? Isn’t it outstanding that even if you’re busy, you can make the time to engage in self-care practices such as this?

    It’s not that you “have to” go to the gym. It’s that you “get to” go to the gym.

    5- Are you overcommitted?

    Beyond that, consider that you may have too much on your plate. Burnout is a real thing. And if left unchecked, it can cause you to lose productivity when you’d otherwise be on top of things.

    Ask yourself if you’re procrastinating or if you don’t have the time or resources you need to get everything done.

    6- What’s essential and what can wait?

    Along similar lines, you might want to do a brain dump of all your responsibilities. Laying it all in front of you will help you determine what’s essential and what can wait. Sometimes if you want to get going, you have to trim the fat. Much of what we pressure ourselves to complete is just busywork. Eliminate the non-essentials and see if your productivity improves.

    7- What’s your reward?

    Finally, make sure you have a healthy reward system in place to meet your goals. While goal-achievement is rewarding, knowing there’s an even brighter light at the end of the tunnel may prove motivating.

    We spend much time bashing ourselves for mistakes and shortcomings. It’s important to celebrate our wins, too.

    Final Thoughts

    Sometimes procrastination can get the better of you, but things aren’t always what they seem. The next time you worry about your productivity level, ask yourself these seven questions. You may discover a quick solution to your problem.

    If you need  help in changing any of these in your life right now, book  a FREE 30 minute Strategy Session HERE.

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  • Why It’s So Hard to Be Present

    Why It’s So Hard to Be Present

    Being present can be difficult to achieve because doing so can trigger feelings of discomfort. The discomfort comes from thinking you must be completely within the present without slipping up.

     

    When something does happen to shake your focus, it can make you feel like you’ve failed to achieve living in the now. However, being present isn’t something that has a success or failure scorecard. It’s simply learning how to pick up on the situations when you’re not practicing living in the moment and gently course correcting.

     

    It can be hard to be in the present because you might get caught up in the mundane. There’s nothing peaceful about the stresses of life. When the dishwasher floods or the car breaks down, it can be easy to start daydreaming, rather than focusing on what’s currently going on in your life.

     

    Living in the present is something that can take practice. It’s easy to fall back into bad habits. You can find yourself handling life the way you’ve always done. Your habits are your “go-to” response and your brain can automatically fall back into those thought processes.

     

    When this happens and you realize that your mind and your reactions are opposite of living in the now, you can always hit reset. Just because you think you blew it doesn’t mean that you did.

     

    Everyone will have times when they forget to focus, especially when life gets hectic. However, as soon as you’re aware that’s happening, you can pause and start fresh.

     

    It can be hard to be present when you’re in the middle of something that’s stressing you out or making you angry or sad. This is totally normal. It’s common to have difficulty concentrating or focusing when you’re in the middle of a crisis.

     

     

    That’s why you want to focus on learning to “live in the now” even if your life seems peaceful and calm at this moment. Then when difficult things happen, you’ll be able to maintain your peacefulness because you’ve spent time practicing.

     

    Some people struggle to be present because they fear living in the moment means they’re going to be handing over control. Sometimes, it’s easier to think that if you worry about something or fret over it; you can prevent bad things from happening simply because you pre-worried.

     

    However, living fully in the moment isn’t about giving up control. It’s about focusing your awareness so that you don’t waste valuable energy worrying about what has happened or what might happen. Instead, you’re experiencing fullness of life exactly where you are.

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  • Goal Setting Rules That Work!

    Goal Setting Rules That Work

     

    Poor goal setting can be a roadblock to success. Think of it as a business plan—the plan and path you need to take to be successful. Without a plan or a set of goals designed with steps to follow, you lack direction, and without direction, it is hard to get where you want to go. All humans need guidance and to do the work to reap the rewards.

    Follow these rules to goal setting that work:

    Be Realistic

    For example, your goal may be to lose 30 kilos, but don’t expect that to happen in two or even ten months. Give yourself a realistic timeline to reach your goal. Don’t set yourself up to fail before you also get started by being unrealistic.

    Baby Steps

    Break down your goals into manageable steps or smaller goals that you can change or repeat each day to reach your goal. This way, your bigger goal seems easy to get to, and you won’t overwhelm yourself again by doing too much or making it look too hard.

    For example, maybe you have a goal to do more exercise, as I have at the moment. Instead of going from 500 steps to 5,000 steps in one hit, you can just start with 1,000 steps a day for the first week, then 2,000 the second week, and then as the weeks go by, you will find yourself doing 5,000 steps each day easily and effortlessly. All you need to feel accomplished is to work toward your goals slowly. I had become very inactive with the pandemic lockdowns. I found my osteoarthritis was really taking hold again and I was needing more and more pain relief to cope each day. I decided to make a change. I started with the 1,000 steps daily for a week. I’m now up to 3,000 steps a day and really enjoying my walking time and challenge. I also feel much better and have been able to come off my pain relief medication. 

    Click here for your FREE My Goals Journal

    Be Specific

    Make sure all the goals that you set for yourself are very clear and specific. Don’t make it broad and all over the place. If you can’t see the finish line, you may not get started. If you don’t know precisely what you want to accomplish in the end, you won’t know how even to get started in the first place, much less the steps that it takes to reach the goal.

    Be Relevant

    Each goal you work on should be relevant to where you want to see your life going. Do you have big career goals? Then make sure the goals you write down are career related. Don’t make all your goals about your health and hobbies if you ultimately want to be a doctor one day. You will need to put in a lot of work to get there and make it a top priority.

    Always Plan

    Writing down the goals is only the first step. You must also plan how you want to achieve the goals. Having a clear direction, a beginning, middle, and end will lead to success. For each goal that you make, also write at least three to five things you plan on doing to get there first.

    You must want to accomplish the goal and believe in it to succeed. After all, it takes your continued hard work and dedication to make it happen, no one else’s. 

    Click here for your FREE My Goals Journal
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  • 5 Benefits of Self Care

    5 Benefits of Self Care

    Top 5 Benefits Of Self-Care

    Self-Care Isn’t Selfish – It’s Necessary

    Contrary to what you may have heard, self-care isn’t selfish. It’s necessary. When you’ve got commitments, responsibilities and obligations pulling at you from all angles, it’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking that you can’t afford the time or resources to care for yourself.

    The fact of the matter is that you can’t afford not to.

    Click Here to Join the FREE 5 Day CHOOSE YOU Challenge 

    Here are five reasons why self-care should be at the very top of your list of priorities.

    Top 5 Benefits Of Self-Care

    1-    Improves Your Self-Esteem

    First, engaging in regular self-care practices improves your self-esteem, both in obvious – and not so obvious – ways.

    On the surface, sure if you take time to care for your physical body by exercising, eating well, maintaining proper hygiene, and having a beauty regimen you’ll look and feel great on the outside. But caring for your mental and emotional health improves your self-esteem from the inside, too.

    A quick example is with a problem that so many people have in common – putting others first.

    If you tend to say “yes” to others a little more often than you’d like, sacrifice some of your own needs to make others happy, or riddle yourself with guilt for saying “no”, caring for your emotional health by slowing down, considering what it is you really want and need, and making authentic choices on how to spend your time and money would benefit you.

    While it may not seem like it on the surface, people-pleasing is a huge sign of low self-worth. Why do you feel like your wants and needs aren’t valid or important?

    Journaling your true feeling, taking time before accepting or denying requests from others, and blocking off personal time in your calendar are just a few examples of simple self-care activities that can help you boost your self-esteem from the inside out.

    2-    You Have More To Give To Others

    Second, while you may assume taking time to care for yourself means less time and energy you can spend on others, the reverse is true.

    If you happen to play a role in life where you care for others (for example a parent, work in healthcare or customer service, care for aging parents), it’s all too easy to spend all your time and energy attending to the needs of others.

    But what about you?

    Who takes care of you and makes sure that you are okay?

    Have you ever heard that saying “you can’t pour from an empty cup”?

    Chances are that nobody cares for you the way you care for others, so your cup is probably running low. You’ll have to care for yourself or risk total and complete burnout – at which point you’re no good for anyone.

    Prioritizing your personal wellbeing is good for everyone. You’ll have so much more to give if you put yourself first at least some of the time.

    Click Here to Join the FREE 5 Day CHOOSE YOU Challenge 

    3-    Increased Productivity

    Third, one of the most important self-care practices you can get started on right away is making sure you get enough sleep. The average adult requires 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night. Running on less than this has potential adverse effects that you may not have considered, such as weight gain, inflammation and poor mental health.

    But, one of the strongest benefits of getting enough rest is a boost in concentration and productivity.

    Imagine having a high-pressure meeting or presentation at work, or an important exam to take at school. Do you think you’d perform better if you stay up all night drinking coffee and cramming, or after a good night of rest?

    The answer is obvious.

    If you think you can’t get more sleep because your life is just too hectic and busy, start small! Start by setting a strict cutoff for when you’ll turn off your phone or laptop and go to bed. Then, try going to bed just ten minutes earlier for a while. Even if you don’t fall asleep right away, you’ll be training your body and mind to get into sleep mode.

    Once you get used to that, you can slowly add more time. It really works!

    4-    Get To Know Yourself Better

    We humans are constantly changing, evolving and growing. And if you’re reading this right now, chances are personal growth is high on your list of priorities. So, it’s important to you.

    Well, if you don’t regularly spend quality time with yourself, evaluating different aspects of your life, setting goals, tracking progress, and examining yourself, how do you stay familiar with who you are once you’ve changed?

    Unless you intentionally work on this, you don’t.

    It’s not possible to outgrow the perception you have of yourself unless you establish a self-care practice that supports self-understanding.

    Some ideas for self-care that will help you explore who you are include journaling (specifically reviewing old journal entries to compare your progress over time), meditation, and pursuing hobbies that involve creativity (making art, writing literature, playing instruments).

    5-    Healthy Management Of Emotions

    Someone who doesn’t have a strong self-care regimen is highly likely to crumble under stress, anger or disappointment. This doesn’t have to be you.

    Even the luckiest people on the planet have bad days. We lose loved ones, suffer broken hearts, don’t achieve goals we set out to conquer…

    Without a solid self-care toolbox, it’s so easy to turn to unhealthy habits such as drinking to excess, seeking comfort by overindulging in food or shopping, or even becoming avoidant – neglecting our responsibilities completely. These only make bad situations even worse.

    When you have great coping mechanisms for when you’re sad, angry, stressed or hurt, you’re able to deal with negative events in much healthier ways.

    You’ll still feel the negative emotions – mind you – but you’ll be able to manage them. And that makes a world of difference in your overall life experience.

    Click Here to Join the FREE 5 Day CHOOSE YOU Challenge 

    Final Thoughts

    While it may seem on the surface that you don’t have time or money to prioritize your personal wellbeing, that couldn’t be farther from the truth. Self-care doesn’t have to be expensive or time-consuming. In fact, you can find subtle ways to integrate it into your daily life so that you can experience all the peace, positivity and progress you deserve.

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  • Calm Racing Thoughts & Enjoy the Peace of the Present

    Calm Racing Thoughts & Enjoy the Peace of the Present

    Calm Racing Thoughts & Enjoy the Peace of the Present

     

    Living in the now is something that takes practice. You may struggle with being present because of racing thoughts.

    People have this issue because of overthinking. There are common areas where people tend to overthink. One of these areas is money. A simple thought that you’d like to make more money can quickly turn into worrying that you may not have enough in the future. It could turn into worrying about what you’ll do if you lose your job or ability to work.

    Relationships are another area where overthinking often happens. This is usually due to projecting. You don’t know what someone is thinking or feeling and it can make you second guess. You might think someone is feeling negatively toward you when they’re not even thinking about their relationship with you at all.

    If you take a situation or a problem and you overthink it, you can spin it into a huge problem that seems overwhelming. Then you feel paralyzed and unable to take action. Now, racing thoughts keep you spinning your wheels and wasting time.

    When you learn how to control your thoughts, you live fully present and acquire a feeling of power, as you realize what you can do. To calm racing thoughts and experience the peace of the present, you can take several steps in order to reach your goal.

    First, remember to breathe. When you pause to breathe, it effectively lowers your heightened response as well as your stress. Focus on inhaling and exhaling and slowly count to three as you do so. You’ll instantly feel calmer.

    Second, don’t look at situations that aren’t reality. Many people create worst-case scenarios in their mind. For example, if someone is late coming home, you might assume the worst—that your loved one was injured or in an accident. However, this thought doesn’t serve you. It only adds unnecessary stress and fear to your life.

    If you realize that a thought is based only on anxiety, let it go. You might say, “I know Dave is running late. But I release my fear over it and choose to believe that everything will be fine.”

    Next, don’t allow yourself to get caught up in the past either. Focus on the moment, rather than what used to be, or what could be. The only time that you have is right now. If you focus on the past, your thoughts will race about things that happened to you or how you could have done things differently.

    You may also find it helpful to adopt a mantra. Having a word or phrase that you can turn to in order to refocus your attention can calm a racing mind. This could be something as simple as “Everything is fine” or “I walk in peace.”

    Sometimes racing thoughts happen because you’re trying to hold on to important information. You fear what might happen if you forget to take care of something. To calm your racing thoughts, create a thought list.

    Write down all the thoughts that are bothering you. Once they’re written down, you’ll discover that your thoughts are no longer racing. That’s because once you write something down, your brain believes it has dealt with the racing thoughts and will begin winding down.

    You can also choose to do a calming activity when you’re struggling to be present. This might be something like playing a game, reading, writing, gardening, coloring, drawing, or listening to music. Calming activities stop racing thoughts because they change your focus from being immersed in anxiety or regret to actively doing something.

    Exercise is another activity you can do that will calm racing thoughts. As you exercise, endorphins flood the body. This boosts your mood and can help you get fear or worry back under control. For the best results, choose a low-impact exercise that will calm you. For example, you might choose a slow walk around your neighborhood or a series of gentle yoga poses.

    Change your sounds can also have a profound impact on bringing you into the present moment. Listen to the birds outside your window or put on some nature music. You could turn on a white noise machine or listen to instrumental music as well.

     

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