The Art of Stopping Time: 5 Un-Resolutions For Busy People

If this year taught us anything it's that learning to 'be chill' is way more challenging than we thought -- and more important to prioritize than ever. We're taking tips from Pedram Shojai, 'The Urban Monk' and his new book, 'The Art of Stopping Time' which is all about finding more opportunity to enjoy life, even when you don't have a second to spare...

One of the biggest complaints I hear from my students is that they are too stressed out and don’t have enough time to get everything done. We’re all struggling to find time in our lives, but somehow there’s less of it to go around each year. We’re too tired to think, too wired to focus, less efficient than we want to be and guilty about not getting enough time with our loved ones. We all know that we feel starved for time, but what are we actually doing about it? Precious little.

My newest book, The Art of Stopping Time: Practical Mindfulness for Busy People, is designed to change that, to bring us back to a healthier connection with time and achieve Time Prosperity.

Time Prosperity means having the time to accomplish what you desire in life without feeling compressed, stressed, overburdened or hurried. It brings us peace, better decisions, better health, more family time and re-alignment of our priorities in a way that helps us bring back fulfillment and purpose.

In The Art of Stopping Time, I walk readers through ancient spiritual practices and practical life skills that help us stop time and achieve Time Prosperity. Below are a few of my favorite tips to living a better life!

5 BREATHS Is All It Takes

Set a timer for 30 minutes to go off throughout your day. Each time the timer goes off, take five deep breaths from your lower abdomen and focus on those breaths, then go about your day. This is a quick fix to reset the rhythm of your day and slow down for a less hurried and more energized day.

ASSEMBLE YOUR LIFE GARDEN

Imagine your life as a garden: You have limited water and need to leave space for each plant to flourish. Think about what’s important to you, list these items and then imagine how much energy must go into the sustained growth of these items. Get realistic about how many plants you need to grow and cultivate and which plants are weeds that take up valuable resources in your life. Once you have decided how much water to allocate to make your plants flourish, you can avoid over-commitment and stress.

SET Meaningful RITUALS

Let’s look at any rituals you observe in your life. What are they and why do you do them? So many of the things we do in modern times come from ancient origins. They used to mean something. What are you doing in life that helps you stop time and connect with that which is meaningful? Can you be better at it? The point is to find something that serves you and allow it to be an anchor in your life. Find a way to connect with what you need and make a plan to build healthier practices into your life.

DOING NOTHING

Practice being. It may take a while to get the hang of it, and you may think you’re going crazy, but that’s just the crazy talking. Take ten minutes to simply sit through the discomfort and just be. Watch how your mind is always looking for something to do. It takes Zen monks years to really master this, but if you actually commit, you will reach the peaceful serenity of a relaxed mind.

Reprinted from The Art of Stopping Time by Pedram Shojai, OMD. Copyright (c) 2017 by Pedram Shojai, OMD. By permission of Rodale Books. Available wherever books are sold.

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