March 14, 2011

How to boost your afternoon performance

I recently re-read Norman Vincent Peale's Guide To Confident Living. 

He's a big proponent of feeding your mind good stuff, especially when you are mentally taxed and over worked.  He's prescribed this to businessmen for decades, and in my experience, it works.  He points out that Dale Carnegie would leave his office each afternoon for about 15 minutes to sit quietly in a New York City church.  It was a great pick-me-up that often led to calmness and creativity for the rest of the day. 

As Peale points out, giving our soul this quietness is a better pick-me-up than most alternatives, such as coffee.  When you take this time, don't try and think about anything, in fact - think about nothing.  Just put yourself in a peaceful surrounding where nothing can interrupt you, and just defocus the mind.  

If you must think of something, think of the forces of nature, God or karma.  Think of how things always work out for the best, for those that are thoughtful.  Don't try and solve things during this time, turn the mind's engine off so the soul can have a romp.  

In my travels to Spain last summer, while staying in Barcelona's Born district, I did just that.  At 6:30pm, the middle of their afternoon, I snuck into the Santa Maria del Mar church (what a place!).  I took my flip video and recorded a few minutes of peace to share with you.  I didn't try to do anything after that for ten minutes.  I made myself still.  Later, a big idea came to me for the book.  My soul talked to my subconscious, and worked out something pretty complicated.  It was a gift.  

This is a concept that's included in my next book, Today We Are Rich.   Visit the book page and you can pre-order a copy and receive a free eBook excerpt with an entire principle!  You can also visit its facebook page too.

Video: Two Minutes Of Peace at Santa Maria del Mar

 

Posted at 12:18 PM in Abundance , Business Effectiveness  |  Permalink  |  Comments (3)  |  TrackBack (0)

Comments

Commentor

I always like to spend a few moments in silence along with some deep breathing exercises. This brings me back to a place of peace and mindfulness. Hard to do of course if you are too focused on other tasks. Chanting also helps me but I work alone so perhaps a bit easier for me than someone working in an office environment. :-)

Posted by: John Vorstermans  |  March 25, 2011 at 04:38 PM

Commentor

There's a place in our lives called "margin" that we visit infrequently. Those quiet places that you mention are perfect examples and I would offer that even an easy run or bike ride might serve the same purpose. Leave the iPod at home and don't spend the time looking at your HRM or watch. Just run or ride and think. Works for me.

Posted by: billhanifin  |  March 15, 2011 at 02:39 PM

Commentor

Tim, nice post. There's also a great place to go online to get that few minutes of peace. Go to http://www.gratefulness.org and click on Light A Candle. It walks you through a beautiful meditation to light a candle and then leaves the candle lit on the bottom of your screen. Amazing quiet moment that anyone can do while at work.

Posted by: Rosie  |  March 14, 2011 at 12:46 PM

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