Being on the go requires focus to balance the many things that are asking for your attention. So let’s take a moment now to support your focus.

Breathe
Notice where you are in this moment.
What are you hearing?
Where is your breath moving inside your body?
Pause to be and notice how you are feeling now.

Return to these questions as often as is useful. A quick moment of internal reflection can carry exponential power in the world because tending to your internal state helps clarify what next actions will best serve you and those around you.

For instance, after some months apart, I was driving to meet my mother, which as meant a level of stress because my relationship with her isn’t what I dreamed it could be. However, I’ve been working to be present in our current relationship. So when she called me because she was lost a few blocks from the restaurant, instead of jumping in to fix things, I paused, took a breathe, and noticed how I was feeling in the moment. Suddenly I could look at the situation with a little more ease.

During lunch with my mom, I was calm because I tended to my internal state. So I kept trying it these little reflection moments. When my in-laws arrived at my house that afternoon, I took a breath. As tech problems emerged during an evening class I was teaching, I noticed how I was feeling before I tried to fix things.

A pause is an invitation to gather data that helps you move forward with a full picture aka strategic thinking. Today I invite you to take a breath and just notice what’s happening for you internally. It may be a doorway to feeling chaos or calm, but whatever the feeling it was there already. This difference is now your internal state won’t be unconsciously guiding your choices.