Being in your home space on a daily basis can make you feel unhappy, dull or droopy, and in turn, it can affect how productive you are at your work. It’s not about changing your habits completely but more about finding the things that work for you. By sticking to small changes and making time for them, your efficiency will then improve greatly.
1. Practising gratitude
We spend a lot of time at Sanctuary thinking about gratitude and how it can help us. It first seems like a counterintuitive thing to do, to “practise gratitude”. For many of us, being grateful is a feeling we get when someone does something kind for us. So what do we mean when we say we should practice it?
No matter what your situation is, there are things in our lives that fill us with joy and make us happy. Whether that is the family we have or the colleagues that help us at work or maybe the simple beauty of nature, there are multiple parts of life that make it so incredible. Practising gratitude is simply reminding ourselves of why life is so special. Taking time in our day to think about these things and reflect on why they have meaning to us as individuals. What is the easiest way to practice gratitude? A gratitude journal.
This involves sitting down 1–3 times a week and writing down 5–10 things you are grateful for. It may feel weird at first so keep it simple. Maybe think about how great coffee is, or whether you are thankful for someone helping you, or maybe what you would miss if that thing or person was not in your life. It is so simple it seems almost insulting. But in numerous scientific studies participants reported higher life satisfaction and overall happiness after doing it for a few weeks. Even months after these studies scientists could see changes in brain activity.
It is somewhat incredible that something as simple as self-reflections can alter the pathways in our brain to fight dissatisfaction and the symptoms of stress.
2. Being present
Remaining present is a saying that many people in the mental health space throw around a lot but sometimes it falls on deaf ears as many don’t know what it means or how to do it. Like with many new habits, when starting to practise mindfulness or being present (frequently interchangeable) it is key to start small.
Being present means remaining in the moment and appreciating the present. To not let your attention drift to other things or distractions. The important thing here is having the ability to control it. There are times when it is helpful to let your mind wander and think; it is where many of our greatest ideas and thoughts come to us. The problem is many of us have no control of when this happens.
Sam Harris draws on the example of reading to your children before bed as parents. These moments are special and need to be cherished. However, he remembers times when he would be reading but he would be thinking about work he had the next day or a chore he had forgotten to do. When you give it more thought, it is so sad that the beauty of these moments are not appreciated to their fullest because we can’t control our attention. The best way to learn how to control your thoughts — meditation.
Here is a brief explainer video:
3. Excercise
We know the benefits of exercise and that we should all do it in some format but we want to be more forgiving of ourselves in this blog. Exercise has numerous biological benefits like the“runners high” we all hear about as well as being a great way to destress. We think again it is important to make wellbeing more accessible so you don’t have to do a HIIT workout or run a marathon to get these benefits.
The key at the end of the day is movement. Getting up, and getting moving will help you experience the initial benefits of exercise. The easiest way to do it is walking and taking a walk in green areas if you can. Being surrounded by nature whilst getting moving helps relieve stress. It is also a perfect moment to practice the other things we have suggested in this blog. To think about what we a grateful for or take a deep breath of fresh air and appreciate the moment.
Many of us just find it hard to introduce new habits into our lives. So if you are trying to introduce exercise into yours, break down your goals to the “Two-minute rule”. The key is to break down what seems like a big goal into small digestible “2 min” steps. I would recommend trying as much as you can but not being hard on yourself if what you have tried doesn’t work. If you’re going to try and run five times a week from not doing anything at all, it seems like quite a large jump. So start small and take each day as it comes. First, put out the trainers and clothes you are going to wear for the next day and block out the time in your diary. Then get out there and do as much or as little as you can, it’s an achievement just to start.
On the Sanctuary App, you can find lots of useful advice for a more productive and mindful workday. Check out our website to find out more about our app and how our programmes can help your employees 👉 www.mysanctuary.io
