Meditation Brings Business Renewal
As a seeker of solitude in my busy entrepreneurial workday, I use yoga, pilates, a good old-fashioned run in the park, and anything else I can think of to calm my nerves and keep my head clear and focused. I have worked hard to keep my body fit and my business running smoothly. I have also found that the same principles used in the meditation practiced during yoga can be used to strengthen my business.
While meditating during a yoga class several years ago, the instructor told us to feel that every movement is a new beginning. This made me think of my own business, which was just a fledgling startup at the time. In my day to day struggle as an entrepreneur, every project and each new contact could potentially take my business in a new direction. After making this connection, I knew that meditation had a lot to teach me about business. Since then, Ive learned to apply some of the basic principles of meditation to my business and you can do it, too.
Start employing meditation principles in your work life by viewing your business as a living being. Each direction the being goes in is, in fact, a new beginning. View this positively since life, just like business, is ever-changing and accepting that is a necessary part of enjoying your life and your business.
It is also important to pause throughout your day and really feel your body. When you are stressed out at work or you feel your shoulders or back stiffening after a tense meeting or an especially taxing day, take the time to make yourself physically comfortable. yoga has taught me to sit erect, with my spine straight, my feet planted firmly on the floor, and my hands relaxed in my lap and that I should breathe diaphragmatically. When I have had a rough day or when I need a break, but cannot leave my office, I take a deep breath and count to four. I breathe in and out counting four or five times to quiet my mind. I keep remembering to breathe normally. I try to relax and let the thoughts come and then let them go. As you practice, the interference you feel at first will subside and you will be able to experience only that moment fully. I must also remind myself to be patient. Many times using these simple acts during the day can clear my mind and keep me focused longer while reducing the physical strain that comes with sitting at my desk for hours on end.
While there is a lot more to meditation than just learning the techniques and motions, I find that employing what I learn at my gym easily transfers into my work life. Meditation is an entire state of mind and a whole different way of looking at the world and the role you play in it. To help you understand this better, try taking a yoga class during the week. The cost (which might seem considerable for an entrepreneur with a strained budget) is worth it when you weigh the mental, physical and spiritual benefits. For more information about how you can renew and revive your business, visit www.flourishingbusiness.com.
Elizabeth W. Gordon, founder and President of The Flourishing Business, LLC, is a visionary leader who has a passion for helping others achieve their entrepreneurial dreams and enjoy more of the best in life. With a vast and diverse background in many business arenas, Elizabeth regularly has the opportunity to share her business acumen with clients, large and small. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO), atlanta and the Board of Directors of the American Association of university Women (AAUW) atlanta. She is an Accredited Executive Associate of the Institute for Independent Business (IIB) and a certified life Coach.
Questionnaire For Yoga Cl
My Own Bowflex Treadclimber - is it Exercise Equipment or an Excuse Eliminator?
Eliminating excuses is the first step on the path to physical fitness. This may be easier said than done...oops, that is also an excuse! We all have the same 24 hours in a day, and the body we were born with. Yet, people vary greatly in terms of fitness level. Why is that? Because the physically fit don't let lame excuses interfere with their commitment to their health.
Don't let the usual excuses keep you from starting, and sticking with, a reasonable exercise regimen:
1. "The gym is too far away/there isn't gas in the car/my cute workout clothes are dirty...{blah, blah, blah}"
Having your own exercise equipment, in your own domain, removes this line of reasoning. Forget commuting and work out at home. Not being willing or able to go somewhere doesn't have to get in your way.
2. "I don't have time to work out."
Working out will increase your energy, which will actually give you more time in your day, not less. And if you choose your exercises to give the most efficient workout, then 30 minutes, 3 times a week should be quite beneficial. That is possible by choosing fitness equipment that offers a variety of exercises, like the Bowflex Treadclimber, or a home gym that has multiple stations.
If you can't spare 30 minutes, 3 times a week for your own health, what on earth do you have time for?
3. "It hurts."
exercise should never hurt -- ever. Instead of giving up on exercise altogether, do low-impact activities. One way to ease stress on your knees and feet, for example, is to work out in water. Also, some exercise machines provide a similar effect. The Bowflex climber has "dual-treadles" that come up to meet your feet, which some say feels like walking in water.
It is important to always consult with a health care professional before starting any exercise routine, to ensure the activities you choose are appropriate. After all, the point is to get healthier, not injure yourself.
4. "Working out is boring."
No one said you had to do the same exercise over and over, until you're bored. Change it up a bit. Vary your routine to include your exercise machine three times a week, a brisk walk or jog twice a week, and swimming or yoga another once or twice a week. Your exercise equipment can also keep you from getting bored by enabling numerous different exercises (see #2).
5. "I'm too old to get in shape."
This might be the conclusion you draw if your exercise equipment doesn't offer you adjustable settings, to match the intensity to your current fitness level. That can lead to feelings of discouragement and keep you from wanting to continue. The Bowflex Treadclimber has adjustable settings and speeds, to customize your workout. After about six weeks, you'll probably feel younger, not older!
6. "It's not possible to look that good {as in before/after pictures or the bodies featured in commercials}."
No one can guarantee how you will look, at a higher level of fitness. But if you're getting healthier and have a good chance of looking a lot better, isn't it worth doing it anyway? Optimum health is the goal, better looks are a pleasant side effect. Think of it that way, and you won't feel so down when a six-pack doesn't appear in a week.
7. "But I don't need to lose any weight."
weight loss is only one element to getting in better shape. There's also: getting stronger, increasing energy and stamina, better posture, staving off "old age", and reducing your risk of certain illnesses. Also, your weight may be redistributed in a more attractive way. Then there's the best reason to work out: fun! If you enjoy your workout, you'll do it more often, and will get more and more fit.
Excuses can be a way of postponing things you know you need to do. So eliminate them, one at a time!
Kathy Hildebrand is a professional writer who is easily bored with her "day job" assignments. So, she researches anything and everything of interest and starts writing. Writing about an extremely wide variety of subjects keeps her skills sharp, and gives her food for thought on future paid writing assignments.
More of her research and articles can be found at www.lasertargeted.com/bowflex and other sites around the internet.
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Grooved Golf Swing Series - How To Deal With Dog-Legs And Other Golfing Tips
Always hit your shots with and not against the dog leg.
On my course there is a dog leg to the right which has to be navigated. To hit a straight ball is to be assured of giving your ball a watery grave.
Yes, there is a pond well within hitting distance for even the not so long hitter, and if the ball does not fade around the corner or dog leg, this is where the ball finishes.
Do you have a hole like this?
Ok, you believe you can cut the corner by hitting your ball over the trees or what ever trouble makes the dog leg.
If your dog leg is from left to right, and you have to fade the ball round the corner, to go over the top, draw your ball.
Vice versa for a right to left dog leg. You can see that by doing this, you will avoid drawing or fading your ball into the trouble that constitutes the bend in the fairway.
When you tee off, have a look at the tee. Is it level, or are there some areas where the ground is not absolutely flat?
Make sure you tee your ball up on a totally flat area of the tee. Pay attention to the small details during a round of golf, and your score will improve as a consequence.
What about in a strong wind? What do you do if you are hitting your tee shot into this? Do you tee your ball lower so that it will fly lower and so under the wind?
Well, the most important thing is to hit your ball with the full club face of your driver. So make sure you tee your ball high enough to do this. A solid hit is much more important than a lower ball trajectory.
A low teed ball will have less run.
Also, if you are not a very experienced golfer, you will be aware that your ball is lower, and you may try to hit down onto it. More drastic is your concern about hitting the ball well and opening your club face at impact to try to do this and get it airborne, resulting in a bad slice.
So, even in a strong wind, dont be in too much of a hurry to change things on the tee to make allowances for this. It is much better to play as usual and take what comes.
It really will be very good and you will not be inconvenienced by the wind nearly as much as you thought you would be.
Then there is the iron from the tee on a par three.
You will see people hitting off the turf. Sometimes they give it a bang to raise a small lump of ground to act like a tee.
Why do this when you can use a tee. The problem with hitting from the ground is that if you get a blade of grass between your club and the ball you may get a flyer.
The ball will go much too far and not stop on landing, but run and run. This is a bit like hitting out of light rough where the same might happen.
No, you are allowed to tee up and this is an advantage. So take this option.
For your short irons, tee up about inch above the ground and for a 6, 5, 4 iron tee up about inch.
You will be assured of a good clean hit with your ball so placed.
Bill Maitland is a thinking, inventive golf guru. He thought out and developed simple techniques and tips which enabled him to lower his handicap from 25 to 18, then from 18 to 15, and finally from 15 to 12. He is a passionate golfer, and delights in helping others with their game should they want his help. To receive a valuable weekly golf tip go to his web site http://www.onlinegolfershandbook.com and subscribe to his free hole In one News Letter. You will be so glad that you did.
Author of On Line Golfers' Hand Book. An e-Book that takes you step by step to being the best golfer that you can possibly be. The basics in great detail. To learn about his tips and simple techniques and order his book, visit his web site
www.onlinegolfershandbook.com
Sign up for his free news letter and receive a wealth of great tips every time. He really tries to tell you everything and leaves nothing out as so often happens. When you sign up, receive his free chapter from his book on bunker play.
Yoga Cl In Melbourne
