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| Making some me-time everyday is good for mental well-being |
“Sir, how can you be smiling and
stay calm even in the most stressful situations? Is spirituality the key to
your positive attitude?”. A colleague asked me this question recently. Yes, I
do believe in spirituality but my understanding of this word may vary from the
popular definition of spirituality.
According to me, spirituality is nothing but a ritual of keeping the spirit in
you alive. The spirit to fight challenges, overcome stressful situations,
foster positive attitude and most importantly the spirit to live life honestly
by being true to your self is spirituality. This is no rocket science and it’s
certainly not something that I have learnt from a mystic or a swami. I take a
couple of minutes break everyday to spend time with myself. A little bit of
introspection and observation helps me in recognizing the negative forces and situation
around me. Over the years, I have learnt that a clear mind can quickly decipher
the bad from the good whereas a cluttered mind can give rise to fear, hatred,
jealousy etc.
“Where is your fighting spirit
gone?” you may have heard this dialogue in a movie or read it somewhere. But
how many of us ask ourselves this question when a difficult situation arises in
our lives? Buckling under pressure and allowing negative attitude to grow in
your mind can dampen the ‘fighter spirit’ in you but sadly this is a trend that
is spreading like wildfire across all age groups today. Working professionals
are stressed out
and so are children who feel tensed in their pursuit of academic excellence. I
am not imploring to practice spirituality but instead just take a few minutes
break everyday and observe.
You will also become aware to the effect people have on you just by monitoring
your thoughts. We should be conscious of our own reaction when we are around
people. For instance, when we are with one person we may find there is a high
degree of comfort and positive vibes, but at the same time with some one else,
we may find ourselves thinking how difficult things or how difficult life is or
so to say surfacing of negative thoughts. Therefore it is always suggested that
we must closely scrutinize our train of thoughts when we are with people and
more so when we spend time alone. It’s prudent to be conscious and keep our
mind strong to enjoy the serenity of feeling and emotion.
Looking at the world around you
with an uncluttered mind can help you view and absorb things with precision. But
if negative thoughts are overriding your mind then it can easily defeat the ‘fighting
spirit’ in you. Our mind should be strong and in shipshape; only then we can
emerge victorious even in the most stressful times. Observe, Absorb and
Introspect in an unbiased way and slowly you will pave your way towards
clarity. This is my daily ritual to keep the ‘spirit’ in me alive and kicking!
This mantra has worked for me and through this blog I hope to pass it on to all
my well wishers and detractors (if any)!
