I'm sure YMMV, but I'll relay one of the best bits of advice that I ever got. My employer had a "health day" where they brought in some health professionals and let all of us go and talk to them throughout the day (trainer, chiropractor, psychiatrist, acupuncturist, etc).
The psychiatrist asked some basic questions about my family, my daily routine, and I mentioned a very similar comment as the one that you've posed. He suggested getting a small notebook that can fit in my pocket and a pen. When I get on the train after work (live in NJ, work in NY), just take out the pad of paper, and start writing, stream-of-conciousness, every single thing that's in my head. From things that worry me, to things I want to do, problems I've had at work, everything. And then once I'm done, tear out the piece of paper and throw it away.
I was somewhat skeptical, but I gave it a shot ... and you know what? I do find that when I do that I am very much more relaxed later on in the evening when I get home. According to him, just the act of writing down your thoughts helps your brain process them much better. Once you've gone through the act of putting them on paper (I assume it'd probably work the same if you talked to someone similarly) your brain doesn't have to sit there and churn on it. And because you've thrown the piece of paper away you don't have to worry about holding back in case someone else finds it and reads it at some point.
This gives me the headspace to do what I want when I get home, or on the weekend ... whether that's to be with my family, or even work on side projects. One minor note, I don't actually use a pen and paper. I simply open a new word doc on my phone, type away, and then close the doc without saving.
Hey - thanks this is awesome advice. I've tried it today and actually enjoyed it. It's made it easier to get clarity on my thoughts and led to some useful ideas
Glad you enjoyed it :) I was actually looking for this video back when I posted this reply but couldn't find it. Just found it though ... this is a great talk at Google by Chade-Meng Tan, I highly encourage you to give it a watch:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8fcqrNO7so
In particular, the part about training for mindfulness has also been extremely helpful for me. I'm really starting to believe his assertion that learning to calm your mind can be trained. I tend to close my eyes and focus on breathing while I'm on the train after I finish the stream-of-consciousness exercise from above; this might sound silly, but I even notice that the muscles in my face are more relaxed after I do these things :)
Comments
I'm sure YMMV, but I'll relay one of the best bits of advice that I ever got. My employer had a "health day" where they brought in some health professionals and let all of us go and talk to them throughout the day (trainer, chiropractor, psychiatrist, acupuncturist, etc).
The psychiatrist asked some basic questions about my family, my daily routine, and I mentioned a very similar comment as the one that you've posed. He suggested getting a small notebook that can fit in my pocket and a pen. When I get on the train after work (live in NJ, work in NY), just take out the pad of paper, and start writing, stream-of-conciousness, every single thing that's in my head. From things that worry me, to things I want to do, problems I've had at work, everything. And then once I'm done, tear out the piece of paper and throw it away.
I was somewhat skeptical, but I gave it a shot ... and you know what? I do find that when I do that I am very much more relaxed later on in the evening when I get home. According to him, just the act of writing down your thoughts helps your brain process them much better. Once you've gone through the act of putting them on paper (I assume it'd probably work the same if you talked to someone similarly) your brain doesn't have to sit there and churn on it. And because you've thrown the piece of paper away you don't have to worry about holding back in case someone else finds it and reads it at some point.
This gives me the headspace to do what I want when I get home, or on the weekend ... whether that's to be with my family, or even work on side projects. One minor note, I don't actually use a pen and paper. I simply open a new word doc on my phone, type away, and then close the doc without saving.
Give it a shot :)
Hey - thanks this is awesome advice. I've tried it today and actually enjoyed it. It's made it easier to get clarity on my thoughts and led to some useful ideas
Glad you enjoyed it :) I was actually looking for this video back when I posted this reply but couldn't find it. Just found it though ... this is a great talk at Google by Chade-Meng Tan, I highly encourage you to give it a watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8fcqrNO7so
In particular, the part about training for mindfulness has also been extremely helpful for me. I'm really starting to believe his assertion that learning to calm your mind can be trained. I tend to close my eyes and focus on breathing while I'm on the train after I finish the stream-of-consciousness exercise from above; this might sound silly, but I even notice that the muscles in my face are more relaxed after I do these things :)