Step Seven

The central question in this step is “How do I spend my time and do the choices that I make about this really support my well-being and that of those around me?”

 

It's a challenging question, especially when our lives are so busy, but it seems important to ask it regularly so that we don't just let time slip by in an autopilot state of busyness. Mindful awareness can offer us a deeper connection between how we hold the difficult aspects of our daily life, beliefs, and expectations. Moreover, it can also tune into the way we do activities in our lives as much as what we do. The essential focus of Step Seven is devoted to taking action to bring you to greater awareness of the balance between the depleting and nourishing activities you do, and to help you optimize this balance.

 

To do activities mindfully tends to mean that we're more open to nourishment and less likely to wear ourselves down with the resistance and unconsciousness that often accompany depleting activities. Therefore, at first, a way to start rebalancing your daily life can be to increase the time and gentle effort you devote to nourishing activities instead of depleting ones. Or second, you could try to approach depleting ones in a different way, to practice being fully present with them even if you find them boring or unpleasant.

 

By being present in more of your moments and making mindful decisions about what you really want and need during those times, you can become progressively more accepting of the good and bad points of your day. You will also discover unexpected roads to happiness and fulfillment. Seeing clearly this balance is important because it helps you to explore the connections between your actions and your mood. Deep down we all feel that when we Are unhappy stressed or exhausted there's nothing we can do about it. Taking time to see how you can rebalance your daily life encourages you to see new possibilities to better it. Depleting and negative thoughts are part of the territory of living in a frantic world but that does not mean you have to buy into them.

 

 The Breathing Space helps you reconnect with your awareness and take skillful action. If you ground yourself through meditation, you will then find yourself in a better position to take skillful action because you see your reality with a bit more clarity. Recognize that when your mood is low, you put the action first, then motivation follows. So after you have used the breathing space at times of stress, pause momentarily before taking the action and ask yourself: What do I need for myself right now? How can I best take over myself right now? This is the moment to act mindfully and choose specific actions that include the capacity for enjoyment, help your ability to keep on top of business and your motivation to be mindful.

 

These activities are helpful experiments done, whether you like doing them or not, to rebuild your overall sense of pleasure, control and mindful awareness in the face of shifts in your mood. Taking mindful action helps you to discover which activities most soothe your frantic nerves in moments of crisis. The truth is that tiny changes in what you do can fundamentally alter the way you feel. You can become re-energized, destressed or have your spirits lifted by taking a few baby steps forward. The message of Step Seven is that tiny actions can fundamentally alter your relationship to the world for the better.