How to Step into Peak Performance & Wellbeing - not one at the expense of the other!

So much time and joy is sucked up by the noisy part of your brain that sabotages you. This often comes as a loud inner critic. When you listen to this negative #selftalk, it can often make you feel alone, disconnected and unworthy.

This drains your energy, stops you living fully, and holds you back from being your best self.

It’s exhausting, and completely unncecessary.

When you quieten this, you get to access the wiser part of your brain that knows you are already worthy, whole and connected.

This is the essence of who you are.

You are not your “clouds” of thoughts, ego or circumstance. You are the blue-sky consciousness experiencing them. And it is huge, vast and beautiful. 

And when you learn to tap into this, you get to access an infinite source of guidance, love, #resourcefulness , #creativity and #perspective . Anytime and anywhere. In the space of seconds.

This is a learned behavior and not as hard as you think. I promise you.

It’s a case of learning how to quiet your mind, and switch to the part of your brain that serves you.

So HOW do you do that?

There are many different ways, but most of them leverage the same one thing.

The body.

Unlike our mind which is often stuck in the replays and regrets of the past, or in the have-to’s and what-if fictions of the future - our body only ever exists in the present moment.

You will know this if you’ve ever stubbed your toe, or been transported by the sight of a breath-taking sunset.

By tapping into the physical sensations of the body (breath, sight, taste, touch, smell, hearing), you switch off the ongoing internal narrative circuitry, and allow your prefrontal cortex (PFC)  to come online. This is the part of your brain that sits just behind your temple and that starts developing when you’re about 12 years-old and doesn’t stop until you’re about 21. It is the part of your brain that is all about perspective, creativity, resourcefulness, compassion and awareness.

This is why walks in the park, exercise, meditation and yoga are so restorative. And why life runs so much more smoothly after a good holiday. It’s because we allow ourselves the time to get out of our heads, and into our bodies - inhabiting the present moment.

My favorite way to do this is meditation. But no matter how zen I feel on the mat, the effects do not always last the day, and when confronted with, for example, an angry teenage daughter, I need something easy and snackable that I can use to switch me into the right state of mind if I’m getting triggered, and when pulling out the meditation mat in the moment may not be an option.

I love the #PositiveIntelligence approach for this. Using short bursts of #MentalFitness "reps" throughout the day, you train your mind to switch between #Saboteur and #Sage brain at will by tapping into your bodily senses (e.g. using breath, hearing, sight, taste, touch or tactile sensations). It also allows you to become aware of, and step out of your programs of self-sabotage, into a more positive and constructive state of mind instead, by leveraging your “Sage” superpowers, such as compassion, curiosity, creativity, perspective and laser-focussed action. 

Find out what method works best for you. Exercise, meditation, yoga, nature, singing, dancing. Or a combination of all the above.

But believe me when I say, no-one knows you better than you do, or can give you better advice. It's just a case of learning how to quiet your mind to be able to hear it.

And when you do this, everything changes.

You experience peace of mind, #confidence, self-trust, ease and flow. You get to handle whatever life throws at you more positively and constructively, without the stress.

You step into peak performance AND wellbeing – knowing that they are in fact part of the same thing, and not two opposing forces.