You have a powerful tool to create a better day for yourself. It will allow you to direct your energy towards your goals, and be able to enjoy better results. Learn about how this tip empowers you and builds confidence. Watch Getting in the Flow.
Transcript:
Welcome. I’d like to share a quick mindset tip for creating a better day for yourself. Wouldn’t that be great?
I’m Linda-Ann Stewart, a focus mentor, writer and hypnotherapist. These videos are dedicated to empower you to focus and align your heart with your vision so you can achieve your goals.
Here’s the tip. At the beginning of your day, focus on the best outcome you can imagine. Imagine it in detail, that everything goes your way. I know it sounds simple, right? But this tactic is very effective.
Imagining things going smoothly doesn’t mean you can’t create contingency plans. In Psycho-Cybernetics, Maxwell Maltz says to be aware of the possible problems so you can avoid them. He uses the example of a golfer. That golfer needs to know where the traps and obstacles are, but he doesn’t focus on them. His attention is on his ball and where he wants it to go.
Putting your energy towards bringing about the best outcome reduces your stress, and gives you more resources and creativity to handle any challenges. You act from a place of power and confidence, instead of fear. This means you have a much better chance of enjoying the results you want.
So focus, imagine and expect the best, and keep your eyes on the ball.
Thank you for watching. If you liked this video, please give it a thumbs up. And if you’d like to be notified when I release more videos on mindset, motivation and empowerment, please like my channel and click on the bell. As always, stay focused.
In part 1, we examined what the state of flow is and how it’s beneficial to your life. The more often you enter the flow state, the more you train your brain to enter it at will. This means that you’ll be able to induce it when you need to work on a project, or complete a task. It also means that your days will have less stress, even if there are setbacks. The Universe has more access to guide and inspire you.
Here are 9 ways to build focus and train yourself to get into the state of flow:
Crafting or hobbies. Knitting, jewelry making, woodworking, or any craft or hobby will allow you to slip into the state of flow.
Meditation. This practice strengthens the ability to focus, and promotes a sense of calm.
Affirmations or self-talk. By giving yourself positive reinforcement, you’re able to reduce anxiety and promote motivation.
Relaxation practice. When you relax your body, your mind lets go as well, which allows it to enter the state of flow.
Visualization. Imagining each part of your day going smoothly gives your subconscious mind the direction to begin to work out solutions to problems ahead of time.
Mindfulness. Objectively paying attention to your breathing, scanning your body, being aware of your thoughts and emotions, and not judging them, helps you to be in the moment.
Music. Listening to music, without words, engages the part of your mind that opens to flow.
Reading. Just 10 minutes of reading can lower your heart rate, stress and boost relaxation.
Exercise. A work out, even just walking, releases brain chemicals that counter depression and boosts mood.
Focus, and the state of flow, changes the brain, creating new pathways that improve your attitude and resilience. The more at ease and peaceful you are, the easier it is for you to handle bumps in life. As you enjoy the state of flow more, your life can also flow more smoothly. You’ll be more in tune with Universal Good. Just as water flows around obstacles and rocks, so will you.
Affirmation:
I dedicate myself to practicing the state of flow. Each time I slip into the state of focused awareness, I’m training myself to repeat it whenever I want. When I experience this state more often, my life flows more smoothly. I have all that I need to successfully handle any situation or circumstance that arises. I am more easily guided and directed by Universal Mind.
As a focus mentor, hypnotherapist, and writer, Linda-Ann Stewart motivates women entrepreneurs and small business owners to focus and transform their business through deliberate actions that break through distraction and overwhelm to greater success, wellbeing and prosperity.To boost productivity and reduce overwhelm, register for her FREE guide, Design Your Best Day, at https://www.Linda-AnnStewart.com/guide.html
When you’re in the flow state, or “in the zone,” you’re more productive and creative. Learn how to cultivate that state naturally so your day flows more smoothly. Watch How to Develop the Flow State.
Transcript:
Welcome. Thank you for joining me. In this video, I’d like to give you a tip about how to enter the flow state when you want to work on a task or project.
You know what the flow state is, right? It’s an intensely focused state of mind, where all distractions fade away, and you’re totally involved in your activity. In sports, it’s called “being in the zone.” It’s a peaceful state that enhances productivity and creativity.
The idea I’ll share with you is one I use when starting to write an article, or in any interest I might find a bit challenging.
I’m Linda-Ann Stewart, a focus mentor, writer and hypnotherapist. These videos are dedicated to empower you to focus and align your heart with your vision so you can achieve your goals.
My tip is, at the beginning of an endeavor that takes some effort, you may resist it, and try to distract yourself. This is natural. It’s rare to enter the flow state immediately, so you have to allow it to build. The state takes about 10-20 minutes to develop, if you keep at it.
So, work through the first few minutes of struggle. Don’t multitask or chase any squirrels, no matter how tempting. You could even tell yourself you’ll do something else after focusing on your task for 20 minutes. At the end of that time, you’ll probably find yourself engaged in your activity and want to continue.
Keep at it until you finish, find yourself at a stopping point, or your time is up. Stop when you still feel motivated, so it’s easier to pick it up later. In this way, you’ll train yourself to enter the flow state. This will allow you to get more done, more smoothly. In other words, it’ll flow. And wouldn’t that be nice?
Thank you for watching. If you liked this video, please give it a thumbs up. And if you’d like to be notified when I release more videos on mindset, motivation and empowerment, please like my channel and click on the bell. As always, stay focused.
Recently, I was working on 3 separate projects with deadlines, answering emails, making phone calls, had some unexpected interruptions that had to be handled, and had 2 clients. By the end of the day, I had a throbbing headache, was exhausted, and had forgotten to pay an important bill. That’s the unfortunate result of multitasking.
Back in the late 1990’s, when smartphones came into being, it was believed that they’d allow us to get more done. We were told we could juggle a lot of different tasks at the same time, and get them all done more efficiently. The truth is far different. Not only does productivity suffer from multitasking, but the activity is a major cause of stress.
The Problem With Multitasking
Multitasking isn’t really doing several things at once. The brain can’t focus on more than one thing at a time. You’re actually quickly switching between one task and another. These mental acrobatics increase the stress hormones in your body, while depleting the glucose in your brain. The result is that multitasking clogs your mental pathways, causes stress, tight muscles, fuzzy thinking and exhaustion. Your mind just can’t juggle multiple tasks, and your health, progress and effectiveness suffers.
It’s like being a hamster on a wheel. Although you believe that you’re getting things done, you’re running in place, never getting anywhere. You use up an incredible amount of energy refocusing your attention from composing an email to talking on the phone to answering a question. Something is going to fall through the cracks, like sending the email to the wrong person.
Multitasking Creates Stress
When you’re multitasking, you’re always in emergency mode. You’re braced for the next crisis, even if it’s just the phone ringing. In this state, you’re just reacting to events. Since you don’t have the mental resources to consider new responses, you fall back into old patterns and innovation evaporates.
Because you’re always expecting the next predicament, you find it. “Where attention flows, energy goes.” Your subconscious seeks to provide what you’re focused on, which is stress and crises. The Law of Attraction will draw more problems for you to deal with, as that’s where your attention lies. And your subconscious will ensure you remain stressed and continue to multitask, because you think that’s the solution. It’s a vicious cycle.
If you’re trying to move forward in any part of your life, multitasking and the stress it causes will prevent this. Your brain has engaged all its resources to handle what’s immediate. Even the best juggler can only keep so many balls in the air. And he can’t do much of anything else when he’s at his maximum capacity. All his attention has to be on those balls.
How to Break the Cycle of Multitasking
The solution is to free up some of your attention to be able to make progress and changes. The only way to move forward and start taking back control of your life is to break the habit of multitasking. It won’t be easy, because first you have to accept that it’s not beneficial. Then start by focusing on doing one thing at a time. Set aside an hour or two each day to put all your attention on one project. Turn off any technology that could interrupt you.
Occasionally, you’ll have to multitask. Modern life demands it. But you must minimize it to reduce your stress, and improve your health, progress and personal growth. When you find yourself being overwhelmed by multitasking, take a step back and breathe. Break the cycle.
Once you’ve reduced your stress, you’ll have more creativity and resources to make positive changes in your life. When you communicate your desires to your subconscious and the Law of Attraction, they’ll be clearer and more concentrated. You’ll be able to think things through and be more decisive. By being more focused, you’ll begin making progress on your desires, and in your personal and professional lives.
Affirmation:
I now begin to focus on one thing at a time. This frees my mind to be creative and resourceful. My subconscious and the Law of Attraction receive clear guidance from me about my desires. Because of the energy I’ve released, they now put it to work manifesting my goals. The Universe provides me with all I need for a happy and healthy life.
As a focus mentor, hypnotherapist, and writer, Linda-Ann Stewart motivates women entrepreneurs and small business owners to focus and transform their business through deliberate actions that break through distraction and overwhelm to greater success, wellbeing and prosperity.To boost productivity and reduce overwhelm, register for her FREE guide,Design Your Best Day, at https://www.Linda-AnnStewart.com/guide.html
As a nature photographer, when I compose a photograph, I’m so focused that I’m immune to cold or heat. The same absorption is true when I’m weaving. When I enjoy these hobbies, my mind gets totally involved with them. Time ceases to have meaning and hours can fly by without my noticing. This is called the flow state or, in sports, the zone.
What Is the Flow State?
When the brain is in a flow state you’re intensely focused and only aware of the present moment and activity. It feels almost trance-like and is quite peaceful. In this state, you have a clearer channel to the Universe and are more open to Its good. This generally happens when you’re doing something where you feel interested, and engaged. It’s best if the activity isn’t so challenging that it frustrates or disheartens you.
Although, there have been times when I was struggling with a weaving issue (a pattern wasn’t working), I was still completely enthralled and time got away from me. After a few periods of immersing myself in the issue, I would solve the problem.
However, if the activity is too easy and you’re bored, then your mind starts wandering and you drop out of the flow. This is when you start impeding the stream of Universal good. If you’re working on anything that needs attention, you often start making mistakes and having difficulties. So getting in the state of flow is the sweet spot for a more peaceful and harmonious life.
Why the Flow State Is Beneficial
The benefit to being focused and in the flow is that your productivity, performance, creativity, self-esteem and well being increases, while your stress and anxiety decreases. It even improves your ability to think more positively and be happier. The more often you achieve this sense of focus and flow, the more you build inner resources to handle the challenges of life. These are advantages for work, recreation, and a better quality of life.
Unfortunately, our current habits of being distracted by multitasking, cell phone notifications, and scrolling through social media have undermined our ability to focus and to be in the state of flow. The good news is that you can develop the skill of focus and induce a state of flow that you can then use in all areas of your life.
In Part 2 next month, I’ll share some ways you can cultivate stronger focus and create a sense of flow that you can expand into other areas of your life.
Affirmation:
I’m choosing to be focused and present in my life. I narrow my attention to my current activity and set aside all distractions. This allows me to be calmer, more creative and more productive. As I enter the state of flow, I open a channel to Universal good, which streams through me, to me and into all areas of my life.
As a focus mentor, hypnotherapist, and writer, Linda-Ann Stewart motivates women entrepreneurs and small business owners to focus and transform their business through deliberate actions that break through distraction and overwhelm to greater success, wellbeing and prosperity.To boost productivity and reduce overwhelm, register for her FREE guide, Design Your Best Day, at https://www.Linda-AnnStewart.com/guide.html
Mindful Meditation to Ease the Season’s Stress (or any time of the year)
There’s so much going on in this season that it’s easy to get overwhelmed. But stress doesn’t just happen during the holidays. It happens all during the year. When you practice this 3-step process, you’ll reduce your stress, which allows you to enjoy your life more. Watch Mindful Meditation to Ease the Season’s Stress (or any time of the year).
Transcript:
Welcome to my channel. I don’t know about you, but I tend to get overwhelmed during the holidays. There’s so much to do: find gifts, wrap them, mail some, decorate, write Christmas cards and on and on. All of this is in addition to my normal schedule stresses me out. Can you relate?
Stress like this doesn’t just happen during the holidays, right? Stress happens any time you have a change to your routine. That can be any time of the year.
In this video, I’d like to lead you though a short meditation to unwind. This allows you to be able to handle the adjustments and additions to your life beyond what you normally deal with.
I’m Linda-Ann Stewart, a focus mentor, writer and hypnotherapist. These videos are dedicated to empower you to focus and align your heart with your vision so you can achieve your goals.
When you start to feel stressed, you aren’t as efficient or able to think as clearly. I start feeling like I’m bouncing off all four walls at the same time and trying to do everything at once. And that just wastes energy and creates more craziness, right?
I’d like to lead you through this short meditation with a 3 step process to help calm you, bringing you back into the present, instead of trying to do weeks of activities in one day.
If you’d like, close your eyes.
First: Take three, mindful, deep breaths. 1: Inhale to the count of 4, exhale to the count of 8. 2: Inhale, exhale. 3: Inhale, exhale. This is a natural tranquilizer and will help you calm your nervous system down.
Second: Scan your body to determine if there’s anywhere you’re feeling tense. If there is, relax those muscles, You can scan from your head to your toes, or from your toes to your head. But anywhere you feel tense, relax that area.
This will also help to quiet your mind, and ground you in the now. You’ll be able to think more clearly and make better decisions.
Third: Use your imagination to imagine that all of your tasks are done easily and smoothly. Imagine that they’re all done in plenty of time to allow you to enjoy your celebrations with friends and loved ones.
Open your eyes.
Being calmer and more relaxed means you’ll be able to accomplish more. In addition, you’ll conserve your energy to get through the holidays with your sanity intact. And that will allow you to have more fun with your loved ones, won’t it? And you can use this guided meditation, these 3 steps, at any time of the year.
I hope you have a happy and harmonious holiday season! Thank you for watching. If you liked this video, please give it a thumbs up. And if you’d like to be notified when I release more videos on mindset, motivation and empowerment, please like my channel and click on the bell. As always, stay focused.
This time of year is filled with chaos and overwhelm. Trying to get holiday preparations accomplished, attending gatherings, while balancing your other responsibilities is a challenge. Unfortunately, this season of love and joy often creates issues of stress and anxiety. It’s common for me to start having nightmares in August that it’s Christmas morning and nothing’s done.
What Mindfulness Is
This season inspires us to love, be kind, compassionate, and be of good cheer, towards others, and ourselves, as well. When you’re mindful of your own welfare, you can appreciate the season more. Mindfulness means that you’re focusing on what’s going on only in the present, so all the future tasks aren’t crashing into you.
If you start worrying about the future and what still needs to be done, bring your attention back to the present moment. By being mindful during the holiday rush, you’re better able to maintain your peace of mind. And you’ll remain more open to the Universal flow of good.
Being Mindful
To stay mindful, give yourself permission to make your mental and physical health a priority. When you’re calm, you can accomplish more and have more energy to share with others. So set your intention to pay attention to your needs.
Don’t overcommit yourself to social events.
Reserve your energy for what’s most important to you.
Set reasonable expectations for yourself.
Instead of thinking about everything that you want to get done, focus on what you can do today.
If you start getting anxious, remember that everything will get done in Divine Time. It always does. And if it doesn’t get done, then it’s not worth sacrificing your wellbeing and ability to enjoy festivities with your friends and family. This time of year is about creating cherished memories and spreading good will towards all. Have a joyous holiday season!
Affirmation:
I grant myself the gift of greater peace and harmony this season. When I begin to feel overwhelmed, I bring my attention back to what I can do this moment. Moment by moment, I glide through this holiday season. The Universe guides all my actions. Everything gets done in Divine Time and with Divine Order.
As a focus mentor, hypnotherapist, and writer, Linda-Ann Stewart motivates women entrepreneurs and small business owners to focus and transform their business through deliberate actions that break through distraction and overwhelm to greater success, wellbeing and prosperity.To boost productivity and reduce overwhelm, register for her FREE guide, Design Your Best Day, at https://www.Linda-AnnStewart.com/guide.html
After you’ve moved on from a situation, relationship or even change a mindset, have you ever felt melancholy or even a bit of emptiness? If so, you’re not alone. It’s a normal response, even when it’s a change you really wanted. Learn some of the reason’s why you feel sad, and how you can move through it. Watch Recognizing the Melancholy of Moving On.
Transcript:
Welcome. After you’ve moved on from a situation, relationship or even changed a mindset, have you ever felt a bit of melancholy or emptiness? If so, you’re not alone. It’s a normal response, even when it’s a change you really wanted. In this video, I’d like to share a way to look at that sadness that may help you through it.
I’m Linda-Ann Stewart, a focus mentor, writer and hypnotherapist. These videos are dedicated to empower you to focus and align your heart with your vision so you can achieve your goals.
Whenever you let go of something, whether it’s something you want out of your life, or not, it’s natural to grieve its passing. This could be a relationship that has died, a goal that you’ve outgrown, or a mindset that no longer serves you. Even if the “thing” is something you are happy to have out of your life, it’s normal for there to be some sadness.
Some reasons for the sadness could be that:
You may have some wistfulness for the familiar.
You may miss the good times, or the benefits, you experienced.
You may be grieving that the promise, or the dream of the situation or relationship, is unfulfilled.
You may regret the change you have to undergo as a result of moving on.
My mindset tip is, don’t try to deny or ignore the sadness. Let it flow through you, as long as it doesn’t overwhelm you. Resisting it will just make it last longer. By acknowledging the nostalgia, it will begin to ease and you can truly move on.
This closing of that door empowers you to open a new one. And you can use that energy to focus on your present and future, having faith that you’ll now create a more satisfying life. Thank you for watching. If you liked this video, please give it a thumbs up. And if you’d like to be notified when I release more videos on mindset, motivation and empowerment, please like my channel and click on the bell. As always, stay focused.
Have you ever stayed in a relationship, a job, a friendship, or a residence too long, hoping that things would improve? I have done all of the above. Many times, though, the situation never improves and actually gets worse. Someone once said “Life leaves clues.” Life drops hints that you’ve learned as much in that experience as you can, and it’s time to move on. Feeling constricted, trapped or suffocated are signals that you need to expand. And sometimes that means leaving the circumstances causing these feelings.
Is It Time to Let Go?
Leaving a condition that is no longer serving you is different from running from a difficult situation in an attempt to avoid the mental/emotional cause of it. When a person tries to escape from what is uncomfortable, without addressing the reason they attracted it in the first place, they tend to fall into a similar situation or worse.
But when you’ve outgrown a situation, that situation itself tries to push you out. It begins to leave you. You might get fired, or not get the promotion you expected. Or the relationship deteriorates. If you’re like me, and don’t easily embrace change, you might tend to hold tightly onto the familiar. Even though you become more and more uncomfortable, and circumstances are trying to push you out of the door, you resist leaving.
Recognize the Clues
I once had a friend with whom I no longer had anything in common. Whenever we were together, there was tension in the air. I wanted to continue the relationship, hoping it would improve, even though we’d grown in different directions. The tension increased until she finally found an excuse to end the friendship.
In retrospect, I realized that the friendship had actually been over for months. The clues for me were the tension, and how she avoided talking to me. For awhile, I was hurt. Now, years later, I’m grateful to her. She recognized, whether consciously or unconsciously, that we’d gone as far down that road together as we could.
The challenge is to read the clues correctly. When you’re feeling like Life is pushing you out of a situation that you’re holding onto, it’s time to make the change. The Universe undoubtedly has something better in Mind for you. But you have to be willing to release the old before the new condition can manifest.
Affirmation:
Since I am always Divinely Guided, I correctly read the clues that Life leaves for me. I recognize the signs that tell me that it’s time to move on. When I realize that I’ve outgrown a situation, I gracefully release the old conditions. I know that the Universe has something wonderful in store for me. I bless the old situation and gratefully accept the new.
As a focus mentor, hypnotherapist, and writer, Linda-Ann Stewart motivates women entrepreneurs and small business owners to focus and transform their business through deliberate actions that break through distraction and overwhelm to greater success, wellbeing and prosperity.To boost productivity and reduce overwhelm, register for her FREE guide, Design Your Best Day, at https://www.Linda-AnnStewart.com/guide.html
Sometimes, nothing you do allows you to make progress. It seems like you’re beating your head against a brick wall. In this video, you’ll find a mindset shift, 4 tips of what to do when you’re feeling blocked, and a suggestion of what to do when nothing works. Please watch Is It Time to Say “Next?”
Transcript:
Welcome all. I don’t know about you, but there are times when I’m working on an article and it simply won’t come together. For you, the problem might be a sales prospect you can’t connect with, or you’re trying to lose weight, or you have a difficult relationship. The goal or situation just isn’t working for you, as it is. I’d like to share some tips on what to do when it seems you’re beating your head against a brick wall.
I’m Linda-Ann Stewart, a focus mentor, writer and hypnotherapist. These videos are dedicated to empower you to focus and align your heart with your vision so you can achieve your goals.
The first thing to recognize is that you can’t be successful 100% of the time, whether in sales, habit change, relationships or goals. Hitting a baseball a third of the time is considered good for baseball players. Edison experimented with 100’s of materials for thefilament of the electric bulb before he found one that worked. He said, “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” Every person who has ever attempted anything has failed to begin with.
The reasons may be that you need more preparation or knowledge, it’s not the right person or place for you, you need a new approach or something else. Many times, it’s a numbers game, like with Edison’s filament.
My scientist father told me, “You only fail when quit trying.” Here are some tips for when you’re feeling blocked.
Take a break. Let your subconscious mind mull over the problem.
Take what you can learn from the issue, and try again.
Come at the problem from a different direction.
Dig for more information or learn more skills that might help you.
But there are going to be times when you reach a dead end and nothing works. At that point, it’s time to walk away and choose something else. That’s what I’ll do when I get nowhere with a subject I’m writing about. I let it go and pick another topic. The same can be true of any situation you encounter that’s not resolving.
Just because you abandon a circumstance that’s not working doesn’t mean you failed. It just means that you’ve learned what didn’t work, like Edison. Maybe it’s time to seek a new path or opportunity. Don’t give up trying. Just change the conditions, change the situation. When all else fails, it may be time to simply say, “next,” and move on to something that does work. Thank you for watching. If you liked this video, please give it a thumbs up. And if you’d like to be notified when I release more videos on mindset, motivation and empowerment, please like my channel and click on the bell. As always, stay focused.
