IT SEEMS like one of the real buzzwords in the culture in recent years is “Mindfulness”. It probably started with Yoga practioners preaching the need to stay connected to ourselves, focusing on living the moment and avoiding numbing ourselves with negative thoughts, beliefs or harmful habits.
These days Mindfulness conjures up all sorts of connotations and here at the Body Camp in Ibiza we’ve found it a useful concept to teach our clients about the simplicity of life, about stripping our lives down to their essentials and allowing us to connect with everything with see, hear and feel in our world.
Here’s some quick examples – The clouds connect to the sky, the trees connect to the soil, the wildlife connects with its outdoor environment. That is our natural state. Unfortunately humans these days seem to want all sorts of other connections – not just wi-fi, but connections to mindless and often harmful stuff – think celebrity culture and mass consumerism. With that in mind here are seven connection points (none of which are wifi!) that we need to think about to enable harmony and peace in our daily lives:
Connection to ourselves:
How do you connect and talk to yourself in the mind daily? Are you staying positive, being kind to yourself, respecting yourself, reacting in a calm way to what life throws at you and always looking on the bright side of life?
Connection to our beliefs
What are your beliefs about yourself? Do you believe you deserve a fantastic life and realize you are born with only two fears? (falling down and loud noises)
Connection to our values
What do you value and are you living these values in life? Loyalty, honesty, integrity, family, persistance, health are just a few issues that we need to enjoy a good connection with.
Connection to others
Do you treat other people the same way you want to be treated? Do you respect people’s views and not judge them? Do you see the good in others or always look for the bad when you connect and talk with them?
Connection to our body
How are you connecting to your body on a daily basis? Do you walk it? Exercise it? Test it? Stretch it and work it out? Do you help the body maintain and grow muscle tone, to slow down the aging process and speed up metabolism?
Connection to nutrition
Do you eat mindfully or are you an emotional eater (for comfort or to combat boredom, fore example). Do you look for delicious food that combines nutrition also? Or do you just eat in the short-term without worrying about the long-term consequences?
Connection to alcohol and drugs use
Why do use use these? How often do you get involved with them and is this relationship a healthy long-term connection for you?
Think about these seven connections above mindfully……and you will have an even more wonderful life than it appears now!
Rick Parcell, Master Coach, The Body Camp, Ibiza’s Luxury Bootcamp and Fitness Retreat
