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slowing down

Slow Down to Be Better

November 29, 2021 by Jim Peacock Leave a Comment

My biggest mistakes have come when I am in a hurry. As an ENFP (Myers-My biggest mistakes have come when I am in a hurry. As an ENFP (Myers-Briggs definition is a golden retriever  in a room with 5 tennis balls) I have had a lifetime of “open mouth, insert foot” episodes. What I have learned is that I need to slow down.  It seems to me that the holidays are a great time for us all to remember to slow down and here are my tips to help you get started.

Image by Katrin B. from Pixabay

There is a part of me that always feels like I can do more. When I was a high school counselor I felt that seeing more students was the way to do my job. But eventually I figured out that I had to block out an hour of my calendar for no students. By slowing down the flow of students, I was able to take better control of my day. 

Slow Down Tip #1

Look at your day and make sure you are taking time to slow down and take care of yourself so that you can serve others more effectively.

Slowing down is more than just time management, it is about self-care. I’ve written about and interviewed people on mindfulness many times, so I won’t spend a lot of time on it today. Just know that 10-15 minute breaks can refuel your mind and body allowing you to  provide better service to everyone you meet.

Slow Down Tip #2

Set a timer if you have to, or block out some time in your day to stop and take 4 deep breaths, or listen to a guided mindfulness app like Calm or Insight Timer. Need some wonderful calming music? Check out this YouTube channel.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfYjEkaN-1s

(Image by John Hain from Pixabay)

I try to take a daylong tech-free retreat once a month. I know this is not for everyone, but I challenge you to embrace the idea that turning off your social media feed and phone for even a few hours can be quite freeing. Especially when you realize you didn’t really miss anything too important.

Slow Down Tip #3

Look at your calendar and start by blocking off 2-4 hours of time to turn off social media and your phone, or better yet all your technology. Use this time to read, reflect, plan, meditate, or whatever you want. 

With the holiday season upon us, this is a great time to remember to slow down and be calm with yourself. Trust me, you deserve it and will be a better person for it.

Need more proof about slowing down?

Check out these two TedTalks.

What else can you do to slow down?

Note: Featured Image of Giant tortoise by Alexas_Fotos / 21623 images


Jim Peacock is the Principal at Peak-Careers Consulting and writes a weekly email for career practitioners. Peak-Careers offers discussion-based online seminars for career practitioners focused on meeting continuing education needs for CCSP, GCDF and BCC certified professionals as well as workshops for career practitioners and individual career coaching.

He is the author of A Field Guide for Career Practitioners: Helping Your Clients Create Their Next Move and The Adventure of Finding Me in New Zealand. He is also the recipient of the 2020 Kenneth C. Hoyt Award from the National Career Development Association and the Mid-Atlantic Career Counseling Association’s Professional Contribution’s Award in 2020.

Sign up here to receive my  TOP 10 TIPS WHEN WORKING WITH AN UNDECIDED PERSON.  You will also receive the career practitioner’s weekly email on a variety of career topics, industry news, interesting events, and more. 

Filed Under: Career Tagged With: mindfulness, slow down, slowing down

Stressed Out? I know I am

March 9, 2020 by Jim Peacock 2 Comments

stressed out
——-Photo courtesy of Pixabay. johnhain

There is so much to be stressed out about these days, from the uncertainty of politics, to our daily To Do list, worrying about our kids, worrying about our parents, and much more. In order to be the best career coach or career service provider as possible, we need to figure out how to reduce our own stress first.

I think Super Tuesday made me nervous, along with all the talk about the COVID-19 this past week.

So what can we do when we are stressed out?

Here are six (6) things I do when I am feeling stressed out.

  1. Make a “To Do” list of everything I need to do in the upcoming weeks…this is long. Then at the end of each day, I create a “To Do” list for the next workday with only three (3) things on it. What are THE  most important things I need to do? Then I start my day with #1. I don’t check emails. I don’t login to social media. I get 1 or 2 of these done before I start getting distracted.
  2. I always have my radio on when I am driving, often listening to Public Radio news. Sometimes this is what is causing me stress though. So I will occasionally turn off the radio or put on classical music…no words, just beautiful soothing music.
  3. Walk away from technology throughout your day. I set a timer for 45 minutes so I will get up and move a bit. A recent Daniel Pink, Pinkcast, (I love his brief videos) showed a 20-20-20 method. Every 20 minutes, stop looking at the computer and look at least 20 feet away at something, for 20 seconds. It’s good for your eyes but also good for your mind to take a break from the computer screen.
  4. Meditation breaks for me are 2:30pm daily. I have the Calm App on my phone set to remind me to stop and take a 20-25 minute meditation break. I have a number of meditations either recorded or saved on my phone. There are days it simply can not happen, but most days, I take this break and I am better for it. More energized, calmer, and more focused.
  5. When I am really feeling like lunch is going to be “thrown down as fast as possible or eaten while I keep working” these are the days that I will often eat my lunch “mindfully”. Take 10 minutes and focus. What I mean by that is, I do not read, I do not watch t.v., I do not look at my computer, I just eat my lunch, one bite at a time and look out the window…take a bite and set the fork down or the sandwich down. This is simply focusing and is amazingly relaxing. Try it sometime.
  6. Start your day doing something slow. I have been doing Qi Gong or going for a walk before my breakfast everyday. You can slow down by journaling, or reading five pages in a book, or just sit for 5 minutes. But do NOT start your day “on screech.”

Bonus stress relief activity for me: When I get really upset about something politically that I read, I will take the time to email my state’s Senators and Representatives. It helps me feel like I am actually doing something. It’s minor, but I do think the people we elected need to know how we feel and it does help me reduce stress a little bit by putting it into writing.

I also took the Greater Good stress test and it turns out I came back with an “average amount of stress.” Not sure if this makes me feel that much better but I guess it’s good to know. Take the Greater Good Stress Test

If you have gone this far 🙂 you should also read my blog Three Reasons to Practice Mindfulness

Jim Peacock is the Principal at Peak-Careers Consulting and writes a weekly email for career practitioners. Peak-Careers offers discussion-based online seminars for career practitioners focused on meeting continuing education needs for CCSP, GCDF and BCC certified professionals as well as workshops for career practitioners and individual career coaching. He is the author of A Field Guide for Career Practitioners: Helping Your Clients Create Their Next Move

Sign up here to receive my  TOP 10 TIPS WHEN WORKING WITH AN UNDECIDED PERSON.  You will also receive the career practitioners weekly email on a variety of career topics, industry news, interesting events, and more. 

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Filed Under: Career Tagged With: mindfulness, slowing down, stressed, stressed out

INTERVIEW: What is Mindfulness and Why Should Career Practitioners Care?

March 28, 2019 by Jim Peacock Leave a Comment

My guests today are….well me, Jim Peacock 🙂 and Sabrina Woods, Holistic Career / Life Coach and we will explore mindfulness and career practitioners embracing it in their practice.

My good friend Bob McIntosh interviews me and Sabrina on Using Mindfulness to Impact our Wellbeing & That of Our Clients.

Bob McIntosh, SCPRW is a career trainer and coach and LinkedIn authority and asked if he could interview us as he wanted to learn more about mindfulness.

WHAT WE WILL EXPLORE

  • What is mindfulness and why is it so important to practice it?
  • How do you practice mindfulness and share your experience with your clients?
  • What benefits do you derive from mindfulness, and how do you pass the benefits on to your clients?


mindfulness and career practitioners

Watch video now

Read more blogs on mindfulness.

FULL BIO’s

SABRINA WOODS is a Holistic Career / Life Coach & Linkedin Trainer with 15+ years’ in the career services field at universities including Harvard, Northeastern and the University of London. Her joy comes from tapping holistic and mindfulness-based practices while helping people with career transitions. Sabrina also facilitates workshops and train-the-trainer sessions ranging from the Myers Briggs to Mindfulness to Networking. Her workshops combine her insights, enthusiasm and infectious energy. Sessions have been taught in the US, UK and Middle East. For more info: www.sabrina-woods.com.

BOB McINTOSH, CPRW is a career trainer and coach who leads more than 15 job-search workshops at an urban career center, as well counsels job seekers on every aspect of the job search. His colleagues rely on Bob to critique their clients’ LinkedIn profiles and conduct mock interviews. In addition, Bob has gained a reputation as a LinkedIn authority in the community, where he leads workshops for non-profit and for-profit organizations. Job seekers from across the state attend Bob’s LinkedIn workshops. His greatest pleasure is helping people find rewarding careers in a competitive job market. For enjoyment, he blogs at Things Career Related and contributes to Recruiter.com

Jim Peacock is the Principal at Peak-Careers Consulting and writes a weekly email for career practitioners. Peak-Careers offers discussion-based online seminars for career practitioners focused on meeting continuing education needs for CCSP, GCDF and BCC certified professionals as well as workshops for career practitioners and individual career coaching.

He is the author of A Field Guide for Career Practitioners: Helping Your Clients Create Their Next Move and the recipient of the 2020 Kenneth C. Hoyt Award from the National Career Development Association.

Sign up here to receive my  TOP 10 TIPS WHEN WORKING WITH AN UNDECIDED PERSON.  You will also receive the career practitioner’s weekly email on a variety of career topics, industry news, interesting events, and more. 

Filed Under: Interviews Tagged With: mindfulness, reflection, slowing down

INTERVIEW: Taking Retreats to Slow Down

November 20, 2018 by Jim Peacock Leave a Comment

  • How many things are on your “to do” list today?
  • How many times/day do you check your email and social media accounts?
  • Get control over your day again by choosing 3 things to do each day that “must get done” and then look at your list of 25 things.
  • Check your email 3 times/day…bunch them up so you are not chasing emails all the time.

And…consider taking a day, or a half day, retreat to slow down and rediscover your creativity.

 
Listen to this Peak-Careers Interview with three of us who have been doing retreats for a while now and learn:
  • What our typical “retreat” looks like
  • What motivated us to start doing them
  • What the benefits of doing them can be
  • and some advice & tips for getting started
tech free retreat

Interested in this topic? See my blogs on mindfulness

 

Jim Peacock is the Principal at Peak-Careers Consulting and writes a monthly newsletter for career practitioners. Peak-Careers offers discussion-based online seminars for career practitioners focused on meeting continuing education needs for CCSP, GCDF and BCC certified professionals as well as workshops for career practitioners and individual career coaching.

Sign up here to receive my  TOP 10 TIPS WHEN WORKING WITH AN UNDECIDED PERSON.  You can also receive the career practitioners newsletter which includes a variety of career topics, industry news, interesting events, and more.

Peak Careers - Professional Development for Careers

Filed Under: Interviews Tagged With: focus, meditation, mindfulness, reflection, retreat, slowing down, tech free, tech free retreat

3 Reasons to Practice Mindfulness at Work

June 12, 2017 by Jim Peacock 2 Comments

Sunrise over Honolulu

In our ever-busy world that we live in, it is important that we find ways to slow ourselves down as a way to better serve ourselves and clients. Our ability to manage the tsunami of information coming into us daily and hourly is inversely linked to the quality of services we provide. If we are constantly chasing emails, tweets, and other social media messages, we are not taking the time to slow down and “think”.  Yes, just “think” instead of reacting.

“Mindfulness is deliberately paying full attention to what is happening around you and within you – in your body, heart, and mind. Mindfulness is awareness without criticism or judgement.”                        

From Jan Chozen Bays, Author of  How To Train a Wild Elephant: And Other Adventures in Mindfulness

Here are three reasons why you should practice mindfulness as a career practitioner.

[Read more…] about 3 Reasons to Practice Mindfulness at Work

Filed Under: Career Tagged With: focus, less is best, mindfulness, reflection, slowing down

Journaling: Taking ‘Fuzzy Thinking’ to Concrete Ideas in Career Development

May 8, 2017 by Jim Peacock Leave a Comment

As a career coach/counselor, do you ask  your clients to journal? I do occasionally because I believe the process of taking ideas out of their heads and putting them on paper can be a very powerful activity.

“A goal not written is only a wish.” I believe this is true in the career development process…write it down and think it through.

Personally I try to journal every day, first thing in the morning. I choose to free-style it and just write about what is important to me that day. It clarifies the ideas in my head and takes them from fuzzy thinking to something concrete. I also think it helps to journal on a regular schedule so it becomes part of your day.

[Read more…] about Journaling: Taking ‘Fuzzy Thinking’ to Concrete Ideas in Career Development

Filed Under: Career Tagged With: focus, instincts, intentional serendipity, journal, journaling, reflection, slowing down, trusting your hunches, trusting your instincts

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