Remember to breathe. #inspired5280

Being a solo entrepreneur is hard. Everyone told me it would be and they were right, but not in the ways I thought. For example, it's 7:40am, I had a full nights sleep, I have a cup of black tea and a bowl of oatmeal in front of me and yet I feel like today's pool of motivation has already been drained. Within an instant that rush of anxiety has arrived and I've barely finished opening my computer to start working. 

And then, I remember to breathe. 

In the back of my mind I hear a yoga teacher saying, "Take a deep breath, inhaling through your nose and then let all it all go by exhaling through your mouth."

I repeat this simple, yet powerful exercise a few times and within moments much of the anxiety is gone and I'm ready to re-start my day. 

Minutes later, a close friend walks into the same coffee shop where I'm working. She's preparing for an upcoming yoga class that she'll be teaching and without knowing the anxiety I've just had she shares the following quote with me and says that she's using it for her next class. "Keep coming back to your breath during the day. Just take a moment. This will give your mind a steadiness and your breath a gracefulness. There's so much to let go of: Your nostalgia and your regrets, your fantasies and your fears. What you think you want instead of what is happening right now. Breathe. 

Was it ironic that my friend came to the same coffee shop? I think not. We breathe to stay alive and we have the opportunity to exhale out anything that is not serving us. Letting go of our breath, yes, something we all do without even thinking about it, creates space for the actions, the people, and the opportunities that are naturally waiting to occur in each of our lives. 

When you practice breathing I'm confident that you'll find comfort, ease and a more steady mind to accomplish your goals. We all feel anxiety, periods of overwhelm and discomfort in our lives and simply practicing breathing can dramatically change our ability to show up, be present and work in a meaningful way. So take a moment to inhale, exhale and repeat, it's that easy!