Choose Alignment Over Effort

Do you feel like you try and you try and you try...and yet you barely seem to be treading water? You feel that frustration and everything keeps getting harder.

In our culture, effort is lauded and celebrated. In the workplace we often hear people making sure everyone knows they were working this weekend, or at 3am, or on vacation. "Working hard" is considered necessary to get what you want and "no pain no gain" is considered sage advice.

But that isn't how things have to work. We can choose whether to engage in this hustle or if we want to try aligning instead. But what do we align to and how do we do this?

The key here it to make this as easy as possible. What we want to align to is feeling good. Because when we feel good, things actually get easier. We have better cognitive function, we look for solutions rather than blocks, and moves us / keeps us in our parasympathetic nervous system.

This isn't just a platitude of being healthy. This is science.

So what are quick ways to move yourself into alignment and work with ease instead of effort?

A peaceful meditation space designed for relaxation and mindfulness.

5 Minute Ways to Align and Get More Done with Less

1. Take a Dance Break: This is first for a reason: it is pure magic (and science). Step away for 5 minutes and put on a favorite, upbeat song. Then, you just dance. Sing if you want to. Don't worry about "dancing," just move your body as much as you can without worrying about what you look or sound like. When the song(s) end, stop, feel the change in your body and really soak that in. Even 5 minutes of this releases dopamine and endorphins. Any song works for this! Some of favorite songs for this are "Dance Monkey" by the Tones and I, "Everything's Always Working Out For Me" by Amanda Sikoral, and, when I am feeling ragey "CInderella Snapped."

2. Embody a Good Memory: Choose a good memory where you felt good that you can easily remember. Close your eyes. Imagine that moment using all of your senses. Really immerse yourself in it. Use your imagination to feel what you were wearing at the time against your skin. Feel your feet on the ground or the chair beneath you. Do you feel wind or sunlight? What do you hear? See? Smell? Test? Really let yourself exist inside that memory (instead of thinking it) and let yourself feel the emotions you did at the time. Open your eyes, take a breath, and allow yourself to keep that feeling going.

3. Laugh: Laughter is POWERFUL!! It lowers your stress hormones, releases dopamine and endorphins, relaxes your muscles and gets more oxygen to your body. Keep a list of videos that make you laugh. Maybe its a specific TikTok collection you keep, or a specific scene from a comedy special, movie or tv show. Whatever will get you laughing.

Try these out and release your need to keep "trying!" You can do them reactively, when you catch yourself in effort, but you also can do these regularly to keep yourself feel good regularly. As you stay aligned and feeling good, notice how your life gets easier and easier.