Authentic Happiness: the Road Less Travelled

I had an opportunity to travel and spend a week in one of the hottest climates of North America for a music festival that I knew would equally excite and drain me physically and emotionally. 
Before departing, I could already anticipate all these frivolous anxieties... 

• "What if I run out of money?"

• "What if I have a bad time?"

• "What if I get sick?"

• "What if I get sick of the people I travel with?

Luckily, none of the aforementioned occurred, but it shouldn't really be called luck that we are blessed with.

Most of us in North American society are blessed with the opportunity and the time to travel, take time off, disconnect, and reconnect with those kinships that we spend time with on the road, yet 75% of us barely tap into the two factors - disconnecting and reconnecting with those around us. 

Helicopter tour shot over Miami, 2018.

If you spend so much time trivializing the situation of whom that you are going to meet up with, matching up your day-to-day planned itinerary, and are so focused on living behind your camera screen - rather than focusing on working on building the respect out of those you are currently on the road with - what tone will you set for the entirety of your trip?

“If we open our hearts, not to the expectation that we need to meet a certain standard, but have an open communication about what our needs are by means of where we may be lacking in, and asking the energy of those trusted around us to help and guide us, the world can transformatively pave a path, tile by tile in your every waking step. ”

— EW

EXPECTATIONS vs. REALITY

Everyone has their own definition of 'fun' and the 'ideal adventure,' that is in no way, limited to what your inner child believes or how unattached it may be to any branded experiences or circumstances. By focusing less on having the branded five-star rated experience and not having to compare your experience to anyone else's previous vacations - sometimes it's not about your room upgrade, how many drinks it took you to do a handstand, or the fancy cocktail that you had the pleasure of downing but the more miniscule "A-HA!" moments that can easily be turned over to a new leaf. 

I've been a firm believer of lessening the effort and expectations of whatever will come out of travelling; while putting in some effort, but not too much, caring a little bit, but not over-watering the plans. Ideally, I've come to foster a fine balance between fun and accumulated stress and tension. 

Some days, it's convenient to pre-plan certain visits to highly acclaimed restaurants, bars, touristy destinations, events, and nightlife activities for the general sake of avoiding large amounts of human traffic and moving through the natural flow of business. Other days, it's an amazing eye-opener to find hole in the wall, family-run cafes and  temporary pop-up events that you literally happen to walk upon within minutes. 

It's easy to take on archetypal travel roles - one person will constantly plan, one person will lazily do nothing, one person will constantly take the lead with directions, etc. It's even more effortless to drop all these roles, give up control of pre-determining how certain results will occur in your favour, or not, and embracing the general spontaneity and surprise that travel can bring. 

IN THE PAST

A LOT of compassion and respect comes into play here - I used to disrespect my own wants and the company I travelled with for more spontaneous and delightful impulses (i.e. strolling off when in crowded groups, missing scheduled meet-up times, not answering my phone, the list rambles on...)

I selfishly wanted to seek out a thrilling adventure on my own. This jolted both the relationship I had with myself and the dynamic of building the trust and dependability with those that I traveled with. In a way, I was further distancing myself from what was right in front of me - all the love and altruistic support that I needed and yet I kept running away trying to seek it out in a stranger. 

RESPECT

Respect is not paid in the form of reciprocation or making up for lost time. It is not an eye for an eye or an equalized payment for the service or deed received. It's being able to share your wealth of knowledge, responsibility, care, love, and honour when your travel buddies may be lacking capacity or energy in and being able to contribute soundly as a team. I have such grand appreciation for being able to find such a good group of people that I truly enjoyed the company with and respected so deeply.

And so, I am making a conscious, disciplined effort to spend more time,  to accommodate, and to nourish those that I choose to travel and spend time with. In the end, lasting memories are created not by the luxurious locations that you visit, but the amazing souls that you get to experience them with :)

“Mindfulness is actually a difficult trait to muster but it is a constant, evolving practice - that must be regarded as that - a disciplined act. At most times, you won’t get the results you are looking for, but in turn, you will see pockets of rainbows that sprout from where you least look underneath that will guide you all the way back home <3.”

— EW

Yoga at Work (Workplace Wellness)

Yoga at coworking space, By Good Gorilla The Station, 401 Richmond, Toronto, ON

The practice of yoga, mindfulness and meditation practices have been easily incorporated into corporate office lunch hours and afternoons where the traditional lunch break has been replaced by attendance of a sponsored 30-60 minute movement or breathwork class.

Why do yoga midday throughout the work day? 

Productivity and efficiency are mindblowingly increased at least fivefold when the mind is given a break to decompress, reset, and return back to a basal state of rest. Whether physical movement and lengthening is involved, or simply removing the body from behind the desk and computer, the practice can do wonders physically, creatively, and psychologically. 

REALITY CHECK

The North American viewpoint on doing more while increasing the amount of work hours in a day/night is doing hefty damage and strain on our muscles - the muscles of locomotion and weightbearing - the hip flexors, glutes and hamstrings, and the muscles of articulation - within the shoulders, wrists and fingers are all suffering from tensity, gripping and lacking sufficient oxygen and blood flow, thus resulting in cramping, development of repetitive strain injuries, and poor postural compensation patterns. Not to mention, poor posture in the neck can also lead to eyestrain and lowered coordination and motor skills. 

Basically, we are becoming more rigid, more tight, more limited in our full potential range of motion, and constantly experiencing fatigue and headaches as we drag our work hours into the evenings. 

I used to spend my work days constantly hunched over a computer seated at a chair positioned too high, facing a screen far too bright and large for optimal, ergonomic suitability. On top of that, I carry a heavy shoulder bag, with a dSLR camera, laptop, and packed lunch that I move with to and from on public transit. I don't stand alone, when I say the compensation in my hips to stabilize the uneven weight-bearing in my shoulders has become very apparent when I notice one glute tensing up passively, or one hip being restricted in rotation. 

We sit for far too long tightening our hip flexors, strain our eyes on overstimulating items, hunch up our shoulders, compress our spines, etc. etc. the list goes on and on - to believe we can accomplish more in a workday or work week. Meanwhile we are simultaneously destroying our tissues and our muscle's full potential for keeping us upright and contained.

How to start mindfulness?

• Schedule 10 minute breaks away from the desk
• Either take a slow-paced walk or take a meditative seat close to natural lighting or going outdoors
• Turn off all notifications (emails, mobile calls, texts)
• Keeping the spine long, stacking the shoulders over the hips, reach the top of the head up and close the eyes or keep a soft gaze along the bridge of your nose
• Resting your hands either in your lap or down by your sides, soften around the chest 
• Take 10 deep inhales and exhales through the nose, expanding fully on the inhale, softening fully on the exhale.

Write it down

As you arrive to your desk first thing in the morning, stop to write down thoughts, appreciations, quotes, mantras. Before going through your daily, weekly, and monthly agenda of all the prioritized and endless lists of tasks, goals, and performance reviews, take a separate sheet of paper or journal out. This takes 2-5 minutes.

• Set an intention - whether as simple as "Staying Positive" or "Do one thing that makes me happy today" 
• State 5 things that you are grateful for outside of work
• Assess your general mood, energy level, and happiness that day
• Write down a positive quote for inspiration

Tips to stay focused & enhance mindfulness:

• Avoid multi-tasking (i.e. close multiple browser tabs, focus only on one application/task at time)
• Remove jarring post-it notes from the walls that will not get attended to. Less stimulation equals more focus to detail.
• Slow everything down (breathing, typing, scheduling) to focus more attention on detail and efficiency
• Take frequent rest breaks, stay hydrated, find periods to go outdoors and view natural sunlight
• Read 'The art of slowing the f*ck down and doing less'

Conference calls and group meetings can leave an individual either feeling overstimulated, stressed, or distracted from the rest of the day's tasks.

Instead of rushing into a meeting with a caffeinated beverage and an overload of information, try planning your arrival extra early to get settled, organized, and take a few deep breaths before starting. Ask the permission of whomever is conducting the meeting to guide a short, seated or standing meditation for 2-5 minutes. The group can collectively take 10 deep breaths together, use visualization techniques to calm the mind and set a focus on positivity or something to uplift productivity. If you can spend over 10 hours at the office and 10 minutes to run and grab your cup of java, you can definitely spend no more than 5 minutes to decompress and unwind before registering your attention to a group meeting.

Stretch it out/ Move when you can:

By mid-afternoon, instead of grabbing for that second or third caffeinated beverage, look towards accessible movement exercises. 

Mobilize the wrists:

To avoid carpal tunnel syndrome and clenching of fists which lead to tight forearms and hunched shoulders, start with this basic stretch that you can perform just about anywhere you have a flat surface. 

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1. Start with your palms flat on the ground at shoulder distance, knees under your hips. Spread the fingers wide.
2. Walk the finger tips to face back towards your knees. Your thumbs will point towards the Left and Right sides.
3. Roll the shoulders down and away from your ears, as you send the weight back sending your hips over your heels.
4. Pick up the palms a few inches, keeping the fingers grounded into the mat.
5. Reach the wrists back, feeling the stretch through the fingers, wrists, and lower forearms.

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1. Returning the palms down, fingers facing forward, thumbs toward centre.
2. Flip onto the tops of the hands, wrists face forward, thumbs toward centre, fingers spread wide.
3. Gently curl the fingers and thumbs into a fist-like shape.
4. Gently release fingers back down.
5. Repeat a few times curling and releasing, while breathing. 

Both of these stretches can be completed within 5 minutes and can be incorporated throughout the work day.

Whenever you can, take advantage of the yoga or movement class that takes place just steps away from your desk! 

If you can spend over 10 hours sitting propped up in one setting, you can definitely make time for 45-60 minutes of a restful and mindful flow of breathwork and alignment. 

Join a yoga class and practice mindfulness today!