Silence is golden – or is it?

When was the last time you sat in silence for more than 20 minutes?

Our commute to work, the school run, doing the housework, watching a film, listening to the radio these are all noise filled activities.

Sometimes we demand that external stimuli just to quieten down our internal self talk. Some people become workaholics because they don’t want to face up to certain aspects of their lives, some people delude themselves that everything is absolutely fine when in fact their life is falling down around themselves so they keep busy to avoid the silence, because in the silence our thoughts begin to turn over ……..

However there are ways to enjoy and revel in silence – simply by becoming aware.

Try these tips to enjoy your own company more

• Focus on your surroundings – with every out-breath say to yourself (silently) “right now I’m aware of” and then complete the sentence to yourself.
• Begin to notice your breath – when was the last time you really paid attention to your breathing? Begin to notice the difference in air temperature when you breathe in through your nose compared to when you breathe out. See if you can feel the air entering and leaving your body, can you notice the rise and fall of your stomach or the rise and fall of your chest?
• Smile to yourself – imagine somebody just told you something wonderful, perhaps someone saying they loved you or that you had done something exceptionally well.
• Spread that smile throughout your body – I know, I know …. It sounds odd, but you know how some people have really smiley eyes? Well with your eyes closed just imagine that the thing that made you smile in the 1^st place had made your eyes twinkle with pleasure – even though your eyes are closed. Once you’ve mastered that then you can learn to smile into yourself. You can then go on to smile into your work, your relationships any aspect of your life that you choose.
• Notice how your body feels – when we get stressed or worried our body tends to hunch forward causing tension in our muscles, all too often we don’t even notice this tension until it’s too late. By becoming aware of how our bodies are feeling we can alleviate this tension before it gets too bad.
• Visualise – How do you want to be? How do you want others to see you? By imagining yourself how you want to be and how you want others to see you you’re giving your subconscious mind a road map.