How to calm down

 My takeaways from the summary of The things you can see only when you slow down.

1. When your mind rests, the world rests

Our reality consists only of what our mind chooses to focus on at that moment. 

More often than not, it’s our perception of things that happened in the past or things that may happen in the future that drives negative thoughts and emotions. But we can’t control or change the past or the future. 

Practise self-awareness. If you’re feeling stressed, be aware of that stress. If you’re feeling angry, be aware of your anger. It doesn’t do any good to bury it. Awareness brings clarity and purity back into our lives. 

Your thoughts are just conditioning and not the truth.

An excellent way to manage your stress level is to simply make a list of everything in your life that’s causing you anxiety. Write down everything you need to get done, from minor, everyday chores like washing the dishes to bigger goals like changing your career. Writing them down removes them from your mind and contains all of your worries on a single sheet of paper.

 

2. You are not your feelings

Instead of focusing on the labels, focus on the energy that’s behind those emotions and try to figure out where it’s coming from. In time, that energy changes. It ebbs and flows until, sooner or later, it’s replaced by something else. Don’t try to assign it a value. Just simply be aware of the energy without any judgment.

Bad energy is like mud in the water. The more you try to forcefully control it, the more it stirs up. Let it be and it settles.