Thankful Thursdays are about gratitude and being thankful for what you already have in your life.
Taking a savouring mini-break
Today’s post is about savouring.
Similar to gratitude, it is about taking time to notice and enjoy what is going well, rather than what is not. The following exercise requires both action and reflection, but can be seen as mini-breaks or holiday each day, focusing on what is important to you.
- Commit to taking a daily holiday of at least 20-30 minutes every day for the next week.
- Choose practical activities that you can do and enjoy. Examples might be: going for a walk, having a bubble bath, reading a book or magazine, watching the sun rise/set, strolling down to get your caffeine fix, having a chat with someone you haven’t seen in a while, getting a massage, etc.
- Choose a different “location” or activity for each day
- Allocate time in your diary as if it was an important meeting (which it is)
- Allocate space to complete the activity (if at home) where you won’t be distracted
- During the activity, relax, stay in the present moment and focus on thoroughly enjoying the experience. Notice how it is making you feel, taking note of the sensations, changes in emotions, and make a mental note of all of these things
- Each night before you go to bed, reflect on the positive emotions that you savoured that day
- Plan for tomorrow’s holiday and look forward to it
- At the end of the week, spend your holiday time recalling and reflecting on all the positive moments from your holiday. Think about how you felt in the last week compared with the weeks before. Note any differences.
- Consider whether this is something you want to add into your day (or week) as an ongoing practice.
Enjoy!!