8 ways to be present so you can stay aware of your limits and enjoy the journey

If like me you’re challenged by having limited energy and want to maintain a sustainably creative life then it’s important to keep an eye on your metaphorical fuel gage and speedometer.

Keep your eyes on your speedo and fuel gage

Take your eyes off either for too long and you’re in danger over overdoing things and sending yourself into an energy slump that can take days, weeks or months to get over. I know, I’ve done it many times!

Stay in the present moment as much as possible

Just like learning to drive carefully and within the speed-limit, and remembering to fill up with fuel on a regular basis, we can easily learn to pace our creative endeavours gently staying within out own personal limits, and remember to keep out energy levels well topped up. The way to do both is to stay in the present moment as much as possible. To stay aware of our of how we’re feeling, and what we’re capable of at any given time.

Create habits to bring you back into the moment

The nature of the creative process can often mean we get lost in what we’re doing (which is a wonderful thing to happen, but needs to be kept in check if we’re prone to overdoing things). It’s quite possible to instil some habits that will bring you back to the present moment but until you get really good at being present you could set a timer to bring you back into the present moment, or even ask a friend to nudge you back at a pre-arranged time.

Some other nice tricks you could try to help you stay aware of the present moment, and look after yourself in it include:

1. Breath. Hopefully you’re doing this all the time anyway (!), but if you consciously bring your awareness to your breath, perhaps by counting gently to three for each in breath and each out breath for a couple of minutes then you’ll find you’ll become both calmer and more in tune with how you’re feeling.
2. Put the kettle on (schedule elevenses). I’m a great believer in the creative power of elevenses. Scheduling a break with a pot of tea is a lovely way to catch up with yourself, take stock of what you’re achieved and assess what to do next (perhaps take a nap!).
3. Take regular drinks of water. Make it a habit to reach for your water bottle every ten minutes or so. Again, a good way to both look after yourself (you wouldn’t want to get dehydrated would you?) and to have an opportunity to stay aware of how you’re feeling in a more general way.
4. Take a nap. A very self-nurturing thing to do.
5. If you work at home why not bake some food for lunch whilst your working. Whilst I’m not a fan of multitasking, taking a few minutes to put some chopped vegetable in the oven to roast while you work doesn’t really feel too much like multitasking to me, and I’m very forgiving of breaking my own rules when it comes to affairs of the stomach. The smell of the cooking will bring you back to the present moment and you’ll be able to quickly and easily whizz up some nutritious soup when you’ve finished work.
6. Schedule some regular gentle exercise. A walk for instance, or a few stretches can be a sort of physical elevenses. Like a lovely pot of tea and a sit on your garden bench, taking ten minutes to go for a short walk, or to do a few stretches can give you the opportunity to reflect on how your day is going, how you’re feeling and what you need to do to look after yourself and stay within your limits.
7. Close your eyes and bring your awareness to your body. Perhaps combined with the breathing exercise above, closing your eyes for a moment or two brings you back to your self and give you the opportunity of really seeing how you are.
8. Take ten minutes to declutter or tidy your desk. Brings you back to your environment AND keeps things organised. Why not see if you can find ten things to throw away or recycle.