The average person’s commute is 25.4 minutes every day. During this time, we may feel stressed about running late or lament the long journey home. Commutes are a common part of daily life, but this time can easily be transformed into a calming spiritual oasis. With a simple shift in perspective, it is possible to arrive at your destination feeling recharged and refreshed.
Here are a few ways that you can inject some spiritual mojo into your commute:
Set Your Intention
In the morning, we often focus on our to-do list of the day. Business details, a deadline, or schoolwork might be on the list. These are important items that move our lives forward, but you can still maintain a sense of balanced spirituality by setting your intention before entering “to-do” mode. As you’re getting ready in the morning, ask yourself what intention would serve you best today:
- Do you want to feel productive?
- Do you want to feel more satisfied on a soul level?
- Do you want to feel more connected to your work environment?
Before you even begin to look at your list, check in with yourself. What would you like to get out of this day?
Prepare The Space
Managing other people’s energy is one of the biggest obstacles to staying spiritually “balanced.” Perhaps there is one person who gets on your nerves with their negativity? If you are about to see this person, you may notice yourself listing what you don’t like about them. If we are expecting an awkward moment or confrontation, we invite that energy into our lives without even knowing it.
To overcome this, I believe strongly in the power of visualization (and just a touch of woo-woo). As you leave your home and head to your destination, visualize in your mind’s eye the kind of environment you want to be in. Picture your peers being open and receptive to you. Collaborate with them joyfully in your mind. Create a universally abundant space that everyone enjoys being in. You can not change anyone else’s behavior, but you can change your own experience around them.
Talk It Out
There is great spiritual wisdom in understanding the different “hats” that we wear on a daily basis. Typically, our work identity is different from the energy that we put out with our friends or spouse. Getting comfortable with every “hat” that you wear will make it easier to achieve your goals once you arrive at your destination.
If you are commuting to your job, warm up your work identity by talking to yourself about the day ahead. You can prepare for a meeting you are going to have by running through notes. If you are using public transportation and don’t want to look like a crazy person (by talking out loud), use a journal to script out your thoughts for the day. If you are heading home to see your significant other, think about and list the things that you like doing together. This will help you transition from one energy to another.
Challenge yourself to be heard
As a kid, every day before school I would say goodbye to my dad, and his response would always be “challenge yourself, kid!” In those days I would walk to the bus stop rolling my eyes at his declaration, but as an adult I now understand it.
Ask yourself, is there a possibility that you have been flying under the radar in life? How often do you step out of your comfort zone by asking a useful question, or by presenting a new idea? Being heard will help build confidence in yourself and will bring your overall spiritual state. into balance.
Be Grateful
As soon as you arrive at your destination, complete the spiritual commute by feeling gratitude for what you are about to do. Give thanks to your company, your friends, or whoever feels like the right fit in that moment. When we recognize what has been given to us, we attract even bigger blessings into our lives.
List Your Accomplishments
Every single human being on the planet wants to feel accomplished and productive. List your accomplishments of the day, no matter how small they may seem. What did you create or help complete? What were you a part of? Regardless of what you do, Whether you made the bed or cured cancer, you have made a difference and should acknowledge that to yourself.
Give Yourself Permission To Relax And Let Go
Often times, our minds have trouble releasing a task at hand. Most of us leave our work spaces mid-project or mid-thought. Those are the moments that our brains get especially harried. If you identify as a “doer” or productive person, it can be a challenge to put a task down before it is completed and reconnect to your family. This is not ideal, because your productive “hat” will still be on, and you may not feel as present as you could be when you are you’re your spouse or child. As you approach your home, create a personal mantra and state that you deserve to disconnect from work and relax. You deserve to connect with your loved ones (or at least catch up on House Of Cards).
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