Best 5 ways to rejuvenate yourself

Home. Office. Work. Boss. Twitter. Tea. Facebook. Bus. Train. Noodles and Snooze. This is what the timeline of an average day in our lives looks like. With work and Facebook eating up most of our time, we have forgotten what it is to spend time by ourselves or discover the many hidden truths and talents.

How to take a hike from this hectic life? You will be surprised that the gateway to heaven is less than a few miles away from home.

1. Take a weekday off – Sounds like a weird suggestion, but you will learn to observe a lot of things you usually miss when you take a break bang in the middle of the week. Spend the day doing all the things that you have been postponing for quite a while. Try not to go to a movie or mall, which will kill the purpose of this “me time”. Get up late. Make a wholesome and hearty breakfast for yourself and for the first time in many days, enjoy it. Just imagine sitting at the table, eating breakfast and really enjoying it without having to sprint out the door the next minute. Try and do things like cleaning, gardening, organizing your shelf or just sit back and read a book,there is no better friend that a good book. Basically, put your feet up and watch the world go by in slow motion.
2. Pamper yourself – When was the last time you gave your body some much required rest? Do you often find yourself day dreaming about how nice it would feel if you were being massaged? Ha! I do it all the time and the visit to the spa is just jumping dates. Decide on a Saturday evening, give the usual restaurant or pub visit a skip and book yourself an appointment at a spa. Go for a full body massage and for once don’t take a look at the rate card; just give yourself the much needing pampering. Suggested massages:

• Hot Stone Massage
• Aromatherapy Massage
• Deep Tissue Massage
• Reflexology – Foot Massage
• Thai Massage.

3.Take a break – Get away from the city; go to places that are less travelled. Google and you will find a range of options staring you on the face. Do something unusual.  Visit a nearby village and see what it is to live their lives, have a laid back attitude and live life that conventional way. Try your hand at things done in the country side – milk a cow, ride a horse etc. Roam around the village and see the contrasting difference in their way of life.

Give the run of the mill food a break and savor the traditional flavor of the village cuisine.

If in India do not miss the food cooked on wood/coal fired stove, the food is at its flavorful best when cooked this way. Relax, enjoy the village life and get ready to head back to town with some great memories.

4. Spend Time with your family – I am sure you can’t remember the last time you sat and had a proper conversation with your parents or your spouse.  Take a break from work and plan out a day with your loved ones.  Catch up on all that you have missed over traditional home cooked food.

If you are looking for some romantic time with your hubby/wife, go on a long ride, book yourself a couple package at a spa or head to the nearest resort.

Time flies by and before you know it the caretaker seems like you child’s mother.  Give the caretaker a day off and spend the day with your child. Go for a movie, shop for your child, buy a happy meal and at the end of it you will love yourself for being a super dad/mom.

5. Pay the beach a visit- If you live in a city like mine (Mumbai), I am sure you have taken the sea/beach for granted by now. Ever wondered how it would feel to go back, soak your feet in the water, look for shells and make sand castles. Rewind back to childhood and make a trip to the beach. Do all things that would seem crazy at your age, build sand castles, eat cotton candy/ corn on the cob, bathe in the sea water and end you day by soaking in the beauty of the sun set.

Learn to take a break from monotony whenever you feel stressed out, believe me there are more satisfying things that winning a cow on Farmville

Original Link: http://noisypost.com/general/health/best-5-ways-to-rejuvenate-yourself.html
Author: Preetha Iyer

Five Ways To Re-invent Yourself In Office

Tired of doing the same work, day in and day out? Do you feel you have reached your potential and can’t  give any more to your job? You have probably hit a plateau, as they say. But quitting, or anything as drastic, may not be the best solution. It’s time to take a step back and figure out how to re-invent yourself at the workplace, says Moresha Benjamin.

Raise the bar
Author and motivational speaker Priya Kumar feels that one, sure-shot way of re-inventing yourself is to double your targets and reassess your goals. A lot of people feel that to re-invent themselves, they must do something different. But you can be the most effective when you raise the bar on your performance. In fact, a new, raised bar will require a new way of thinking and exploring, and certainly new strategies to reach your goal. It will push you to grow and move beyond what you thought was possible. That is real time re-inventing of yourself.

Expand your network
According to Parsh Ramanathan, head (training and development) at L&T Infotech, building an internal network is important. “People in your own company know best what’s going on, what the immediate changes and new vacancies are,” he says. “So speak to them and try to find new opportunities for yourself within the organisation or try to make the shift from your present role into a new one with added responsibilities and skill sets.” If you work better by yourself, chances are you will find yourself stuck in a rut sooner than imagined. The way out is to expand your network by using social media as a tool. Pradeeep Chopra, CEO of DigitalVidya, says you should get online, connect with professionals from your field — not just locally, but also globally — to keep abreast of the developments taking place in your sector across the world.

Ask for help
When you find that you cannot go on in your present role, seek help. Ramanathan advises speaking to a trusted friend or senior at work to get a new perspective on your situation, and bouncing ideas off him or her. In no time at all you will find yourself enjoying your work. The ‘friend’ could be anyone — a senior, your immediate bosses or people in another vertical . Have an open mind and weigh the pros and cons of your present role after exchanging thoughts. Asking for help not only opens up a whole new world of solutions, but also opportunities.

Create a brand image
Building a network, both online and offline, helps create a ‘brand image’ for yourself. Use the same to create opportunities at work. Blog about your situation, says Chopra, or get involved with the extra-curricular activities in the office. Participate in discussions and activities; In short, make yourself acquainted with people not only from your immediate team, but also outside it.

Take a break
This may sound like a radical step, but when you cannot see yourself contributing any more to the company, it's time that you took one, says Kumar. Save on your leave and when the time comes, take a paid vacation. Not doing so can lead to burnout well before you have reached your potential. You could pursue a different field of work , says Kumar. Take a up a new course, hobby, skill or take time out to study your sector better and see what changes are taking place. After doing thorough research, take a call on whether you want to go back at the same level or want to take on a different role within the organisation.

(29-04-2011, Mumbai, The Economic Times)