If you’re a busy career- and passion-driven bSmart member like me, sometimes the work week (and even weekend) can seem like you’re on a never-ending hamster wheel without a moment to rest, take a break, or practice mindfulness.  I’ve recently moved to a state with some of the most breathtaking scenery in the nation—even the world—but I often forget to appreciate my surroundings and am usually too distracted by my chaotic work schedule to take a breath and remember where I live, the privileges and opportunities I have, and what makes me happy.  Recently, I’ve been itching to find more ways to practice mindfulness and meditation while still being able to fit it into my on-the-go lifestyle and busy work schedule.  A couple of months ago, as things got increasingly more stressful in my career as a public school teacher and I was overwhelmed thinking about what career move I may make next, I perused my Podcast app in search of a guided meditation, stress relief, and mindfulness podcast—something I could listen to daily that would help with my nerves, anxiety, and day-to-day stress.  I wanted a podcast that I could quickly and purposefully listen to daily.  I tinkered with a few podcasts, and then finally found one that seemed like a perfect and simple hit.  

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The Simple Habit meditation app helps you 'reduce stress on the go,' which is exactly what my busy and anxious personality was looking for.  Not only do I appreciate the adaptive nature of the podcast as far as my schedule and daily life go, but through this app you can also customize your meditation experience based on the time of day, what kind of stress you are feeling at that time, what life experiences you're going through (going on a new date, navigating through a relationship, studying for an exam, preparing for an interview) and what level you're at as far as your meditation journey goes.  The morning meditations are my favorite way to start my day while I commute an hour and ten minutes to school.  When I was originally searching for a meditation and mindfulness podcast months ago, it was hard for me to find one that wasn’t centered around sleep and winding down at night.  Often times, the most stressful points of my day are in the morning and late afternoon, and luckily, Simple Habit has meditations for all times of day.  From their Coffee Meditation, to their Everyday Mindfulness Meditation, to their Calm in Chaos and Reduce Stress meditations, I can tune in, quell my anxieties, focus on my mind and body, and unwind in a healthy and productive way.

Simple Habit is the audio-thought detox I needed.  Since moving to beautiful Utah and living in the heart of Canyon Country for about a year now, I’ve tried to be more intentional in being my best self even in my moments of great anxiety and stress.  But I know that living your best life and proudly being your most authentic and unapologetic self can be challenging, which is why I actively search for new ways and avenues to achieve this as best I can.  Listening to a five-minute Simple Habit meditation centers me, reminds me of how human I am, restores my confidence in myself and my life despite my overwhelming stresses, and makes me feel perfectly imperfect while living with GAD (Generalized Anxiety Disorder).  Often because of my anxiety (and Type-A personality) it’s difficult (and sometimes feels impossible) to calm myself down when my mind starts racing, overanalyzing, re-analyzing, and convincing itself of drastic, implausible things.  Simple Habit helps me curb that and mellow those thoughts.  The narrator of the meditations is always calming and refreshing to listen to, and the meditations are easy to understand, digest, and internalize.  Some of the previous meditation and mindfulness podcasts I listened to were very theory- and literature-based, which I appreciated in many ways, but while listening to those, I would eventually lose sight of the goal of the meditation and my ability to stay present and mindful.  Simple Habit is accessible, quick, and easy to find and tune into.  Each meditation is about five minutes in length, but that doesn’t mean you don’t dive in deep.  Many meditations have multiple sessions, which allows you to more closely examine your mindfulness, stressors, sense of self, and root cause or influencers of your anxiety/stress/worry.

Every 5-minute session is the reminder I need to not doubt my talents, my capabilities, my professionalism, and my passion.

As I approach the end of my school year as a first-time first grade teacher, I’m trying to balance finishing strong with my students while also looking for a new job and figuring out my next steps.  Needless to say, this time of the year is particularly stressful and overwhelming, and I’m glad and grateful to have found this meditation podcast before things get even more chaotic.  Right now, as I send out applications to new jobs and reflect on my role and performance as a public school teacher at 24 years old, I’m often overcome with debilitating thoughts of not-good-enoughs.  I constantly think about my weaknesses as a professional, why I’m not as good as other teachers, and my limited experience in the profession and how that may hinder my job search.  Luckily, when those self-defeating and overly critical thoughts start to stress me out and take over my psyche, I turn on Simple Habits’ Deal with Internal Critic 7-session meditation by Sean Fargo.  Every 5-minute session is the reminder I need to not self-sabotage and doubt my talents, my capabilities, my professionalism, and my passion.  In this 7-session meditation, we dive into and explore how 'painful early life experiences can form a pattern of destructive thoughts toward ourselves and others.  It may sabotage our successes or our relationships, preventing us from living with care and ease.'  I love that I can cater to my own needs based on what I’m experiencing that day or in a particular phase of my life.

Our daily personal and professional lives can be stressful, busy, and sometimes emotionally overwhelming, and that’s okay—we’re human.  But let’s also do something about those feelings, take control of our life, and be more present in the opportunities we have at our fingertips.  

So bSmart readers, take a few moments (5 minutes to be exact) every day to practice mindfulness, stress-free living, and meditation techniques to help live your best, most authentic life with the ease and care you deserve to have!  Break some old habits along the way, but make your new habit, Simple Habit.