As a hypnotherapist in London I was not surprised to read a recent news story in the Telegraph explained how one in three workers are too stressed to take a lunch break citing that they have too much to do to take a break. Almost a third of workers say they are unlikely to take a lunch break. I can relate to that, before becoming a hypnotherapist I was working in FTSE 100 company in London where most people if they do have lunch ate it in front of their computer doing their emails. Not really a break. Not really mindful eating either which is why it is not surprising the article says 19% of worker surveyed claiming they overeat at work.
Stress is all around us. At work, at home. How do we avoid it? I have been working with people at my London hypnotherapy practice who own their own company with staff and feel the huge burden of responsibility, particularly in difficult economic times, and can see the impact of their stress not their lives. They are not eating healthily and thus become unhappy with their weight, they are not sleeping well so wake up tired and feeling the day is running away with them from the off. When they get home from work they are bombarded by their children who are excited to see them but they just want some peace and quiet to ‘recover’ from their days o their family life is affected as well.
Once upon a time, there was a very strong woodcutter. He asked for a job from a timber merchant, and he got it. The pay was really good and so were the work conditions. For that reason the woodcutter was determined to do his best.
His boss gave him an axe and showed him the area where he was supposed to work.
The first day, the woodcutter brought down 18 trees. The Boss was very much impressed and said, “Congratulations keep it up!”
Very motivated by the words of the boss, the woodcutter tried harder the next day, but he only could bring down 15 trees.
The third day he tried even harder, but he only could bring down 10 trees. Day after day he was bringing down less and less trees.
“I must be losing my strength”, the woodcutter thought to himself.
He went to the boss and apologized, saying that he could not understand what was going on.
“When was the last time you sharpened your Axe?” the boss asked.
“Sharpen? I had no time to sharpen my Axe. I have been very busy trying to cut trees.
Our lives are like that, particularly in London. We sometimes get so busy that we don’t take time to sharpen the axe. In today’s world, it seems that everyone is busier than ever, more stressed but are we happier?
We all need time to relax, to think and meditate, to learn and grow – time to sharpen our axe . If we don’t take time to sharpen the axe, we will become dull and lose our effectiveness.
Try this mind relaxation as a way of letting go of stress or download the free relaxation mp3 to take 10 mins and switch off and sharpen your axe. Contact me if you want to explore how I can help you whether working on the phone or at my London hypnotherapy clinic.
Enjoy!
Russellx
