Speaker 1: Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.
Speaker 1: Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.
Speaker 1: Today's tip is to go off autopilot. By nudging ourselves
Speaker 1: out of mindlessness, we can be more mindful and hopefully happier.
Speaker 1: Today's tip, like a few this week, comes from Melissa
Speaker 1: Staginus's book Everyday Mindfulness. This book features over a hundred
Speaker 1: ideas for introducing mindfulness into daily life. Number forty seven
Speaker 1: is attend to autopilot. Melissa writes, like most people, you
Speaker 1: probably spend a lot of time doing things on autopilot,
Speaker 1: washing the dishes, commuting to work, cleaning, running errands, and
Speaker 1: so on. But she says there is much to be
Speaker 1: gained by being present, that is, paying attention during your
Speaker 1: everyday tasks and routines. Everything you do can be an
Speaker 1: opportunity to cultivate mindfulness and gratitude. Now, of course, there's
Speaker 1: a reason our brains go on autopilot. Sometimes we do
Speaker 1: many things routinely, and our brains can't be firing seven.
Speaker 1: Going on autopilot free up our brains to daydream, to
Speaker 1: process things that have happened, or just to relax. That said,
Speaker 1: too much autopilot makes life seem to disappear. Our most
Speaker 1: memorable times when time seems to slow down are when
Speaker 1: we are paying close attention to everything that's going on.
Speaker 1: Think about a vacation somewhere exotic. You are noticing everything
Speaker 1: because it's all so different, and the time before breakfast
Speaker 1: on the first day can feel like a fortnight at home.
Speaker 1: You probably aren't going to Morocco or Cambodia or the
Speaker 1: Arctic anytime soon, but you can pay attention and go
Speaker 1: off autopilot for a little while. Even in everyday life.
Speaker 1: Melissa suggests that you choose one thing you usually do
Speaker 1: on autopilot and pay close attention to that activity. So,
Speaker 1: for instance, she suggests that you drive in silence to
Speaker 1: practice positive self talk, or meditate as you clean the house.
Speaker 1: While cooking, eating and washing dishes, silently express your gratitude
Speaker 1: for good food and clean water. She says, even the
Speaker 1: most mundane moments can bring wonder if you try. I
Speaker 1: wrote this at the beginning of November. For about a week,
Speaker 1: I could see a blazingly red maple tree out the
Speaker 1: kitchen window as I was doing the dishes. I make
Speaker 1: a point of buying nice smelling dish, soap, lavender, pear
Speaker 1: me in that sort of thing, and warm water feels
Speaker 1: good on cold hands. Even laundry can bring a smile
Speaker 1: when I look at tiny baby socks. Then this transforms
Speaker 1: into exasperation when I can't find the matching sock. Tiny
Speaker 1: baby socks inevitably get lost, but their fleeting tininess can
Speaker 1: jar you out of autopilot for a while. So today,
Speaker 1: choose one routine thing to make less automatic. Smell those
Speaker 1: coffee beans, Notice the brilliance of a cooking pan or
Speaker 1: a spoon. It took humanity a long time to figure
Speaker 1: these things out. Same thing with your buttons and zippers,
Speaker 1: not to mention furnaces that generate nice, pleasant levels of heat.
Speaker 1: As you set the thermostat, you can pause and pay attention.
Speaker 1: A little bit of mindfulness makes daily life memorable, and
Speaker 1: memorable days don't slip unnoticed into the past. In the meantime.
Speaker 1: This is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making
Speaker 1: the most of our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to
Speaker 1: hear from you. You can send me your tips, your questions,
Speaker 1: or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook
Speaker 1: and Instagram at Before Breakfast pod. That's b the number
Speaker 1: four then Breakfast p o D. You can also shoot
Speaker 1: me an email at Before Breakfast podcast at i heeart
Speaker 1: media dot com that before Breakfast is spelled out with
Speaker 1: all the letters. Thanks so much, I look forward to
Speaker 1: staying in touch. Before Breakfast is a production of I
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