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Compassionate Commute This week’s trek is inspired by the concept of Metta, which can be found in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain traditions. Most popularly translated as "loving kindness," Metta has become a staple in many mindfulness practices.  Do you feel crushed after your commute? Whether you are trying to muscle your way through a jam-packed subway car or a road-rage filled highway, the daily commute can be a grind that produces feelings of anxiety and frustration towards others. When we refocus our attention on developing feelings of goodwill and compassion towards others, though, we can make the commute work for rather than against us. Introducing Your Compassionate Commute Exercise What It Is A way to rework the energy of your commute. Why We Love It  Commutes can leave us feeling super cranky but they don't have to. By putting a different kind of energy out into the world, we can make our commute an opportunity to re-center ourselves. How It Works 1. As you head out for your daily commute, bring your attention to yourself and repeat a mantra (3-5 times usually works!) that offers up a little self love. Consider phrases like: - May I arrive safely and at ease. - May I be happy and at peace. 2. Next, take note of your surroundings. Is the school bus in the nearby lane filled with chatty kids? Does the guy sitting next to you have an awesome dog? Is the car behind you following a little too close? 3. Select one of the things you've noted -- the bustling school bus, the awesome dog, the tailgater -- and choose a mantra to send those people/animals some loving kindness. Consider phrases like: - May they (i.e., the kids) be happy. May they be safe and free from injury. - May you (i.e., dog walker) be at peace. May you (i.e., dog) feel safe and loved. - May you (i.e., tailgater) be free of anger and anxiety.  4. Once you have arrived at your destination, take note of how you feel. What new things did you notice about your daily commute? What new feelings did you experience? How might you create space for more compassion for yourself and others? Want to dig deeper into this topic? If you are feeling skeptical about this whole loving kindness thing, watch this video featuring Sharon Salzberg and a skeptic. To learn more about Metta meditation, read this from Tricycle. For an overview of the benefits associated with doing loving kindness meditation, read this. Shout. It. Out. To Angel Hu for her exercise crafting skills! Shout. It. Back. To treks@lifetrekkers.me if you have feedback on this trek or other treks you have liked. Here's what your fellow trekkers have to say about past treks:   "Last week's creative recovery exercise was one of my favorites. This exercise helped me push past my creative blocks. I love using it to clear my mind and reflect by rereading it at the end of the week." - Dama Dipayana, Founder Be Frank Tweet Tweet Email Us Learn More Copyright © 2018 LifeTrekkers, All rights reserved. Want more information? Drop us a line at info@lifetrekkers.me. Want to change how you receive these emails? You can unsubscribe from this list.

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Emotional Vocabulary This week’s trek is inspired by Lisa Feldman Barret's concept of emotional granularity, which focuses on understanding the nuances of different emotions. Have you ever encountered an emotion you couldn't convey through words? Depending on the number of languages you speak, this kind of thing might be a regular occurrence. In English, for example, there are 21 emotions from other languages that have no English translation. Introducing Your Emotional Vocab Exercise What It Is A way to expand your emotional vocabulary. Why We Love It  The precursor to emotional intelligence is the ability to identify the depths of your own emotional reactions. Since emotional intelligence is essentially the currency of relationships, expanding your emotional vocabulary helps you better communicate with others. Consider this: would you want to take a sailing trip with a captain who doesn’t know the difference between the stern and the boom? Then, how can we expect to have earth shattering relationships when our emotional vocabulary doesn’t extend far beyond the likes of lonely and FOMO? How It Works 1. To start, check out some of these awesome words from other languages like Age-otori, the mythical Japanese word for the feeling of “looking worse after a haircut” or Saudade, Portuguese for “a pleasure you suffer, an ailment you enjoy”. Both capture very specific emotional nuances. 2. Over the course of this week, stay close to how you are feeling each day. (I for one often feel my emotions in my gut!) When something comes up, see if you can name it, but then figure out if that word falls woefully or slightly short in fully capturing that internal experience. Your goal is to find cases where words feel incomplete and then search for better words that more richly describe that fire in your belly. And if you can’t hunt down a word: Make one up! 3. If you do make up a word, send it our way (treks@lifetrekkers.me)! We're putting together an LT dictionary of emotions. Want to dig deeper into this topic? For a visual representation of the complexity of emotions, check this out.  To go deep on the range of emotions expressed in many languages, check out this book. Shout. It. Out. To Sarah Jones for her exercise crafting skills! Shout. It. Back. To treks@lifetrekkers.me if you have new words to share from this exercise or want to tell us what you think! Here's what your fellow trekkers have to say about past treks:   "The Wake-up Call trek really hit home for me. My best days are the ones when I avoid email until as late as possible and this reminded me to stay mindful. It's key to make sure I get grounded first so I can give important things the attention they deserve." - Vijay Rajendran, Director, BBVA New Ventures Tweet Tweet Email Us Learn More Copyright © 2018 LifeTrekkers, All rights reserved. Want more information? Drop us a line at info@trekkers.me. Want to change how you receive these emails? You can unsubscribe from this list.

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Procrastination Face-off This week’s trek is inspired by author, Leo Babauta’s work on procrastination. As a self-proclaimed regular guy, Babauta has applied his “Face Everything Technique” to focus more on what he needs to get done and less on indulging in ways to keep from doing it. What are you really good at avoiding? Whether it’s sorting mail, going to the gym, weeding the garden, or washing the dishes, we all have things we’ve got on procrastination lock-down. While prioritizing a little Netflix binging over doing laundry never hurt anyone, cases of extreme avoidance can leave us feeling overwhelmed and powerless over our own obligations. Introducing Your Procrastination Face-off Exercise What It Is A way to check yourself when you are feeling procrastination taking over. Why We Love It  Sometimes you just need to get sh** done and as much as you try, you’re keeping up with the Kardashians more than your own life. This exercise helps you refocus your energy on your own stuff. How It Works 1. Set a reminder in your calendar at three points over the course of a day -- in the mid-afternoon, midday and at the end of the day. When the reminder goes off ask yourself, “What am I doing right now?” The goal in answering this question is to bring awareness to how you are spending your time. 2. Once you’ve brought more awareness to what you are doing, ask yourself “What might I be avoiding by doing this activity?” Babauta talks about how we often “switch to something else” and go into avoidance mode when something feels like a lot to handle. The key here is to identify what triggers your avoidance mode. Is it fear, discomfort, having to think in depth about something, or work..etc? 3. Now, take this thing that you are avoiding and face it. Allow it to manifest as a physical feeling in your body and stay with that feeling. Ask yourself, “How bad is this feeling?” Give it a little time and recognize that it might not be as bad as you thought it would be. 4. Take action. Once you’ve given the feeling you’ve been avoiding some space, take one small step to get your task done. For example, if you've got a pile of mail you've been putting off, don't worry about the whole pile; try opening a few pieces at a time. Want to dig deeper into this topic? For Babauta’s full deal exercise, read this from LifeHacker. To learn about the five reasons we tend to procrastinate, read this. To watch a hilarious video on what procrastination feels like, watch this by Tim Urban. Have a favorite trek?  Hit us up at treks@lifetrekkers.me and tell us which one you liked and what you learned! Here's what your fellow trekkers have to say about past treks:   "Inspiration Reservoir was one of my favorite treks. It helped me understand the many sources of inspiration (many of which are in my own backyard) that I can draw upon when needing to unlock the right side of my brain." -Liz Tverskoy, Account Manager @ Google Tweet Tweet Email Us Learn More Copyright © 2018 LifeTrekkers, All rights reserved. Want more information? Drop us a line at info@trekkers.me. Want to change how you receive these emails? You can unsubscribe from this list.