P ersonal if you live that long! Think of food as fuel; high quality food gives high performance. Avoid cycles of diet fads. Simply, eat more natural and less processed foods to avoid cycles of energy highs and lows [Figure 1].
Figure 1: Happy, Successful People take Good Care of Their Body
6. They Exercise. Best is to build an exercise regime into your goals and work plan and make it a priority. However, even if exercise is not your “thing,” research shows that just 2.5 hours a week of moderately intensive aerobic exercise plus 2–3 strength trainings sessions go a long way to enhancing your physical and emotional strength and agility. If this is your weak spot, as it is mine, almost any level of consistent aerobic and strengthening exercise can make a huge difference. Years ago, I used to run 5 miles every day and play racquetball once a week. As I got older, I transitioned to an easier regime for my aging body: rise at 5:00 am; 10 minutes of total body stretches; 100 sit-ups; 50 push-ups; ending with 3 minutes of deep breathing exercise. Following this with 30 minutes of meditation, prior to breakfast, is a phenomenal way to start my day. 7. They Sleep Adequately. All successful business people experience those late nights, early morning meetings and last minute deadlines that require their immediate attention. However, don’t underestimate the value of a good night’s sleep. It will recharge not just your body, but your mind as well, and your ability to address challenging issues will be substantially enhanced. I am reminded of the experiences I had as an undergraduate in college. When I was behind on my studies in a given subject the evening beFigure 2: Happy, Successful People feed Their Mind
fore an exam, I experimented with the two most common approaches of dealing with this issue – pull and “all-nighter” of study, or go to sleep early and wake up early for fewer, but higher quality hours of study. The latter approach always won out. Sleep deprivation increases stress hormones that have a negative impact on your self-control, attention span, logic and memory. Some studies show that continued sleep deprivation can lead to heart disease, mental illness and psychosis. Sleep is the means by which the brain renews itself. 8. They Learn Something New Every Day. Successful happy people love learning [Figure 2]. They challenge themselves continuously to uncover new ideas and concepts. Although they study areas relevant to their field of endeavor, they also seek knowledge in areas of personal interest, and this keeps their brains agile, active, creative and sharp. It might be history, a new language or any of a vast number of areas of personal interest. These pursuits are almost always matters of personal satisfaction and mental stimulation, and not a means to impress others. Your brain is like a muscle, if you don’t use it, you lose it! 9. They Breathe. Breathing correctly is a form of meditation and can alter your state of consciousness so that just about any stress can be managed [Figure 3]. More than 2,000 years ago, Eastern wisdom seekers developed a detailed set of breathing techniques called Pranayama.4 The word comes from prana, which in Sanskrit means “life force.” While you must be properly skilled in these procedures so that you don’t cause physical or mental damage, there are several simple safe procedures that immediately relieve stress and bring you back to your center. The simplest is to sit in a chair in a quiet place and slowly inhale deeply for 10 seconds; hold your breath for 5 seconds and then slowly exhale for 10 seconds. Try to stay focused on your breath, and each time you are distracted with a thought, come back to your breath focus. The very best way to do this exercise is what is known as complete breathing. Start your inhalation by expanding your diaphragm outwards [extend tummy out, not in]; continue a smooth inhalation into the mid-section of your lungs; and finally into the top section by raising your shoulders slightly. Then, reverse the process. Five minutes of this will relieve just about any stress and bring you back to your center focus. 10. They Connect & Disconnect Wisely. Happy successful people are careful not to get caught up in a 21st century disease which I call “connectosis.” They recognize the power of connectivity and its access to huge levels of useful information and a means to reach millions of people. However, they schedule their up and their down times and they use these times wisely. They set specific times of the day for answering emails, holding meetings and for doing their creative work. During the latter, they turn off automated alerts for email, Twitter and instant messages, because they know they are one of the biggest causes of interruptions. They understand and embrace research findings that show that recovery from an interruption requires several unproductive minutes to get back to your prior depth of concentration.
enlightenment
Figure 3:Happy, Successful People expand Their Spirit
The practice of each of these 10 habits varies to some degree among successful happy people; however, all are prevalent to a meaningful level. I encourage you to give them a try. Sat, Chit, Ananda! Enjoy your journey, make a difference!
1. http://emmons.faculty.ucdavis.edu/gratitude-and-wellbeing/. 2. Travis Bradberry, http://www.forbes.com/sites/travisbradberry/2014/02/06/how-successful-people-stay-calm/. 3. James A. Cusumano, BALANCE: The Business-Life Connection, SelectBooks, New York, 2013. 4. William Walker Atkinson, The Hindu-Yogi Science of Breath, a public domain book, free as a Kindle version on www. Amazon.Com.
James A. Cusumano (www.JamesCusumano.Com) is Chairman and Owner of Chateau Mcely (www.ChateauMcely.Com), chosen in 2007 by the European Union as the only “Green” 5-star luxury hotel in Central and Eastern Europe and in 2008 by the World Travel Awards as The World’s Leading Green Hotel. It is home to Chateau Mcely Forum™ (www.ChateauMcelyForum. Com) which offers programs that teach the principles of Inspired Leadership. He is a former Research Director for Exxon, and subsequently founded two public companies in Silicon Valley, one in clean power generation, the other in pharmaceuticals manufacture via environmentally-benign, low-cost, catalytic technologies. While he was Chairman and CEO, the latter – Catalytica Pharmaceuticals, Inc. – grew in less than 5 years, to a $1 billion enterprise with 2,000 employees. He is coauthor of Freedom from Mid-East Oil, released in 2007 by World Business Academy Press (www. WorldBusiness.Org) and author of Cosmic Consciousness – A Journey to Well-being, Happiness and Success, published in English and Czech by Fortuna Libri, 2011. His new book, BALANCE: The Business—Life Connection was published in 2013 by SelectBooks in New York City. It was published in Czech in October 2013 by Fortuna Libri.
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