What’s 5 min?

Lately, I’ve been trying to build some spontaneity into my life. Routine is good, but when you feel like your day is the same always, it can slowly chip away at your passion for life. So, to get out of the pattern of work-sleep-eat-mother-clean, I’ve decided to be ok with pressing pause on my life for 5 minutes (or so). We seem to think we never have time for anything. Re-framing it in my mind and allowing myself to realize I can spare 5 min for my sanity has allowed me to build these little moments of spontaneity in.

This week, this is what it’s looked like:

A Solo Coffee At Starbucks, on my way to pick up my minis

A Visit To The Rogers Center, Since I was already downtown to renew our business license)

I Finished A Book, After tossing and turning for a few minutes, I decided to turn on a light and read for an extra few minutes

An Extra Facial Mask Before Bed, since I was already going to cleanse, tone and moisturize I figured why not glam it up with an evening mask

Got A Blanket Out And Laid In My Backyard, after lunch, I figured I could spare some time for vitamin D

It turns out, that these 5min breaks from my daily routine ended up in practices of self-care. That little coffee break, small adventure to the rink, taking time to read, my skincare routine and some time in the sun didn’t take away from any of my daily tasks yet enhanced my life and decreased my stress substantially. Breaking a routine builds a bit of novelty into your daily life. I typically struggle with overworking myself and not recognizing when what I’m doing is actually starting to become unproductive. Taking these 5 min spontaneity breaks has allowed my to reset my focus and come back to my tasks with more clarity on what needs to get done. It’s not much but the benefit is tangible. My headspace over the last week along with my speed of work has gone up but most of all, my passion and joy for life itself is back in full swing.

I encourage you to take 5 min a day over the next week as a spontaneity time out. Take some time to notice how it helps. Hopefully it’s as great for you as it is for me!