Harmony at Work

We often feel that there is not enough time for us to finish everything—or anything! In this article Swami Kriyananda touches on a new way to view time. He then offers tips on how to achieve calmness—and get your work done—when under intense time pressure.

Time is, of course, essential to our perception of the things of this world. Nevertheless, great yogis have all described time as a delusion. It certainly seems real, however, to all of us. Time is even logically sequential: we see past becoming present, and present reaching out to become the future.

What is important here is that it is possible to adjust our concept of time to our actual needs. We can narrow time, or expand it. Our concept of it may concern some problem of the moment, or it may flow freely toward solution-consciousness, carrying us lightly over the abyss of delusion.

Some goals, indeed, may press upon us in terms of the time we have available for reaching them. If, however, we can keep in mind the truth that whatever happens is really happening right now, then the idea that time is a requirement for getting everything done is no longer a problem, for “right now” becomes the only time in which one can do the work at all.

Suppose, for example, you work in an office where people make frequent and urgent demands on your time. Assuming that you are an employee and can’t ignore the demands coming from “up top”—though leadership, far more than most people realize, is by no means a liberating position—the solution is to respond from your inner center. Here is the interesting thing: From your center, you will be able to shift directions quickly and thus be more efficient in everything you do. I do not counsel drifting through life, like a cloud, wrapped in some private dream. People who are never flustered are of two types: the inwardly calm, and those vague “exhibits” who drift along so languidly that they end up complete non-achievers.

Here are some tips for how to face an urgent deadline:

Breathe deeply.
Center your energy in your spine.
Expect inspiration and inner guidance.
Act from inner clarity; don’t merely react.
Stay centered in the moment.
Keep your energy focused.
Do one thing at a time.

If fear strikes…

Imagine the worst that could happen. Accept it.
Keep perspective. How will you feel in 3 months?
Vow that time will not impede you.

Copyright © Hansa Trust. All rights reserved.

Excerpted from “Immediate versus Long-Range Goals”, which is Lesson 8 of the course Success and Happiness through Yoga Principles.

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Tags: deadline, productivity, stress, time management

This entry was posted on Friday, July 17th, 2009 at 9:13 am and is filed under productivity, success course, techniques. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.