Is It Possible to Find Peace During a Period of High Stress? #135

If you’re going through a period of high stress and you can’t just take time off, this episode is about how to create genuine pockets of peace anyway. I’ve been experimenting with some ridiculously simple ways of switching off properly after work, and somehow I’ve ended up having some of the most peaceful moments I’ve experienced in years.

A lot of it comes down to removing stimulation; shutting the laptop, turning the phone off and basically doing nothing for a bit. That’s also led to some pretty strange moments of presence, including feeling weirdly connected to a dog and walking through the sea thinking the waves felt almost alive. It’s not about learning to tolerate an unsustainable life; it’s about finding peace while you’re working your way through a difficult chapter.

If this one's got you thinking about what chapter you're in right now, I built something for exactly that.

The Chapter System: https://bit.ly/4gw6m6x

If you like this type of episode, you'll probably like any of the following: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMebuClQRf09omZ7V629URAvyHG0KxIH_

Chapters:

00:00 Can stress and peace exist at the same time?

01:30 Making the most of limited downtime

02:54 “But you live in paradise”

03:31 Knowing when to stop working

04:45 The simplest way I’ve found to switch off

08:47 Getting your phone out of the equation

11:25 Replacing your phone with a journal

12:38 When ordinary life starts feeling vivid

13:48 “I felt like a dog”

15:55 When the ocean felt alive

17:56 Extreme work needs extreme rest

18:48 Don’t use this to tolerate an unsustainable life

19:26 Eustress, “dick stress” and losing the plot

20:00 Stress doesn’t have to disappear to feel peace

🎙️ MY STUFF

The Chapter System (the PDF):

https://bit.ly/4gw6m6x

All my other stuff: https://awakenoutofcontext.com