Want a quick way to stay calm in stressful situations?

Since it seems so many people these days are either overly sensitive, less patient or quicker to anger these days… I’ve put together a simple exercise sequence to ground yourself and think clearly when people test your patience. The goal is less strain, more flow through your day — and this sequence is one of the most direct ways to get there.

It’s also the best thing you can do during your busy workday to release stress, clear your mind and harness your energy in 5 – 10 minutes. If you’re looking for even more ways to decompress, check out these 3 strategies to release stress and restore flow that pair beautifully with this reset.

It’s one of my most popular midday resets. It’s a must have in any driven entrepreneur’s self-care toolkit… and I think you’ll love it too. If you want a fast, body-based way to drop into that calm state, you can also get grounded fast with belly drumming — another powerful reset I teach my students.

My students use it to cut through overwhelm, to be less reactive in challenging relationships, and even to stand strong and hold their own during important negotiations. If you want to take this further, explore the 3 steps to master your brain, body & business — the next level of applying this energy work to every area of your life.

And, even though it’s a starter exercise, after 20 years of sharing it with students, I still use it too.

I do a lot of writing and find it’s great for clearing writer’s block.

I ALWAYS do it before I go on stage… like the first time I went on the TEDx stage in front of a live audience of over 5 thousand people.

That’s because I knew it was a reliable method to get focused on harnessing MY energy so I could carry the energy of such a massive group. And it did. They were so engaged in experiencing their own ki-energy for the first time, by then end, you could have heard a pin drop.

In Traditional Chinese Medicine and the Tao Healing Arts:

 There’s a principle Adepts and Healers call; water up, fire down energy condition. This connects deeply to the Metal element’s role in releasing emotional triggers — a key layer of the Five Element system that explains why some reactions run so deep.

It involves  bringing the fire energy that wanders up from your heart to your head, when you’re thinking too much, making you hotheaded or sluggish,  down to your lower abdomen, your core… to ignite your physical energy. See: Release Stress With Water Up – Fire Down Energy Condition

And, just like a Tao Adept every time you use it, you’ll find you’re becoming less affected or controlled by the daily situations that come up in running your business and managing your life. If you want to deepen this practice, you can use 5 Elements Qigong to harmonize body, mind & spirit — the next layer of this ancient system for lasting calm and resilience.

As the fire energy gathers in your core, it warms your kidneys which sends water energy up your back channel. Restoring your stress response

This “Water Energy” then flows up behind your neck and cools your brain. Providing you with a crystal-clear state of awareness and focus.

The “Fire Energy” in your belly, gets you centered and grounded while harnessing your physical energy for stability, power and impact