Today we are living in a fast paced world. There is a mad rush for everything. Smart phones have made 24 x 7 working hours a reality. Then we have a whole lot of advisors who advise us on anything from dresses, life style, meditation, food, spirituality, yoga etc. But we need not take everything at face value. There is no need to believe that all the advise that is rendered is 100% true. One has to take all the advices with a pinch of salt.

Get up early in the morning. Do yoga and meditation exercises. Then go for a brisk walk. Return home, take bath, say your prayers and then have your breakfast. Then drive your way to work. At some point of time, a breakdown is imminent. Our body is not a machine. The mind and body both need to relax. Perfectionists have it even worse because they believe flexibility is an expression of their weakness. But nothing can be father from the truth. It is true that discipline gives us freedom and a desultory life does not take us anywhere. Our Indian epics and mythologies can be a well spring of information from which we can draw inspiration from. Excessive attachment to things, irrational fears and sudden anxiety attacks are a result of bugaboos. I know it is difficult but instead of being harsh with them, it is better to be benevolent to such thoughts.

It is often said that mind is a monkey that has to be kept in check. Otherwise the mind can run riot. A scholar has even said, " Our mind is often filled with garbage that we need to shed from time to time." The mind can become confused due to kerfuffle between different schools of thought rendering advise on the same topic. In all cases, calming one's mind is the best technique. It may need you to move away from a situation that is causing you distress.

Before we display kindness to others, we must be kind to ourselves. We must eschew feelings like hatred, jealousy, fear, greed etc because these emotions can cause you great discomfort in your advancing years. We need to learn to forgive people. Why not forgive ourselves first? Here are 5 steps that you can follow to beat the blues:

1. Life is not about deadlines.

Enjoy every moment of life. Failure is a stepping stone. Failure shows that you are only a few steps away from success. Failure is better than inaction. Be flexible with your daily routine. If one of the days, you are unable to do yoga, it is fine. There is no need to feel guilty about it.

2. Forgive people.

Not everyone is perfect and that includes you. Learn to forgive people and focus on the positive side. When you forgive people, you relieve yourself of a great burden. When God is so forgiving in nature, why can't we mortals adopt a more lenient approach? Don't analyse too much.

3. Stop overthinking

Overthinking ruins you. It ruins the situation, twists things around, makes you worry and just makes everything much worse than it actually is. Often overthinking becomes a dirty habit. To overcome this habit, keep yourself busy reading, writing or listening to music or watching an old Bollywood movie that you had enjoyed watching during your childhood.

4. Relaxing your mind is as important as relaxing your body.

Rather than watching an inane TV serial that makes no sense, can't you devote 15 minutes in a day meditating and focusing on the breath? This will be extremely beneficial in the long run and enable you to stay away from psychosomatic illnesses. Music and cooking have therapeutic powers. Even if you are not an expert at cooking, you can make a small beginning. YouTube D-I-Y (do it yourself) videos are now available online that can make cooking a breezy affair.

5. Follow a passion to avoid burnout

Always have a passion outside of your work that can energise and excite you. Before you grumble "Where is the time for all that?" let me assure you that it is certainly not impossible. You need to become an expert in the art of stealing time. If you can intelligently man oeuvre the manner in which you are spending your time, you will soon realize the non productive slots that are draining away your energy and leading to astronomical wastage of time.

Last but not the least, smile more often because nothing can substitute for a disarming smile. Laughter is the best medicine in this world. Learn to relax and you will find that life is more beautiful than what you had imagined.