Reset Your Day

A new computer, when installed and activated, works very well because the memory is not cluttered with multiple programs, all demanding the attention and resources of the CPU(The chip that runs the computer). But as more and more programs get activated, the system performance deteriorates slowly but steadily. When the CPU is overworked, the computer spews out heat as it tries to deal with the demands of the different applications.

The best way to restore the efficiency of the computer involves three simple steps.
One- save all the data that is open under each of the applications,
Two- Close all the applications
Three- Restart the computer.

In many ways, a human being is a computer with a consciousness.
Like the computer, there are times when there are multiple issues and challenges we grapple with, leading to feeling challenged and stressed. As a result, our mind feels overwhelmed, and we feel low. Nothing around us excites us, and we have to drag ourselves through the day.

A computer can be reset. So what can we do to reset ourselves without necessarily going on that elusive holiday we have been promising ourselves?

How do we save the “work in progress” data and switch off the applications so that we can start the next day clean and fresh?

I have a simple ritual to deal with this predicament.

Every night before I hit the bed, I sit silently and reflect on how I spent my day chronologically from morning to night. What did I do well, and what could I have done better? Did I focus on the critical tasks or not? Was there something I missed doing that I should have done?

Doing a mental inventory of the day that went by is an exercise is akin to shutting down the different applications on the computer. During the process, sometimes my mind often reminds me of some open items bothering me. I have a journal by my bedside, and I note those issues in it.

The process is cathartic and allows me to reset my day every day.