Business Practice (and Busiless Practice)

These two practices serve different purposes, but they can also work together. We clear space out of a cluttered schedule or idea list, and then zoom in on the things we want to prioritize.
If you don't know this about me, I love etymology. If I bristle at an ugly word like 'business,' I look it up, give it some context, some history, and I often (not always) feel more compassion for the word. This works for people, too, by the way. 

Business: 
Old English bisignes 
14th century "care, anxiety, diligence,"  "state of being much occupied or engaged" 
late 16th century. "what one is about at the moment" 
17th century, "matters which occupy one's time and attention." 

Now this has turned into a practice of setting intentions.

A Mindful Business Practice
As if you were in the business of being you,
use a pen and paper and ask yourself:

• What are my core values?
• What is my vision?
• What is my mission statement?
• What do I need to do to do to follow through on my mission statement, vision and core values?

The answer to the last question is your business. It is what occupies your time. It is how you engage in your day. It's what you're about at the moment. And anytime you meet yourself at the moment, you are practicing mindfulness.
If you feel stuck on any of the questions, you can look up prompts for how businesses bring together ideas. It might start as just a list of words or phrases that are meaningful to you, and eventually you create a coherent and succinct sentence. I'm still working on mine, here: Kaitlynn's Mission
You can write out your business, pin it somewhere you will see it, or memorize the contents. When a decision comes your way, and you're not sure the course of action: how do you adhere to your mission? When you have a message that's been waiting for a response: what will maintain your core values? When you have some free time in your schedule: What activity will follow your vision? (Or is it the absence of activity?)

Business Practice Worksheet

Last year I had an intention of creating space. Funny enough, this relates to a lost word: busiless, ("At leisure; without business; unemployed.") A Mindful Busiless Practice might be more pertinent to you right now, that's okay!! For me, I needed to clear away excess, to figure out priorities, and conserve energy whenever possible. It took the whole year to feel any significant progress, but now that I can see a little bit of clearing, I decided I'm ready to mindfully add business in the things that I truly value.

A Mindful Busiless Practice

• What can I let go of? (physical, mental, or emotional activities)
• What part of my day can I intentionally reserve to do nothing?
• What activities help me to feel calm or clear, and can I reserve space to do nothing before or after? (hiking, running, playing music, reading, journaling, yoga, doing dishes, etc.)
• Set a timer for 2-10 minutes and literally do absolutely nothing until that timer goes off.