Lighten Your Day; Professor Pete Alexander

Professor Pete Alexander knows how to help you lighten your day. He is an author, TEDx speaker, adjunct college professor, certified Laughter  Yoga leader, and improv comedy cast member. He is also the President of the greatest interior landscaping company in the San Francisco Bay Area – Office Plants by Everything Grows. Professor Pete helps inspire his students to develop and apply key concepts of marketing specifically to their area of interest. He supports his community by helping them laugh more and stress less. Professor Pete has had significant training in neurolinguistic programming (NLP). His most recent book is called, LIGHTEN Your Day: Fast, Easy, and Effective Stress Relief For When Sh&t; Happens.

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Contact Info

Website: wwwPeteAlexander.com

Book: LIGHTEN Your Day: Fast, Easy, and Effective Stress Relief For When Sh&t; Happens by Professor Pete Alexander

Most Influential Person

A professor I had back when I was getting my bachelor's degree

Effect On Emotions

I used to react immediately and usually in a negative way. And so mindfulness now for me is going back to being in the present.

And there's a note on my monitor that basically reminds me, do not believe your thoughts  because if we get wrapped up in all of our emotions,  we potentially are going to say the wrong thing.

And so being mindful and being present helps. And sometimes we say the words wrong. We can't get them back. It's too late.

Thoughts On Breathing

I like to call it the box method. So if we think about a square, what  to do for deep breathing, We can do deep breathing where you breathe all the way in and you make sure that if you can breathe out through your mouth. That's always the most beneficial way to breathe.

With The Box Method, count to at least four or five when you breathe in.  Then count to four or five when you breathe out.  Do it for only two times each, and you will automatically start getting calmer.

A visualization exercise can help you do a deep breath. Breathe in and then do a slow breath out. Go in your mind to a place where you like to relax.  You automatically start breathing slower that way. You are most likely going to be doing it in about four seconds.

So, think about it as a box.

Bullying Story

My story about bullying and how mindfulness would have made a difference, highlights how I dealt with a challenging coworker using the STOP method. STOP is an acronym. Stop, Take yourself away, Observe your feelings, Proceed. In a toxic open office, this person's behavior grated on me, pushing my stress levels through the roof.

When he criticized someone on my team, blaming me for their mistake, I felt ready to explode.

Remembering the STOP method, I walked away, took a breather, and analyzed my emotions.

Stepping back helped me avoid a pointless confrontation and present a composed response later.

It's crucial not to react impulsively in such situations; this method isn't just for work, it's a valuable tool for handling any confrontational person, even in personal relationships.

Suggested Resources

Book: LIGHTEN Your Day: Fast, Easy, and Effective Stress Relief For When Sh&t; Happens by Professor Pete Alexander

Book: The SPEED of Trust: The One Thing That Changes Everything by Stephen M .R. Covey

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