How to think clearly

In I can think clearly now, Luda Kopeikina points out that the path to clarity lies in improving your physical and mental state; you think better and make better decisions when you are:
- Physically relaxed;
- Emotionally positive, happy, and released from fear and anxiety;
- Charged with power, success, self-confidence, and energy;
- Totally in the present;
- Mentally focused on the task at hand.

Kopeikina identifies three bad habits (often masquerading as positive traits) that can cloud your thinking and decision making. She also offers alternatives that can improve your clarity of mind:

Bad Habit #1: Multitasking
In most business positions, multitasking is considered an essential skill. The problem with multitasking is that you never completely focus on anything.

Alternative: Do tasks consecutively
Concentrate fully on one item before moving onto the next. By concentrating solely on one item, you will be able to get through your to-do list more quickly than if your attention is scattered.

Bad Habit #2: Being Competitive with Others
You have no control over how smart or ambitious or connected someone else is, so don’t waste your energy focusing on it.

Alternative: Compete only with yourself.
Push yourself to excel at your job, learn new skills, and develop new talents. Do your research, brush up on your knowledge, and invest your time in self-improvement — not worrying about your competition.

Bad Habit #3: Working Constantly
Through technology, we are better connected to our jobs now than ever before. Our work is with us all the time. Cell phones, pagers and laptops make it all too easy to work when we shouldn’t be.

Alternative: Make time to regenerate
You need to save some mental, physical, and emotional resources to regenerate, think, and strategize for the future. Make yourself unavailable as often as you can. Resist the urge to “just check email” five times a day when you’re on vacation. Let your phone calls go into voice mail.

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