How to Live a "Spa-like" Life

by WiredBerries Editors — January 7, 2008

Who better than spa owners know how to create a relaxing experience? According to them, you can bring the spa home with you with some simple tips on how to live your life like you just stepped out of a spa--relaxed, centered, and serene.

Set up routines that you're comfortable with, like setting aside a specific time when you check your voicemail and return calls, rather than doing these tasks on and off all day long. If you have times set aside for things, they won't be "nagging" at the back of your mind.

"It's about organizing like tasks to promote a sense of focus," spa consultant Sylvia Sepielli says. "Doing this allows you to be more effective and less frazzled. You accomplish just as much, but you don't feel scattered."

Remember to schedule time outdoors every now and then. Remember how much you loved recess in grade school? It wasn't just the playground; it was the break from routine, the fresh air, the change of scenery. "Spending time outside can really help recharge your batteries," Sepielli says. "You'll notice that bringing the outdoors into the everyday is a huge theme at virtually every spa anywhere in the world."

Consider planning outdoor time as a first-thing-in-the-morning pick-me-up. If you can't drag yourself out of bed, find another time of day to walk, run, or sit outside. "You can read the mail on your porch or do yoga on your deck," Mike McAdams, the owner and designer of the ultra-luxurious Lake Austin Spa Resort in Austin, Texas says. "The important thing is that you bring a little bit of the outdoors into your everyday life."

Although it may sound like a chore, getting organized is actually a big boon to living a spa-like life. "We teach our guests that, with organization, everything is possible," says Emmanuelle Arroya, program director for Willow Stream Spa at Fairmont Mayakoba in Cancun. "We work on breaking things down into small goals -- giving priority to the hardest, most important tasks, which you should do first, and looking for places where you can delegate or get assistance. Then, it's a matter of simply going down the list."

By following the advice to go through your to-do list one by one, from hardest to easiest (after breaking down the really big ones into smaller chores), you rarely have to do truly difficult things. Better yet, things will get progressively easier as you go. Make sure that, every time you achieve a goal or finish a task, you take a relaxing moment to celebrate and reward yourself on a job well done.