How busy are you these days? You might be enjoying a summer vacation or winter holidays and have plenty of time for your vocabulary study (because you did take your flash cards to the beach, didn’t you?). On the other hand, you might be juggling a full-time job, meetings for your church or community groups, school events and homework for your children – or yourself! – and the pressure of having a to-do list that gets longer every time you look at it. In this situation, it’s often very tempting to put your English vocabulary improvement at the bottom of the list in the hopes that will reduce the stress and anxiety. However, if you can find another way to regain your equanimity, you’ll be able to keep working on your vocabulary skills even in the middle of your most hectic days.

The word equanimity comes from from the Latin root words aequus (“equal”) and animus (“spirit”). With a spirit of equanimity, you are even-tempered, and able to handle anything that comes your way whether positive or negative. Equanimity means being calm and stable, especially under stress. If you can gain equanimity you will find it easier to balance all of the tasks of the day, and you won’t lose time fretting about things that seem like they’re going wrong.

Gaining even a little bit of spare time can relieve your mental pressure, so why not build that in to your study routine? Remember, what’s important is that you’re committed to daily vocabulary study. If you have to shorten your recommended 15-minute minimum study time to incorporate a 5-minute meditation break, we encourage you to do so. With a calm mind, you’ll be in much better shape to learn, and you won’t be as distracted by the other things you may be worrying about.

You can use this 5-minute break to clear your head of all its clutter. Sit or lie down, close your eyes, and breath deeply. If you find it hard to shut out all of the worries and the to-do lists, pick a peaceful word or image to focus on. We like the words ineffable and harmony and alabaster as meditation words – they’re easy to repeat, and bring up images of light and music, poetry and purity.

Return refreshed to your study, your equanimity restored, and with the confidence that the ten minutes you’ve just spent on your vocabulary study will contribute to your success at work and at home, which is guaranteed to reduce your stress for good!