Summer marks vacation time. For many, it’s the season to press pause on the pace of life that threatens to overwhelm us. But it’s funny. As much as we enjoy vacations and really need to get off the merry-go-round, we often find ourselves just as tired after a vacation as we were when we left. Sure, we could blame it on the logistics of traveling in a post-911 world. But that in and of itself can’t explain the dull realization that a vacation just might not be enough. Consider that in our haste to give our bodies a break, we neglect an important truth: our souls need some rest too.

The soul—an intricate dance of mind, will and emotions—operates at a high level of engagement. Life places its demands, and the soul struggles to keep up. Life throws the unexpected curve ball, and the soul feels the sting. Worse yet, we tell yourself we can handle this struggle until the devastating consequences of a soul gone off the rails start to show up in our health, in the way we behave and in the choices we make.

But getting your soul the rest it needs does not have to be impossible or even difficult. It simply requires that you make a decision that your current state of being is not serving you. You know, without a shadow of a doubt, that you want something better for yourself.

If that describes you, the following tips can start you on the path to re-focus your attention on your soul.

1. Connect to your spirit to recharge.
2. On purpose, for a day, week or month, don’t murmur or complain.
3. Limit your exposure to people who drain your emotions.
4. Give yourself permission not to figure it out (you know what the “it” is).
5. Shift your focus to things you can control and away from things you can’t.
6. Guard your time; don’t add to your to-do list without taking something off.
7. Spend your time making memories with people you love.
8. Don’t fixate on social media unless it makes you feel happy and connected.
9. Say you are sorry or admit you were wrong.
10. Breathe (especially in the midst of a challenge or before a difficult conversation).
11. Summon your inner child and get your play on.
12. Get still—take time to disconnect from emails, texts, etc.
13. Get yourself off your mind and go help someone.
14. Share your gifts and talents.
15. Don’t talk trash about your body. Show it some love.
16. Fast from the desire to be right.
17. Stare down rejection and live through it.
18. Create something.
19. Speak to yourself with kind and power-filled words.
20. Believe.

Wishing you peace and love!