Two Minutes Can Make a Difference: Simple Ways to Lighten the Weight
Last week, I had the privilege of giving the keynote at the 30th Annual Wisconsin Crisis Intervention Conference, “The Weight We Carry.”
It was an opportunity to talk about something that deserves far more attention: the emotional weight carried by the people who spend their days helping others through difficult moments.
Crisis professionals, first responders, clinicians, supervisors, and others working in high-stress environments are constantly responding, problem-solving, supporting, and making decisions. The work can be incredibly meaningful. It can also take a toll.
And while we often hear that we need to “practice self-care,” that advice can feel unrealistic when the calendar is full, someone needs you, and the next crisis is already unfolding.
So during the keynote, I emphasized something much more practical:
Self-care doesn't always have to require an hour.
Sometimes you have two minutes. Use them.
What Can You Do in Two Minutes?
Sometimes the simplest actions can give our minds and bodies a brief interruption from the stress we're carrying.
😊 Smile.Even when you don't particularly feel like it. The physical act of smiling can provide feedback to the brain that may help shift your emotional state. Think of it as a tiny interruption in the stress cycle.
😂 Laugh out loud.Find the ridiculous video. Call the coworker who always makes you laugh. Laughter changes your breathing, releases physical tension, and gives your mind a moment to focus on something other than the problem in front of you.
🎶 Sing loudly, for all to hear.In the car. In the kitchen. Behind a closed office door if necessary! Singing combines controlled breathing, vocalization, and rhythm. It also requires your brain to shift its attention. For a couple of minutes, you're doing something completely different from managing the next problem.
🦸 Try the superhero pose.Stand tall. Put your hands on your hips. Open your chest. Take up a little space and simply notice how your body feels. You don't have to feel particularly heroic. The point is to intentionally change your posture and reconnect with your body rather than staying trapped in your thoughts.
💭 Use a mantra.This too shall pass.I can only control what I can control.One thing at a time.
A few simple words can interrupt the mental spiral and help bring your attention back to the present moment.
💃 Shake it off. Literally.Stand up and move. Shake your arms. Roll your shoulders. Walk around the building. Dance for one song. Stress isn't experienced only in our thoughts. We often feel it physically, too. Give some of that energy somewhere to go.
There is an important distinction here.
We should never use self-care as a way of telling people to simply become better at tolerating unhealthy levels of stress.
At Silver Linings International, we view well-being more broadly. It is relational, cultural, structural, and ongoing. Workplace culture, leadership practices, psychological safety, access to support, and the systems surrounding employees all influence their ability to thrive.
That is particularly important in crisis and human-services work.
Organizations have a responsibility to create environments where people feel safe asking for help, communicating honestly, setting appropriate boundaries, and acknowledging when the weight is becoming too heavy.
And individuals still need practical tools for the moments when stress inevitably shows up.
Both things can be true.
We can work toward healthier organizations while also giving ourselves permission to take two minutes in the middle of a difficult day.
One of the most useful shifts we can make is to stop thinking about decompression as something we do only after we've reached our limit.
Build tiny moments of regulation into the day.
Two minutes before the next meeting.
Two minutes after a difficult conversation.
Two minutes before walking into the house after work.
Two minutes when you notice your shoulders creeping toward your ears and realize you've been holding your breath.
Sometimes those tools are about changing systems, strengthening leadership, building psychological safety, or creating healthier workplace cultures.
And sometimes the tool is much smaller. Smile. Laugh. Sing. Breathe. Move.
You don't have to solve everything in those two minutes. You don't even have to feel completely better.
Sometimes you simply need to give your mind and body a brief reminder:
