Friday. The day when we wrap up our work commitments and replace stressful moments with peaceful ones, connecting with our loved ones.

Even though I absolutely love what I do, I often look forward to weekends simply because I can dedicate more time to my soul and inner self. I give myself that permission.

To successfully begin my well-deserved weekend, every Friday I follow my grounding ritual that creates a clear boundary between my work life and personal moments.

How do I ground myself every Friday?

When I finish my last workday of the week, I turn off my computer, tidy up my desk and workspace, and prepare it for Monday.

But before I close my office door, I take a few moments for myself.

I put on some peaceful meditation music and light a candle over which I burn the smudging herb that resonates most with me at that moment, the one whose help I seek. This week it's desert sage, which will help remove stress from my space and body.

I walk around my office and energetically cleanse the space where I spend most of my time. Then I sit on the floor, place the burning herb in a bowl in front of me, and take a few moments for quiet meditation.

My Friday meditation process

I dedicate the first few moments of meditation to mental gratitude. I give thanks for everything that happened in the past week. For all the good moments, and also those that taught me something.

Then I begin to focus on capturing all the negative feelings and stress that reside in my mind and body with each breath. With each exhale, I release these feelings.

I imagine each inhale as a ladle that completely captures negativity, and each exhale as pouring that negativity away.

When my thoughts are completely empty, when the bad feelings leave my body, I spend the next few minutes breathing and clearing my mind. If a thought jumps into my head, I notice it but let it pass. I give myself space to breathe. I take time for myself.

As I finish my meditation, I dedicate the final moments to visualization. This ensures that my body and thoughts remain aligned with the goals I want to achieve.

Closing with visualization

While visualizing my goals, I try to imagine myself in a specific situation, in a specific place. With closed eyes, I transport myself to a different time and focus on the emotions I experience in that moment.

When I feel the power of visualization deep in my core, I slowly begin to end the meditation.

I thank myself for taking this time for self-care, slowly open my eyes, take a deep breath in and out, and leave my workspace.

In the light of this meditation, my weekend becomes relaxed. I gather energy for the coming week, and thanks to visualization, I start my Monday optimistically and full of energy.

What's your Friday ritual?