Stop, Breathe, Be
Use a three-second reset between meetings to switch from sympathetic to parasympathetic
- Difficulty
- Starter
- Time to result
- ~days to results
- Steps
- 5
- Confidence
- 83%
Stop, Breathe, Be is Nerurkar's entry-level breathing reset, designed for the moments between tasks in a high-density schedule. She learned it as a busy medical resident and used it between knocking on a patient's door and turning the knob. The mechanism rests on a single physiological fact she emphasizes: breath is the only mechanism in the body under both voluntary and involuntary control, so deliberately slowing the inhale and lengthening the exhale can switch the nervous system from sympathetic fight or flight to parasympathetic rest and digest, states she says cannot operate at the same time. Used as a bookend before or after every meeting, the three-second reset becomes a low-lift habit that grounds the practitioner between commitments and keeps the mind where the feet are.
Origin
Extracted from The Diary of a CEO
Core principles
- 01The breath is the only bodily mechanism under both voluntary and involuntary control
- 02Slow belly breathing activates the parasympathetic rest and digest system
- 03Sympathetic and parasympathetic systems cannot run simultaneously
- 04A three-second reset is enough to flip the switch in the moment
- 05Bookending mundane repetitive tasks with the reset builds the habit
How to run it
- 1
Pick a repetitive trigger
Choose a mundane, repetitive transition point, such as before a Zoom meeting, before knocking on a door, or after a call, as the anchor for the reset.
Pro tip Mundane repetitive tasks are where Nerurkar says the reset works best.
- 2
Stop
Pause whatever you are doing for about three seconds before the next commitment begins.
Pro tip The cue can be whispered as stop, breathe, be until it becomes automatic.
- 3
Breathe
Take one slow breath, inhaling through the nose and letting the belly expand, then exhaling slowly through pursed lips or the nose.
Pro tip Aim for the exhale to be slow; some yogic traditions make the exhale double the inhale.
- 4
Be
Remain present for the remainder of the three seconds rather than rehearsing the next task.
Pro tip Keep your mind where your feet are during the pause.
- 5
Bookend every commitment
Repeat the reset before or after every meeting so the habit accumulates across the day.
Pro tip For Bartlett's zero-gap calendar, Nerurkar suggests the reset before or after each meeting as a bookend.
In the wild
As a busy resident, Nerurkar performed stop, breathe, be in the moment between knocking on an exam-room door and turning the knob, a three-second reset that primed her brain and body for the patient encounter.
→ The reset gave her a sense of presence before each patient without requiring a long break.
Nerurkar says she still uses the reset constantly, including right before walking into the building and right before sitting down for the interview, as the mic was being fixed.
→ A three-second reset kept her grounded and present before a high-stakes recording.
Common mistakes
Waiting for a long break that never arrives
The framework is built for three seconds, not for the ten-minute breaks you keep postponing; waiting for a long gap defeats the design.
Rehearsing the next task during the pause
Using the three seconds to mentally rehearse the next meeting keeps the sympathetic system running and discards the parasympathetic switch.
Is it for you?
Best for
People with packed calendars who cannot block ten-minute breaks but can take three seconds.
Not ideal for
Treating the reset as a substitute for clinical care during acute anxiety or panic attacks.
From the transcript
“stop whatever you're doing. Breathe. And be. It's 3 seconds.”
“the breath is the only physiological mechanism in our body that is under voluntary and involuntary control.”
“you can try stop breathe be after before or after every single meeting as a bookend.”
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