The Military Method, Step by Step

This is the pilots' routine in full, and it works because it relaxes you from the outside in before quieting your mind.

Start with your face. Unclench your forehead, cheeks, jaw, and tongue — most people hold tension here without noticing. Let your shoulders drop, then loosen each arm from shoulder to fingertips. Breathe out and soften your chest, then release your legs from thighs to toes.

With your body limp, give your mind one job for about ten seconds: picture a slow-drifting cloud, or a dark, quiet room, or simply repeat the words "don't think." Anything that leaves no room for tomorrow's worries. Like any skill, it sharpens with a few weeks of nightly practice.