Breaking Through The Pressure Of Society’s Expectations
Sometimes I wonder how I got here. How did my liver decline to the point of needing to reverse it? How am I nearly 33 years old without one single child? Did I do something wrong? Or is this somehow all actually more right than I would like to give it credit for? These are the things I think about as a middle-aged female millennial. These are the overthinking, anxiety-inducing, stress-causing burdens that blur out the everyday tasks that we all blindly walk through…can you relate? Do you feel pressured by society to fit into a certain circle? Do you feel like if you were actually your truest self that it may not sit well with others? Why are we designed this way? And better yet, how do we do better? The Pressures of the Grind and Burnout I stare blankly at my brick walled fireplace wondering why this migraine persists although I am “not stressed.” It’s as if somehow the longer I stare, the more I find answers from within. We talked about this recently on the blog. About how we are all so busy all of the time. About how it’s nearly impossible to find time to “self-care” let alone to let yourself think. Meditation comes in many forms… Today, I fear I’m still facing the burnout. It lasts awhile, you see. Because for some amazing reason the human body is resilient. For some reason, even though every single morning when my alarm goes off for the daily grind, and I promise myself if I’m out earlier than expected that I WILL ABSOLUTELY nap…I don’t. I wait and wait and push and push until the point where the migraine sets in, until the point where all I can do is blankly stare at fireplaces hoping for the next adrenaline rush to kick in. But eventually, those run out…or the Red Bulls do. Why do we do this to ourselves? We’re all guilty of it in some way. Whether you run miles each day or bike in the gym classes or work 3 jobs to make ends meet. It looks like a busy parent at the end of the day low on coffee and high on advil. It’s the teacher frustrated that they can’t do more to share their skills. It looks like the teller at the bank dreading the next workday in this monotonous world they live in. We skip from rock to rock, trudging through life as if we’re on one of those long moving walkways that you see in airports…(and other busy places). It’s a theme, you see. The more busy life becomes, the more we’re unknowingly put on autopilot. Do you really want to live that way? More From HB: Unlearning A Fixed Mindset: Leaving Old Habits Behind The Questions Society Puts On Us My guess is no. No, you do not. At least I’m not going to. That’s one of the reasons for starting this blog. To track, to understand, to learn and evolve and hopefully help a few others along the way. This is a health blog, both mentally and physically. This is a mindfulness blog, a fitness and gardening and foodie blog, a being a freaking human in the world blog. Are you with me? So many times we’re told we have to choose. We have to dedicate all or nothing to one sport, one activity, one hobby, one topic, one job. I call BS. We are beautiful beings made of stardust and water for effs sake. Why in the universe are we limiting ourselves?? What is behind the pressure I feel to be a mom at a certain age? Why do I feel like if I don’t have kids by the time I’m 35 all hell will break loose and my body “won’t bounce back?” Why can’t I just feel comfortable trusting the process that I’m on the path that I need to be so that I can get my mind, body, and spirit in check before bringing another life into this world? If you feel it’s right, it probably is. Go with your gut, it’s your second brain after all. What is it that you’re looking for in life? What is it that you want to do now, 10 years from now, 50 years from now? Think big. Who’s stopping you, really? I don’t know what to title this post yet. It’s still a mystery. That’s why I love writing. It’s basically like life, in tiny little letters on your digital screen. Changing, rearranging, fixing, undoing, adding. There’s always something different that comes to mind to improve upon. So, instead of continuing to redline on the verge of bursting out of your skin, find something you can create. Mentally, physically, spiritually, emotionally. Let it take over and just grow wild. Who cares what they think, no one knows who “they” is anyway. My two cents is to start focusing on you. Stop being busy for the sake of being busy and let the universe guide you into who you need to be in this lifetime. Who do you think you were meant to be, anyway? Finding the Right Outlet I want to be an emotional writer, a good wife, a pet mom furever and someday a mom of more humans, a kind person, a helpful daughter, a fun soul, a big sister. I want to start embracing myself in ways I haven’t yet done. I’ve come a long way on my journey so far, but I’ve got miles and miles to go to the finish line…and there’s a whole lot of doing I have yet to do. If you’re a creative you may understand what I’m saying. I call it the “squeezy head” syndrome. It was derived from my previous dog, he would literally get so overwhelmed at times that he would squeeze his little forehead in such excitement and anxiety. That’s exactly how I feel sometimes. I get this feeling that my head is just full of ideas
Reigniting The Feeling: Visiting Your Previous Self & Understanding What’s Changed
Have you ever gotten stuck? I would almost guarantee that you’ve gotten stuck somewhere along this journey called life. It’s mental hell sometimes, and you know what? I’m right there with you. We’re going deeper today to look at experiencing a spiritual awakening. Are you ready? — A few years ago my spiritual life changed. I woke up one day from a nap with one of my current and one of my previous dogs. I was face down, and woke up in such a shift that I can literally still feel it. They say these things only happen in movies, or that people make them up. I don’t believe that anymore. Because it’s happened to me twice. The first time was over a decade ago. I was out the night before, drinking heavily and drowning in whatever sorrows I laid out at the time. This sucked, that sucked, everything sucked, so because of that, I tuned it all out. But I do remember one distinct memory, having a red solo cup of whatever that was with a person I once knew. The next morning I woke up the same exact way. Face down, pulling away from my bed inhaling hard and fast. I was having a panic attack, and visited the hospital a short time later. Soon after this experience, I planned my move home, started over, and met my future husband on the 2nd to last day I was in town. Talk about some unique timing. Now some of you may read this and think I’m talking about experiencing a spiritual awakening. And maybe that’s what it was. I’m going to chalk it up though to some not so great life choices and then a shift that pushed me into becoming a better person for myself and for those around me. It took some time, a lot of time. Discovering who I was and who I am and who I still will be is taking some hardcore efforts. You would think this kind of stuff should just come preprogrammed in your subconscious, right? Unfortunately, we just ride the rollercoaster until it takes us for a spin that’s not so fun and tells us to turn ourselves around. I feel like most all of you could relate in at least one way or another. This was the first turnaround for me. The first oh shit moment that propelled me into a “grown-up” life and realizing that I needed to start taking myself seriously. The next came a few years back as I mentioned previously, and this one I would actually consider a spiritual awakening…have you had one? Related: Unlearning A Fixed Mindset: Leaving Old Habits Behind For some, experiencing a spiritual awakening might feel like a sudden realization or deep shift in perspective. It’s often described as a transformative event that can alter one’s view on life and personal purpose. I’m talking about the moment you discover you’re meant for more, meant to enjoy life, not just live it. I’m talking about those moments that flutter so quickly by each day because we’re moving too damn fast to really live in them. You know the ones. Those are the ones you look back on and dread because you forgot they even existed. You hate yourself for always being “too busy” or dedicated to the grind and the hustle that it’s actually caused you to demolish any sense of reality you have left. It’s the times spent looking back on our time spent. It’s relishing in the moments we lived through so hastily and wanting them back so badly. It looks different to everyone, but it happens to most every human. We forget our passion projects, our love for things, our drive to do something. When I had that awakening, I woke up that morning and the first thought that came to me was that I needed to see a therapist. But not just any kind. I wasn’t even sure what kind. So, like any modern day millennial, I started googling. I scrolled for awhile until stumbling on a girl from a town I used to reside in. How ironic, I thought. Life just became full circle. I called immediately and was disappointed that she didn’t answer right away. You see, that’s the problem. We have such immediate gratitude these days, that waiting on absolutely anything that we want right freaking now, is a whole anxiety inducing experience. She eventually called back, and we set up a video call to see if we were the right fit. 3 years later, I still see her every few months. — Yesterday I was talking to a friend about how my creative mind was coming up dry. I have been frustrated for weeks because I loathe putting out content that isn’t authentic. I don’t write just for the sake of writing, I write because I love it. It’s freeing, magnificent, stress-relieving, and therapeutic. I write online because I want others to understand they’re not alone in this ridiculous world and that I feel what they feel. I write to strangers on the internet because we’re all alike more than we think. We all self-ridicule, criticize, compare and forget to relate. We focus on others success and forget that we have so many of our own to be proud of. During this conversation, I realized that the reason I’d been having writers block is because I forgot what I was passionate about. I forgot how important this blog, this journey was to begin with. I forgot why I started it. If you’re new here, I’ll share a quick reminder. A little while ago I experienced what I thought was a stroke. Turns out I was just stressed to the max and didn’t even know it. I’m pretty sure 90% of the population is the same way, which is why heart disease is so popular. We overwork, overcomplicate, and overbook ourselves literally to death and I’m here to stop myself *again* from doing that. Related: The
What Are Your Pillars? Mental, Physical, Emotional Health Foundations
Hey you. How are you doing? Mentally, physically, emotionally? Is all well or is one of these three pillars of your foundation on the brink of collapse? Let’s chat today about life in 2024 and how we’re handling it thus far. As well as how we can approach situations differently and come out on top from here on out. Three Pillars of Your Life – Mental Wellness Pillar The three pillars of your life come in many shapes and sizes, but these three are what the majority of us probably focus on most of the time. Should we focus on one more than another? Should we even care about all of them as much as some? These are the questions that linger in my psyche and most likely in some of yours as well. First let’s talk about our mental wellness. Have you done any taking care of that lately? Do you have plans to do so in the near future? If so, how? Here are a few options to check in with yourself if you’re lacking ideas as of late. Call up a friend, laugh a little, enjoy your time without looking at the clock. Go for a walk with your dog(s), or cat…or ferret. No judgements here! Get you some nature, friend. Take a nap. It’s okay, really. 10-20 minutes will do the trick. Get off your phone and get in your head. Our mental health tends to take the back burner when life is throwing all kinds of crap our way. There’s no time to think about ourselves when we have to take care of everything and everyone else, right? Unfortunately that’s not the case at all. Taking care of yours truly first and foremost will more than definitely have a positive effect on the world around you. Related: Road to Success: Embracing Perseverance in Life in the Face of Adversity in 2024 Don’t Forget About You – 3 Physical Pillar Tips Have you checked in lately with that good old flesh and bones of yours? Bodies are weird, they come in all shapes and sizes too, but alas the one you call home needs some TLC now and then. So, my advice? Give it some! More often than not. Here’s some to-do’s for you. Run. Run for a minute, an hour, whatever you’re feeling. Running fuels the body and mind so much differently than walking. Give it a try. Move some weight. Whether this be your own bodyweight or dumbbells at the gym, push yourself and really freaking mean it. Go ahead, grimace, the world isn’t watching. Stretch yo self before you wreck yo self. No but seriously, it’s one of the most commonly looked over natural healers of chronic pain. Promise yourself 2.5 minutes each morning and night and then feel the difference as you increase your time. Every time I’m tense from work, family, or my own internal issues, I try to implement at least one of these things. Of course we have lives and taking even 2.5 minutes for something trivial like stretching can pause your day for what seems like eons. Just think, you can help your body heal in the same amount of time as watching 5 TikTok videos. All the Feels – Emotional Pillars Ahh, emotions. Those will get the better of us more often than not. They suck and they’re beautiful all at the same time. Help yourself grow into more emotional maturity. How do you do that? I’m glad you asked. Talk to a therapist. No, not a friend or family member, you’re not paying them to hear your problems, and they probably get bored of listening anyway. Check out BetterHelp online, it’s a cost-effective and incredibly convenient option to get your mind right. Read! It’s like our generations embraced the growing online community and forgot all about those smelly old hardbacks sitting on the shelves. There’s something nostalgic and comforting about brushing the dust off a good self-help book and flipping through the pages without needing blue light glasses. Change your mindset. Including the words you speak and the things you choose (or choose not) to say. Listen more and understand people and yourself just a little deeper. Becoming emotionally mature is something I’m forever working on. It’s hard to grow up in some ways and understand that life is short and we are so tiny in this universe. Stop rushing and begin working on ways to level up in your own best interest. Related: Lost and Found: Finding Yourself and Gaining Clarity In Life There’s Still Time This Year If you have had a rough start to the first quarter, don’t back down. Push through and know that you’re only 1/4 of the way through 2024. Lean into what successes you did have and don’t shy away from new challenges at work or in life. Try to adapt to new ways of thinking and sit back and relax just a little more. Have you read a good book recently? Do you prefer Audible instead of paperback? Drop a comment below, let’s talk about the key differences and why both options are healthy choices for us individually. If you’re still looking, here are a few options in the meantime. Can’t Hurt Me, by David Goggins The Universe Has Your Back, by Gabrielle Bernstein Grit, by Angela Duckworth Let me know your thoughts! Take care friend. Thank You For Reading “What Are Your Pillars? Mental, Physical, Emotional Health Foundations” Thank you for reading today’s post all about discovering what are your Mental, Physical, Emotional Pillars. What has your path looked like? What will it look like tomorrow? Let me know what resonates with you. If you have a suggestion for our next post, let us know. Don’t forget to check out our sister site Rooted in Reselling.
Road to Success: Embracing Perseverance in Life in the Face of Adversity in 2024
In the last post we talked about trusting the process and how it means different things to all of us as humans. Today something similar has been floating around in my mind and that my friends is the word, perseverance. To trust the process of life, we need to persevere through the ups and downs. Perseverance in life is not easy. We need to shove past the sneaky negative thoughts floating in as well and tune into our more intelligent selves! Perseverance is Finding the Right Path and Forging Ahead Because it’s crucial to keep forging ahead, we must recognize that each problem faced is a path forward in some way, shape or form. Even though this path is not always easy or obvious, it’s often those paths that end up leading us to exactly where we need to be. I won’t lie, persevering is hard work, especially when you start to become doubtful of the process. It can look all wrong when it’s supposed to be all right. These are the times that opportunity lies in front of us with new beginnings and new challenges. How is your perseverance different in 2024 as opposed to 5, 10, or even 20 years ago? Do you look to new outlets to find inspiration? For myself and my husband, it’s YouTube videos on hiking difficult trails or traveling to interesting places. Watching these create new emotions that push us to book new trips that we never would have dreamed up before. What are your outlets for you and for your family? Ask around to see what you have in common with your loved ones or what you can learn from them. Related: What Does Trust the Process Mean in 2024? Three Tips to Help You on Your Path to Perseverance in Life Every now and then we face boulders in the road that stop us in our tracks. They’ll need strategy, force and determination to push past or punch through…which will in turn show us new ways around future obstacles by presenting us with new experiences to take along with us on this journey. The journey of perseverance is long and grueling but trust me, you’ve got this. No matter what is necessary to make moves on your future road, I believe in you! Just keep putting one foot in front of the other and creating new steps along your dreams. In the meantime, here are some easy to carry with you tips that may help during that process… (print them out or summarize them to keep with you if you want!) It’s okay to look back, but don’t live there. A lot of times you may hear “Don’t look back,” but I encourage you to do just that. Self-reflection is so important to realizing our growth, and oftentimes goes unnoticed if we don’t start tracking it. I just downloaded “Setgraph” (I’ll let you know how it goes!), which is a log to track your workouts which I plan to do more often now that I’ve begun my training for our upcoming Grand Canyon camping trip! 5 Steps To Achieving Your 2024 Goals and How I’m Planning Mine Track your progress! Just as mentioned in Tip #1, tracking your progress and growth is something that may be difficult to get going, but is super worth it once you get the ball rolling. Try out one of the many apps available to start tracking your daily goals or just use your notepad on your phone to create a reflection journal. I’m loving that my iPhone just updated to include a new Journal app that reminds me of recent events to journal on! Try out a checklist. Checklists have helped me immensely to stay on track during days that I’m feeling off, and have encouraged me to continue on in my day’s duties when I feel like the world is caving in. My favorite checklist currently is oddly enough the “Tasks” option on my Google Calendar. No need to spend extra to engage in some more self-care! Keep Going, One Step is One Step Closer As you can see, you don’t need to spend extra to focus on living your best life. Persevering is trusting the process and recognizing that you have it in you to keep going. Try out the tips above in the days and weeks ahead to prove to yourself that you can stay on track and keep hitting back when things don’t go according to plan. For the first time in my life recently, a co-worker told me how I gave off “relaxed vibes.” I honestly didn’t know how to react, so I just replied with “Thank you!!” As someone that has endured different bouts of anxiety over the years, this was the highest compliment I could have gotten. It was such a relief to hear that someone else had recognized the work I’ve been putting in, and I want you to shoot for that feeling as well! Every day is a challenge, big or small. Just keep in mind that each day you only need to make small changes. They’ll add up, and your confidence, ambition, and strength will too. Thank You For Reading “Road to Success: Embracing Perseverance in Life in the Face of Adversity in 2024” Thank you for reading today’s post all about how to find your perseverance in life. What has your path looked like? What will it look like tomorrow? Let me know what resonates with you. If you have a suggestion for our next post, let us know. Don’t forget to check out our sister site Rooted in Reselling.
5 Steps To Achieving Your 2024 Goals and How I’m Planning Mine
Hello again, friend! As the first month of 2024 quickly comes to a close, there are many things that still need accomplished in the remaining 11. Come along with me today and chat with me about what my goals and plans are and learn how I’m realizing what works best to get those goals actually accomplished. Here are 5 steps to achieving your 2024 goals. Step 1: Set Your Goals for 2024 Do you have goals for this year? Do they have deadlines or due dates? If you’re like most of the world, (myself included!), that’s most likely going to be a big YES! Goals help us stay focused on the end point of our planning. They help us to realize that there is in fact a finish line. That sometimes we just have to stay the course to get to the main prize. During the year of 2024, I have several goals I’ll be setting out to accomplish. What are your 2024 goals? 2023 was a long year for me. It was a year of odd jobs, new beginnings, a few endings and a lot of lessons learned. Which means in 2024, I’m more than ready to start living my best life at the young age of 32, and I’d like for you to join me on that journey. What do you say? Let’s start achieving those 2024 goals. Related: Moving Ahead And Appreciating The Now Step 2: Determine Your Top 3 Goals for 2024 If I could describe last year in one phrase or word, it would be “scatter-brained.” Do you have a word that comes to mind when considering the past 12 months? If you’re unhappy with last year’s accomplishments, I’m here to tell you that we have a fresh start. And maybe, find yourself a new word to live this year by! (I’ll list a few suggestions) Growth Flow Patience Now, jot down your 3 most important goals. Let’s do this together, shall we? I’ll start. Grow a full indoor garden by revamping my empty office space Become eligible to compete in a BJJ competition Travel at least 3 times to another state with my husband These are all giant goals. They take a lot of planning, plus hefty investments of both time and money. Which also takes into account a savings goal, to ensure they can all actually pan out. If you’re into fitness and self-care, here’s something that may surprise you about self-growth. Discovering that importance (on your own) is harder than you may think. Once I took a hiatus from my trainer at the end of last year, I gave myself a 3 month goal post to hit to return back to their expertise. Changing Habits Requires Accountability However, I realized as the days and weeks passed on, that my personal habits are much harder to change that I’d originally considered. I felt the pull of needing to do things on my own accord, by not having someone holding me accountable each week for new routines. I’m nearing the 3 month mark now. But at about month 2, I came to realize that this was going to be more like a 6 month or longer journey instead. You see, as we obtain workout partners, or trainers, or nutrition experts (I did this as well), we start to let go of the control we have over own our actions. We start to rely on these external sources for committing to a goal and for praise after having done a good job. It was only after gaining more time back in my life after quitting these external commitments that I realized I was hardly spending any time on myself at all. I got up, did what I was supposed to do, and went to bed. Whether that be professionally or personally. Once the hours started becoming open again, I found that I can be much more focused to improving my lifestyle all by myself. Are you ready to do the same? Step 3: Determine What’s Important for You By finally committing to myself and creating an actual self-care routine, I’m starting to have more and more success day after day on eating better for my mind and body, choosing a good book over YouTube shorts, and gaining steps towards my 3 main goals. This all required mental clarity which is something I’d have never realized if it wasn’t for taking a step back and actually opening up some much needed brain space. Do you actually need all of those fitness classes? Or the social apps on your phone? How about shopping at the premium stores when a local market could get you the same items for half the cost? Are you still concerned about your status or how others around perceive you? My plan this year is to focus less on others and more on myself. So far, I’d say I’m doing okay. How are you doing? I’m not one to keep a journal nearby, unless it’s to dump my thoughts in the early mornings or during dreams at night. So therefore, calendars and notebook planners just don’t work for me, and I’m starting to realize that I’m not the only one struggling with setting a core schedule or sticking to my plan. Related: To Conquer Your Goals in 2024, You’ll Need To Become Your Own Teacher Step 4: It’s Okay to be Scared, Keep Going Recently, a plan formed all on its own though. Which has forced me into recognizing these goals more and really shooting for success before this plan is upon us. Quick side note: We traveled a few years ago to Arizona and Utah and absolutely fell in love. We’ve (the hubs and I), have been pining to go back ever since. Which is why I’m so excited to announce these new plans that are in our near future. An email came through last week regarding two permits obtained. One, to tent camp at the base of the Grand Canyon, and Two,
To Conquer Your Goals in 2024, You’ll Need To Become Your Own Teacher
Goals. That’s what this month is all about, right? Goals to do better in the physical health world mostly, goals to excel in your studies or career, and goals to just be an all around better person in life. This isn’t something that was hard-wired in my brain growing up, it was there, buried way in the back, just waiting to be unleashed. What do your goals look like for the new year? Did you make a list and check it twice? Let’s take a look at why you’ll need to become your own teacher to conquer your goals in 2024. Goals, Goals, Goals in 2024 Once upon a time goals were nonexistent. As a child, you live a lot of your life day to day and look forward only to what’s for dinner and at who’s house your next sleepover will be. I’m looking forward to setting more goals in my life these days, and here’s why you should consider it, too. Have you ever thought that a goal was unreachable, only to succeed far past yours and others expectations? I can’t say this has happened all the time, but it is something that I’ve known others to do and myself from time to time, as well. Many years have gone by with goals achieved and goals missed, but this year hits differently. This year is going to be for you, for me, and for all the other souls out there striving for a better mindset. Today, there are more than enough articles, podcasts, channels and blog posts filled to the brim with helpful information showing us the best and most certain ways to achieve said goals, however…most of us simply just watch them. Once you watch and listen, do you implement them? Do you set out to conquer those new goals or do you just push past them and schedule them once more for the next January to come? Reality check friends, that January is here once again. Related: Habitual Growth: Looking Back And Moving Forward How to Create a Goals List I’ve gathered my thoughts and a few notes on the matter of today’s post, so that we can glue these pieces together and find out what parts are worth lingering on and which can be tossed away. Let me know what your thoughts are about them in the comment section, and feel free to share any tips of your own! How to Create a Goals List: Write them all down. Yes, all of them. Find your top three and move the others to another section or another piece of paper to remind yourself of them later. (Only add them to your original piece when you feel it’s the right time). Take the top choice of your top three and begin challenging yourself to achieve it. Bonus tip! Write down beside each goal how much time you think each should take to conquer, goal posts are necessary in achieving larger goals. How to Conquer Your First Goal: Vanquish any doubt that you won’t achieve said goal. Vanquish those doubts again…trust me, they’ll return. Take the first steps in achieving that goal, and write out each step completed on a third piece of paper. (Invest in a pretty notepad if you get motivated by those things…speaking from experience of course). Finally, How to Achieve Your Remaining Goals: Take one step at a time. Rome wasn’t conquered in a day and girl, we’ve got bigger problems than Rome. Check those boxes. Release those endorphins and get excited. You’re doing this. Keep that paper with you at all times. Check back when you feel down and reinvent yourself when necessary to accomplish them. Keep it simple, sweet, and easy to remember. Related: Moving Ahead And Appreciating The Now Goals Remind Us of Who We Want to Be These goals may take minutes or maybe years, but all the while, I urge you to keep them with you. If you don’t have a pocket then carry them in a purse or a bag. Find a safe space for them and make several copies if you choose. Laminate them, embrace them, believe in them. When we have goals that stare back at us, we are faced with a constant reminder of what it is that we’re searching for. Is it love? Money? Is it a little bit of both? Perhaps it traveling more often or adopting all the pets. It could even be as big as saving up to afford the house of your dreams or marry the love of your life. Or, it could be as simple as getting out of bed today. (This is a hard one for heavy sleepers like myself). Replace your goals as you cross them off. But! Keep your same sheet. Continue to write #4, #5, and so on, so that you are consistently reminded of how far you’ve come each time you look at that notepad and how many goals you’ve already crushed. I’ve tried several different approaches at figuring out why I would get stuck in completing my own goals throughout the years. Whether it be procrastination, annoyance, or impatience, one thing stuck. Even though goals of ours may change, completing them shouldn’t. If you feel as though you need to alter a goal in time, then do it. It’s your list and your very own master class. Now it’s up to you to be the best teacher. Thank You For Reading “To Conquer Your Goals in 2024, You’ll Need to Become Your Own Teacher” Thank you for reading today’s post about how to conquer your goals in 2024. What has your path looked like? Let me know what resonates with you. If you have a suggestion for our next post, let us know. Don’t forget to check out our sister site Rooted Drawers.
Working From Home And How It Has Molded Me
Once in a while we get blessed with an “Aha” moment. Those moments can be big or small, mind-blowing or just a newly discovered thought. Working from home off and on the last few years has been a journey to say the least. It’s pushed me to new levels of being, helped me to understand more issues about myself that I didn’t even know existed, and showed me that sometimes, you just have to fail a bunch to understand that you are staying true to your individual course. My Journey To Today Nearly 11 years ago I met my husband. I was waiting tables on the late shift when the man of my dreams walked in and sent chills and butterflies throughout me all at once. It was a feeling I never knew before, and if you’ve had them, you totally understand. At that point, I had no goals, no real ambitions, and no feelings on how I would be spending my next years let alone my next days. I was living for the moment, enjoying the spontaneous, and not caring much at all about my health, let alone my life ahead. This month at Habitual Balance, we’re looking back. After looking back a lot at this year in the last few posts, I’d like to go way back and travel with you on my journey to becoming a full-time reseller and blogger writing to you today snuggled on my couch with my two poofballs curled up next to me. Life has changed a lot since then, but alas, so have I. Related: How Self Reflection Helps You Grow as a Person A Little Bit About Me When I say that I’m not an emotional person, I have to explain it a little more. Death doesn’t phase me much anymore, and sadness comes in many different forms. However, when I sit back and think about where I was in my life during our initial meet, and where I am now, tears pool in my eyes…I should probably invest in some teeny tiny umbrellas. They’re not tears of sadness, but not all of happiness either. They’re more of a disbelief that life has led me to this point in such a weird and winding way, and I’m just overwhelmingly grateful for that. Once I met my partner in this life, I realized a few things. I’d need to focus more on my well-being, understand who he was, and learn how to become better together as the years flew by. Working from home was never on my to-do list, I didn’t even know at that point that it was a thing, let alone going to be what I did primarily in my future years, and mainly because of the fact that I wanted to do all I could to find something that would allow me to continue providing as a part of my family during and after my childbearing years. I longed to stay home with my pets, and in the future, our kids. So, after a bunch trial and error, I finally figured out something that I could make work. It felt incredibly refreshing. Reselling And Blogging – Working From Home I grew up selling things. Anything and everything that I could get my tiny entrepreneurial hands on. I wanted to make ends meet before I knew what it meant. Give me a plastic cash register and I’ll give you my business plan. Once sailing through 20-30 dead end jobs, it struck me that one thing remained obvious throughout them all. I was bored. I’d start every job, every career, (including my career as a 2x college dropout), elated and prepared af. Then, a few weeks would turn into months, and before the years end I’d always make a run for the next opportunity ahead of me. This got old after awhile, causing me to grow more bored, and in turn, burnout from misunderstanding what was staring me in the face. I would be respectful to my employers, but would grow irritable on the way home knowing that I could offer so much more than I was. The “Aha” moments started to come one after another, far spread throughout years but finally after several ideas failed, one ultimately stuck. Reselling became my thing, and blogging was where I grew fond of writing once again, just as I did as a child. Once I had dealt with family members passing, a sick pup and heartbreak of many forms, there was one consistent thing that remained at the top of my thoughts each one of those nights as I lay awake staring at the ceiling. “Thank God I work from home.” Related: Path To Productivity: My Struggle With Planning And The Perfect Hot Cocoa Recipe Working From Home Benefits If I never had the opportunity of doing so, with the help of my husband working alongside me to build my dreams, I may not have gotten to be with my loved ones in their last days, or take care of my dog when he needed me most. I may not have been able to grind all day and all night on my business, so that my dreams that are still unfolding could ultimately be fulfilled. I also may not have began to understand mental health and how important it is to us all. How our physical and mental strength play off of one another, and I may not have had time to read about, listen to, and learn of the ways that I can improve all of these things before becoming ready to welcome another life into the world. Working from home has many ups and downs, although many think there are solely ups. I’m here to confirm that I’ve been through a lot of both, and although there are days where I still get frustrated at my employer (lol), I bring myself back to reality by reminding myself that through this all remains the fact that I get to work for myself. What
Moving Ahead And Appreciating The Now
We talked a little so far in December about how to stay more present within the tasks you’re focusing on and why that gratitude should be taken a little less for granted. Today I’d like to chat with you about moving ahead in the new year and how I’ve been focusing more on “appreciating the now” lately. Understanding Stressors And How To Avoid Them It’s hard sometimes to understand where to draw the line. When do you start putting play first and work second? I feel like this is something we likely all struggle with, so let’s talk about that a little bit today. This month I’ve been doing exactly the opposite of last year. This quarter, actually. From Fall on, I’ve been focusing more on my mental and physical setbacks that are holding me up, why they are (or were) happening, and how I can conquer them just a smidge better in the first quarter of 2024. The last quarter of the year always starts a hustle and bustle of family get togethers, birthdays, anniversaries, events, games, vacations (or the lack of), and work…a LOT of it. You could say that last year I held about one ounce of what I do this year for personal time or time with my significant other. It really sucked to say the least, and in January I felt all of the effects of burnout at once. This year I’ve been taking more time to understand stressors, how to navigate them more appropriately, and what I can do to avoid them or move through them instead of letting them control me and/or my behaviors. Have you ever felt like this? That you were basically in the passengers seat just struggling to stay on the ride? Related: How Self Reflection Helps You Grow as a Person Find Your Spot Today I’m writing to you from an old refinished whiskey distillery. It’s located in the bottom half section of a now-usable horse barn, where the horses and foals are sitting right outside the window waiting for pets. (Yes, of course I petted them! Don’t worry, this was 100% allowed by the Airbnb owners!) It sits on a beautiful piece of land that has immaculate sunsets and sunrises. The cooler air means one thing, more comfy clothes, space heaters, dark wine and hot cocoa. It’s like roughing it in luxury. There’s the original barn doors, the same beams on the bed that the barn was built with in the 1800s, but also, a towel warmer. (Yes, really!) My favorite spot has to be the cute little wooden nook in the corner behind the bed. It’s the perfect setting for when I’m inspired to write, being that I get distracted easily and there is nothing but wooden walls around me. It even has a kitchenette, but we chose to make this a driving foodie type trip instead! Almost 10 years ago to the day, we spent many months here for my husbands work. It was so cute and quaint but it’s something we never really appreciated until we were no longer around. Recently, I was looking back at an old album, and noticed a picture from a place we used to frequent. It was at that moment I brought up Airbnb, (after having an exceptional experience in October! In case you missed that post, check it out here!), searching for the perfect place that wouldn’t be too far away to revisit our old stomping grounds. I found this one pretty quickly and immediately booked it. I’m so glad I did. Nostalgia And Appreciating The Now During this trip, we drove around to the old sites we went to a decade ago, enjoyed some of the same meals, and stopped by our old place. We chatted a bunch, enjoyed each others company, and listened to old country music on the radio, (it’s all that was available!) However, there were some times as well when I wasn’t my best self. It’s always the times where I set my expectations too high and feel guilty about not being able to just “go with the flow,” something I’m trying to work a lot on these days. Instead of misunderstanding one another like we used to though, the hubs and I figured out what the issue was, talked through it, and moved on with our day. It made me even more grateful to be able to be with someone so understanding and patient. If you’re thinking this sounds too good to be true, don’t get me wrong. I think every relationship takes work, and that includes working on yourself…which is why it’s so important to me to understand myself better instead of solely focusing on external sources as I did in the past. Moving forward will always be harder than looking back. And I realized exactly that this was part of my problem this time. I had held on so tightly to our past, that I forgot about allowing time in for new memories and creating additional sparks on our timeline together. We’ve changed, individually and as a partnership. My advice to you this month is to allow that change. Let it in and absorb it all. Embrace and appreciate the now. Breathe new air into your lungs even if it’s from the same place you went to 10 years ago. Stop chasing what has been and start embracing what you’ve become. When you start living with less expectations, you can continue to create the next step in your journey. Related: Acknowledging Burnout & Learning Where To Find The Lightbulbs Thank You For Reading “Moving Ahead And Appreciating The Now” Thank you for reading today’s post about how I try to keep appreciating the now. What has your path to productivity looked like? Let me know what resonates with you. If you have a suggestion for what our next post should be let us know. Don’t forget to check out our sister site Rooted Drawers.
Habitual Growth: Looking Back And Moving Forward
Hey guys. If you’ve been along on our journey so far, you may have noticed that we skipped a week here at Habitual Balance. That’s because of a few things that we’ll walk through today. December is already several days in and it’s flying by faster than ever. Have you taken a moment in time to sit back and take in your surroundings? Your family? Your growth? What are you looking forward to next year? Let’s talk about these things and habitual growth, shall we? Defining Family and Family Growth Family first has always been something drilled into my head growing up, and it probably goes that way for a lot of you as well, I’m assuming. The fact of the matter is though, that family doesn’t always have to be blood. Maybe you found a friend that you grew up with that’s basically became your sister, or have you ever thought about the fact that our own spouses or significant others aren’t “blood-related?” It’s for the bees. December brings on a new journey, one that starts us on a track to really feel the pressure of the new year ahead, and notice from our reflections in November how far we’ve actually come. Are you ready to transition into the next month with new growth? Or do you still feel stuck in the past? Over the last week or so, I’ve been realizing that these members of my life don’t have to be from my family tree. I’ve taken more time to reflect on that and realize that whom I love spending the most time with might just be the persons that aren’t related to me at all. (Or maybe, they’re even not even human! …Speaking to my fellow pet lovers out there!) I’m not sure about you, but I’m one who has come along way in the personal growth category. I used to thrive on going out and socializing, only to realize that it was seriously depressing me and feeling comfy at home was where I’d much rather be. It’s not always easy to understand those feelings, let alone act on them. Where do you love being most? Who do you love being with the most? Is it a friend? A family member? Or perhaps your dog? Related: How Self Reflection Helps You Grow as a Person Time Goes Fast, Be Present Now Having lost one of my furbabies last year, I feel much more compelled to make more time with my dogs these days. One recently developed arthritis, while the other got diagnosed with a tick disease. It’s so hard for me to process still that these little munchkins are just full of love but only around us for a short period of time. Fair, no, but still this is the way of life. If I learned anything from losing him, it was one thing. To be more present. To really embrace every moment and take in the sunlight, the wind blowing, the leaves crinkling. But not just in nature. I’ve also made myself learn how to become more present in daily life revolving around work-related topics, and during family time as well. To sit down without a phone or laptop and to actually have real conversations. Recently I was told (not for the first time), that I am constantly on my computer. (Because duh, I love connecting with you guys!!) However, that comment made me realize that I was spiraling again. That I was doomed to go down the burnout path once more if I didn’t start to pick myself up from a work day and turn the dial to off mode. We all need a wake up call now and then, don’t we? Related: Looking Internally – Rediscovering Your Why & Why It’s So Important To Growth What Does Habitual Growth Look Like For You In 2024? What does your upcoming year look like? Are you flustered about this year still? Have you made amends or plans with friends or family? Or maybe you’ve made promises you already know you’ll have to break, which of course, causes our all too well known friend to arrive…anxiety. Anxiety is something I’ve become more aware of this year. It’s shown me more about myself and why I do certain things certain ways, or why I feel things differently than someone else may. How has anxiety impacted you this year? And what do you plan to do to offset it in the year to come? Maybe you’re realizing that a specific job needs to be changed, or maybe just someone in that job. Have you looked inside of your relationships lately and thought about what you could give more of, or maybe could receive rather?? Now is the time of the year to start resetting your timeline. Begin again with a new mindset and new ideas, because with each coming year we grow and develop into new individuals. We find homes in other hearts that maybe had been there all along, but just were not open yet. Do you have plans for the holidays? Or would you prefer to high-tail it to a beach instead? Depending on your answer, what could that help to tell you about your relationship with those around you? Let’s dive into these uncomfortable topics more in depth during December, and find out what you’re really striving to accomplish in 2024. Related: Lost and Found: Finding Yourself and Gaining Clarity In Life Thank you for reading “Habitual Growth: Looking Back And Moving Forward”! Thank you for reading today’s post about how to move through habitual growth! Let me know what resonates with you. If you have a suggestion for what our next post should be let us know. Don’t forget to check out our sister site Rooted Drawers.
Moving Through Self-Reflection To Get To Self-Acceptance
As we move further through the stages of self-reflection, we move nearer and nearer to the realm of self-acceptance. Accepting one’s self for what they are is one of the most difficult things to do, at least in my experience. Have you ever heard of “the fantasy self?” Or wondered why you’re pulled in several directions at times and need guidance in how to handle those moments? I’m here to tell you that you’re not the only one. We have all had these circumstances arise in our lives, and discovering how best to move through them has been one of my biggest personal challenges. I’d like to talk today about my own experiences, and about what we can do to understand them a little better or how to approach situations like these in the future. Keep The Memories, Lose The Stuff To get into this more personally, I have a short backstory to tell you. About a year ago, I began reading a book called, “Keep The Memories, Lose The Stuff,” by Matt Paxton. I picked it up again recently. This book immediately spoke to me as when I began flipping through the initial pages. It showed me that I wasn’t the only one to have to quickly clear out my loved ones’ clutter in the home. Ironically, I didn’t think of it as clutter at all. I saw it as a beautiful and full lifetime of memories, stacked atop one another, gathering dust and more stories. I noticed the tiny details of each picture saved. Every item that would hold no value for most, but that I remembered talking about and/or giving to this person as gifts during their birthdays or holidays. Then I remembered the conversation that we had about the jewelry box, the angel figurines, and most importantly to me, about the newspaper clipping that showed my beautiful grandmother in cute little pumps in the black and gray photo where her and her colleagues stood in their office way back when. It was these conversations, these memories while standing with her in that back room closet that I didn’t even realize were so important to me at the time, but that clearly my memory decided to absorb like a sponge, since I can remember it as though it were yesterday. Funny how your body collects information so intently without you even recognizing it during that event. Related: The Role of Self Reflection in Personal Growth Dealing With Abandonment During Self-Reflection I’m walking you through a portion of this story because it’s what prompted me to pick up this book in the first place. This woman left in her home 3 lifetimes of memories. The home contained all inanimate objects, clothing, expired food items and way too many knick knacks. She knew where all of those came from. She knew who got them for her, and when they were given or picked up. Then, all in one fell swoop, it was cleared out top to bottom in just two short days. If I said I was heartbroken, that would be an understatement. It was incredible to me how things mean so much less to others than they do to the original person. Especially if they had no meaning behind them that wasn’t in plain site. This book showed me that I was not alone in these feelings of abandonment, and that it was okay to accept my new reality…without her and without her things. It took a lot more time to process those two days mentally than it did physically to go through all of those things and make snap decisions about what to do with them. Hell, I’m still processing some of it still even today, several years later. It’s like my body kept those moments stored for when I needed them, and pulls them out whenever it’s most necessary. This is just one scenario of how we can move through our current pain and into the present, accepting our new situation and how to handle ourselves moving forward. Making the best of our current pain and processing it to the best of our ability is simply the best thing you can do. Move through, not around. Self-Acceptance And The Fantasy Self We touched on this topic slightly in the beginning of the month, you may recall. Self-acceptance is being okay with who you’ve become, or really, who you actually are and always have been, deep down. During our childhood, teen and young adult years, we’re continuously influenced by others and their perspectives on how we are. How we perceive ourselves is something most of don’t even get around to doing until we’re well into our adult years. Why?? My opinion on this is directly correlated with learning about “the fantasy self.” The fantasy self is exactly what it sounds like. It’s the way we look at ourself and how we’d like others to look at us. It’s the piece of us that wants different things, even though our truest form tells us we’re crazy for thinking it. Have you had an experience such as this? Where you know and are so positive that you’ll wear those fringe jackets and tight jeans, or maybe your previous collection of cowboy boots is what you think you really want to wear because they’ll look awesome with that jacket that’s collecting dust, only to put these all on, walk out the door and have immediate anxiety and regret? Related: How Self Reflection Helps You Grow as a Person How Are You Moving Through Self-Reflection To Get To Self-Acceptance? This situation may look different for you, as we all differ as individuals in our own journeys. But my assumption is that you have a scenario pretty similar. Maybe you bought a truck instead of an SUV. And since you justify needing the open bed space but then realize it’s a gas-guzzler and the covered back of an SUV would have been more than sufficient. Or, maybe you keep telling yourself that