“Staying rooted, like a tree, means to be established, firm, solid and unshakeable, especially during challenging times in life. It can be great to be immoveable, but the irony is that we also need to be flexible and adaptable, so when the wind blows we don’t snap”
This is the opening sentence to part two of the book Building Life Muscles by our very own Karen and Devon Burke. Makes sense and sounds easy enough…right? The challenge with easy things though is because we think its easy, we can take it for granted and not actually do the thing. That means we can be taken by surprise by our reactions to life’s challenges. Our emotional stamina, our ability to be resilient is only available to us if we use and nurture it. Like the book title indicates, we need to consider these things as muscles. Muscles are only good if they are in regular use and trained to bear weight.
As we are entering spring, seems like a good time to do that ‘spring clean’ and get rid of the stuff that doesn’t serve you. If you are holding on to old habits and thought processes that mean you don’t put in the work to build muscle, then resolve now to throw them out and cultivate some new roots and shoots. Here are 5 quick tips to help you on your way.
1. Declutter your mind. It is possible to suffer from decision fatigue. All those decisions and choices that we have to make each and every day. Some are more important than others – can you prioritise them? That way you are mindfully choosing where to expend your efforts. It might also help to write things down and get them out of your mind, so you are not constantly carrying these thoughts around with you. Try and declutter your mental state as much as possible. You will feel much lighter.
2. Check your attitude. Your attitude is everything. Your attitude determines whether you are living life or life is living you. Attitude determines whether you are on the way or in the way. Self-confident people may suffer setbacks, make mistakes, or get dragged down by hard times, but they still believe they will be successful and come out on top. Make sure to check in with yourself and see how you could improve how you react to situations.
3. Find some new inspiration. Make it your screensaver, or post it note your bathroom mirror. Surround yourself with beautiful words. Positive affirmations encourage you to visualize and believe in making positive changes in your life. Repeating affirmations means they stay in your subconscious thoughts. Over time, they replace any negative beliefs or thoughts which instils confidence, positivity, and ambition.
4. Get rid of clothes that don't fit anymore. Stop holding onto things hoping you will fit into them. Only do that if it is a positive motivation for you and you are actively working on losing weight or keeping fit. Otherwise, keeping old clothes with this intent only serves to create negative energy and thoughts about yourself. Given our propensity to buy more than we need, we are already likely to have plenty of clothes that fit us nicely in our wardrobes.
5. Change up your routines. Now is the best time ever to think about your day to day and maybe try a new way of doing things. Maybe clear out your technology. Have an unsubscribing session. Unsubscribe to TV channels, magazines, mail, emails, etc that are no longer serving you. Clear out everything that’s clutter or contributing to negative thoughts in your life – everything on your phone, tablet, computer, and your social media. Clear out apps, contacts/people, photos, etc. Unfriend, unfollow, and unlike pages and people that are negative. Fill your social media feeds with positive people and businesses that bring you light and love!
We hope by doing one or all of these things will help you to reclaim your inner peace and nurture new roots and shoots of change. Be mindful about what you are doing. Think about where you need to be spending your time and energy. If you are trying to fit everything in or hold onto things, that may be a red flag. Schedule in time for yourself and only with things that light you up. Everything else is secondary. Spring clean your life. Get back to you.
Until the next time.