We often spend so much time concentrating on what is NOT going perfectly in our lives and we end up using up our energy focusing on the negative events. Many of us do this every day without taking any time to appreciate the little things (or the big things) in life which make us HAPPY!
So, let me distract you for a moment! What makes you smile? Take a couple of minutes to write them down.
I am grateful for my home, my health, my family and my wonderfully supportive clients!
I am also so grateful for my lessons learned from this year which I have been able to use going into ‘Lockdown 2.0’! After the government announcement my first thought was ‘Mamma Mia, here we go again’ (in true ABBA style). Since then I have put it all into perspective and feel much more positive. After all, we have done it once and we shall do it again- only better! I sat down with a lovely cuppa and my notebook, pondering about what I have learned from the first lockdown. I asked myself ‘what made me feel good during that time?’. I am now doing MORE of those things!
For example, this time around I am being much more mindful of my wellbeing. I have been getting out for walks with my fur baby (and studio puppy), Mabel, and I have been reading more rather than watching too much TV!
On another note, as a business owner, I am grateful that I did not feel as daunted by the announcement of lockdown two. As I said earlier, we have done it once so we shall do it again- only better! I now have a ‘lockdown toolbox’ and a ‘how to run a business during lockdown’ file in the filing cabinet in my brain.
‘Life is a succession of lessons which must be lived to be understood’- Helen Keller
As the quote above suggests, life is full of lessons! I’m sure I’m not alone in feeling like I’ve certainly learned a lot from this year, and I hope that I will use those lessons learned to benefit my business and my all-important health and wellbeing over the next few weeks and into the future!
Starting each morning with a grateful heart will set the tone for the rest of your day!
Have you heard of ‘the five minute journal’? I can’t recommend this enough! It’s a wonderful way to get you thinking about the good things in your life and it totally transforms the way you feel and think day to day.
How does it work?
Every morning it prompts you to write three things that you are grateful for, three things that will make today great and one daily affirmation that starts with ‘I am…’.
Every night it prompts you to write three amazing things that happened today!
Nothing is insignificant or too small! You could be feeling great that you got out of bed this morning without hitting snooze, for example!!
It’s important to celebrate those ‘small’ victories as well as the big! Who agrees?
Speaking of getting out of bed… as the mornings get darker, I find it harder to wake up in the morning with a ‘hop, skip and a jump’! I’m sure I am not alone in saying that I am NOT a natural morning person. However, I swear by my LUMIE light that I have on my bedside table (another recommendation for you)!
It’s thought that the winter blues, otherwise known as ‘Seasonal Affective Disorder’ (SAD), affects around 2 million people in the UK.
With key symptoms including lethargy and feeling unsociable, it’s no wonder that so many of us wake up ‘on the wrong side of the bed’.
However, how you spend the first five minutes of your morning will have a huge impact on how you feel for the rest of the day.
Think about the times that you’ve “woken up on the wrong side of the bed.” You may have felt a little ‘off’ for the rest of the day. Alternatively, think about a time you’ve woken up in a great mood, you most likely went through your day with a sense of euphoria!
This year has been a difficult one for so many and I believe that it is important, now more than ever, to really check in on ourselves each and every day. It is easy to focus on the negatives when there is so much going on around us in the world. Starting our days with just one positive thought or act can have a hugely positive impact on our overall mental wellbeing.
Here are three simple yet effective ways to wake up on the right side of the bed and help bust those 2020 winter blues:
- Start each day with a grateful heart. Stop yourself from picking up that phone to scroll aimlessly down your Facebook timeline and replace it with time thinking about good things in your life. Think about, or even better, write down what you are grateful for as soon as you wake up (why not use the five minute journal I mentioned above) to start your day feeling positive.
- Make your bed. It may seem like a small thing, but making your bed means that you have accomplished something before even setting foot outside of your bedroom door! Psychologically, this will set you up for a more productive day. In fact, Admiral William McRaven once said that you can change the world by making your bed every morning. Worth a try, right?!
- See the light! If you’re like me, you might find that using a dawn simulator like the Lumie [a bedside light, connected to an alarm clock, that mimics a sunrise and wakes you up gradually] can have a beneficial effect and wake you up feeling much more positive and ready to take on the day.
The more you do this, the more you will begin to change your mindset to think of the positives rather than focusing on the negatives (which is just all too easy to do).
So, what are you grateful for?
Have a great week!