I’ve been doing quite a bit of thinking lately. I’ve been on vacation, so there’s been plenty of time for that ;). I’ve been thinking about how I spend my time. You already know a little about this, as I chatted about my time spent on social media in my last blog. I’ve been creating much more freedom and control over my life by simply checking in with how I’m feeling more often. And guess what?
It feels freakin’ fabulous.
So I’ve been taking it a step further lately by taking more of a proactive stance in creating my life. How? Simple.
I’m filling up my cup.
No, not my coffee cup (though if we’re being completely honest, I panicked slightly when the barista at Starbucks thought I said grande instead of venti! 😉 ). But no, by filling up my cup, I mean taking a look at what is truly nourishing for my life. I know that this is necessary for me to do right now, because as I get back to work, all things nourishing have a tendency to fall by the wayside. Can you relate to this?
The moment life gets busy, we say goodbye to soul-nourishment.
Not this time. Whenever I take the opportunity to reflect on this, I immediately get excited by thinking about what would help me to feel nourished, satisfied, content, in control of my days, proactive, and energetic.
It’s such a beautiful time of the year to really focus on filling ourselves up as we say goodbye to the last week of August, and will say hello to September. September has always represented a New Year to myself and I’m sure to many of you, so I really love to make sure my mind, body, and soul get a good ‘shine’ on as I prepare for the month. It can be a super hectic month for many of you, which is why filling your cup with only the best ingredients (or a kick ass cup of coffee) is the perfect recipe.
Some questions that help me to get clear on this are:
What do I truly need in my life right now?
What would encourage feelings of abundance, gratitude, peacefulness, organization, or energy? (or, fill in the blank with what you need).
If the answers to those questions include something that is out of your control, then you might consider accepting the (perhaps unfortunate and blunt) fact that you have no control over said matter. If you’re not ready to accept this, that’s perfectly ok. But just consider what the non-acceptance is doing to you and your energy. OK-more about that another time 😉
I thought I might share some of my ‘cup-fillers’:
-Waking up just 15 minutes early for my meditation/visualization.
-Using my Sundays to get busy in the kitchen; this week’s items will be: Healthy Banana Bread (spoiler alert: made with almond flour, dark chocolate chips, and cinnamon!), Smoothie bags in the freezer ready to go, Oh She Glows granola bars, and Quinoa Black Bean Avocado Salad). This sounds like a lot, but actually happens pretty quickly, and makes the week SO much easier!
-Scheduled Yoga Classes. (I may only be able to get to two, but that’s ok! They’re in the schedule!).
-Evening walks.
-Reading books (I like to alternate between fiction + personal development. My newest personal development love was called ‘Essentialism’ by Greg McKeown- awesome!)
-Preparing and launching my Free 21-Day Challenge (more details in a few days! I’m super excited!).
-Lazy weekends filled with breakfast dates and farmers market trips with the hubby.
-Cooking & baking, just for the hell of it.
-Saying no to projects and opportunities that don’t lift me up (or aren’t right for me at the moment).
-Keeping in touch with family + friends <3
So, there’s a few of mine. I would love if you took the time to think about what your cup-fillers need to be at this moment. What are your mind, body, and soul yearning for right now?
How can you make compromises in other areas of your life to truly nourish your soul?
I hope you take some time to think about that, and jot down some ideas. I have to tell you- I’m pretty excited to nourish myself even more during the last few weeks of Summer. 🙂