Hey Team!
Today is my birthday and I am boldly asking you for a favour to help me celebrate.
Today (or this week or this month or whenever, I would like you to do one (or more!) of these things in my honour:
1) Do something to make your workout (even more?) fun
If you don’t usually enjoy your workouts, maybe you can add music or podcast, maybe you can try a different movement, or ask a friend to join you, or wear something that helps you feel strong/fun/whimsical/more like yourself.
If you always enjoy your workout, maybe you can give yourself a little extra time to enjoy it or challenge yourself in some way that increases your fun (without putting yourself at risk, of course!)
2) Give yourself more time or space to rest
Yes, I know this is an almost impossible request but do what you can. Take a few deep breaths before getting out of the car. Lie on the floor while you think about what to make for supper. Do some colouring. Try a meditation. Do a little stretching. Turn off your notifications for 10 extra minutes. Drop 1 thing off of your to do list. Do something in an easier way. That thing that doesn’t need to be done right now but that has a loud *should* energy? Hide it in a closet! If you’re worried that you’ll forget about it then set a reminder to excavate it later.
3) Speak gently to yourself
You know that negative thought that you just can’t shake? Or that self-deprecating description you keep using? Or that mean thing that you keep trying to use to motivate yourself? The way that you speak to yourself but you would NEVER EVER EVER use to speak to someone else?
How about switching that out for a kind and gentle tone instead?
Yeah, I know it will be difficult. It may feel like letting yourself ‘off the hook.’
But it would be totally worth it, don’t you think?
I know it seems like that kind of talk is ‘tough love’ or ‘being disciplined’ or maybe even ‘being realistic’ but really it just ends up making us feel bad – and we don’t need any more of that!
*****
So, Team, why am I asking you to give these things a try on my birthday?
Because sometimes we find it hard to do things for our own sake but when we feel like it might help someone else then we have an extra boost of motivation to try it.
So, really, anything positive you try because of this post will have DOUBLE the effect – it will be good for you AND it will boost my birthday fun.
After all, you wouldn’t be having more fun, getting more rest, or speaking gently to yourself for selfish* reasons, you would be doing them to help ME out.
No one, not even *you* could blame you for that, right?
*****
So, Team, I hope you will use my birthday as the perfect excuse to be kind to yourself, to have more fun, and/or to get a little more rest.
And here is your gold star for your efforts.
Go Team Us!
PS- I ALSO think you should use my birthday as a reason to have a little treat whether that’s a snack, another episode of that podcast, a little time outside, a chat with a friend, some time to draw or read, or anything that feels right to you at the moment.
*It’s never actually selfish to do any of these things but brains can be so weird about these things and selfish is often the label your brain will come up with for anything of this sort.
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I’m the founder and Chair of the Association for the Arts in Mount Pearl and I’m a former president of the St. John’s Storytelling Festival.
I bake a mean chocolate chip cookie.
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