Adjust your default setting & fill your tank with self-love
When you start with self-love, the world opens up in a whole new way. You’re happier, lighter, and more relaxed. You can show up authentically. You become mentally stronger. Once you have this foundation in place, you can draw on your inner strength and love during challenging times…
This past week was especially challenging for me as I caught a seasonal cold. While not completely debilitating, it has certainly slowed me down and presented a few challenges. Rather than let it get me down, I am choosing to make the best of my situation, do everything I can to take care of myself, and still tackle the responsibilities of my job with a positive attitude. While I did catch myself in a negative space a few times this week, I was quickly able to realize what was happening (awareness of self-talk) and make an adjustment.
When challenges arise, as humans, we tend to fall back on our default setting. There’s nothing wrong with that, and it’s actually part of our survival instinct. However, if we haven’t manually adjusted our default, we might find ourselves engaging in negative thought patterns, habits, or behaviors that don’t serve our best interests.
Just like working out or learning a new craft, practicing self-love and shifting your mindset take practice. It doesn’t happen overnight. In order to start this process, it’s important to tune in to your self-talk. What are you saying to yourself throughout the day? When things go well? When times get tough? Awareness is the first step. Then you need to define what thoughts you’d rather have. This is such an important step that people miss when they are trying to change: defining your desired behavior. So when you catch yourself in a negative thought, you have a positive thought you can immediately replace it with.
Shifting my mindset during challenging times truly feels like a super-power and allows me to see and move through the world in a more positive and productive way. And I truly believe the power to shift is intrinsically tied to self-love… Because I know it’s in my best interest to make the most out of every situation and my time here, so I want to show up as my best self, not my frustrated self. Life is too short to wallow in small inconveniences.
As the late Sean Stephenson said, “things aren’t happening TO you, they are happening FOR you.” It’s up to you what you want to do with challenges that come your way… will they be a roadblock or an opportunity?
Keep growing, friends.
xo Lo
