How to make space for things that matter to you?
Last week I wrote a post on social media about the challenges I’ve been experiencing around getting back to my regular post-pregnancy yoga practice and the mindset shift I had to make to make it work in this phase of my life.
I’ve got a lot of comments and messages on this post + questions about how to find balance between sleep and self-care with a busy life.
How to make space for things that matter to us…
Things that ignite us
That light a spark
That nourish our soul
That bring joy
That make us better humans
Cause truly, the things that spark joy are life giving!
Beyond surviving in life, these are the things that help us thrive.
From an entrepreneur perspective - these are the things that keep me focused, inspired and connected.
From a mom’s perspective - these are the things that keep me going and give me energy after sleepless nights.
And in the general - these are the things that help me stay present with my family, my clients and my friends.
I used to pride myself on my morning routine. I would wake up, do my yoga +meditation practice, journal, shower and make myself a beautiful breakfast - a morning routine that started around 5.30am and ended around 9.30am.
This was totally doable as female entrepreneur who had no kids!
(Ha! And I thought I was juggling!)
Then Maya was born. For the first 2 months, all of my routines have completely gone out of the window. I’ve always been a person who thrives on routine so having no routine at all was difficult, but as my intention for those first two months postpartum was on healing and recovery I actually felt that this space to just BE and simply take it day by day was so good for me.
Now that Maya is 3 months - we've started finding a rhythm, and even though my routine looks nothing like it used to, I’m grateful for having more self care back in my life.
I took intentional time to pause and think about how I wanted to spend my days, how I wanted to feel with my baby, how I wanted to mother, the memories I wanted to have with her, what I needed from my marriage, how I wanted to express myself through my work, what my body and soul needed in self-care, spirituality, friendship and fun… I boiled it down to my personal essentials and figured out a plan (little strategies) to make it happen.
You can never earn more time. It's your most valuable resource, your most precious commodity. It's easy to waste time getting overwhelmed by everything on your to-do list and complaining about not having time and then mindlessly scrolling through social media (cause what can you possibly do in 10 minutes?? - well, I can tell you - A LOT!!). Or wait for the ‘perfect’ moment to take care of yourself, which rarely arrives, cause there is always something “more important” to do.
So here’s the thing - first things first - get clear on what is that thing that truly matters to you, the thing that makes you better at everything you do, that breathing space for yourself, time for you to connect with YOU.
For me it’s my yoga + meditation practice - it’s how I care for myself spiritually, mentally, physically and soulfully - I have it on top of my priority list.
Can you identify what is that one thing for you? Is it having a cup of tea and staring outside the window? Is it going for a walk? Exercising? Perhaps it’s a coffee ritual? Journaling? Reading? Playing the piano? Dancing? Drawing?
What’s your one thing?
If you’re struggling to figure out your one thing think about this - when your alarm goes off what’s something that can get you instantly excited about? That it’s easy to get out of bed, no matter what time it is... Another hint - it’s usually something that fills you up on more than one level - physical, spiritual, emotional, mental…
I’d like to invite you to take time to write out YOUR ONE THING PLAN:
Write down your one thing
Think about how you’re going to make it happen for yourself
Is there anything you can let go of to create more space in your life? Any ‘shoulds’ you can give up?
What’s something that might be blocking you from doing your one thing? (start working on breaking one block at a time)
Set yourself a realistic expectation - how many times / for how long can you commit yourself to it?
What strategies can you set up to make it easier for you to follow up?
Write out your plan - where, when, how much, how many times, etc. the more detailed you’re the more likely it is to happen
Make a list of all the other little things that bring you joy. These are the things you can do in those little pockets of time. For me it’s - having coffee + reading, journaling, park walks and writing or doing something creative. When I have an opportunity to do something for myself (after I’ve done my one thing) I’ll think about my list of things and check in with myself - what would feel good right now? What does my mind / body crave most?
Remember to stay flexible and let go of perfection. Perfectionism is just a form of procrastination, so do yourself a favor and don’t wait for the perfect setup / time cause you’ll end up waiting forever. Do the best you can with what you have. Celebrate whenever you get to do your one thing and practice lots self compassion when you don’t.
And finally, I'd love to offer you this reframe - whenever you catch yourself saying:
I only did X today, trade it with - I got to do X today!
Few words to help you shift your mindset from lack to gratitude!
Hope you’ll enjoy making your one thing plan - I’d love to hear about it!!
And as always, feel free to email me with your thoughts, questions or topic requests.
Lots of love,
Naama
