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Monday, July 24

One week positivity challenge

     Happy Monday loves! I have a really good feeling about this week. The kids and I are fresh home from a little cousin trip where we had so much fun all together, and with all the work that Richard did while we were gone, we're feeling happy about the progress we're hoping to make.

     When I wrote my last post about how I was starting on my little self-love journey, I almost felt like writing 'part 1 of 35' or something because I feel like the more that I work at this, I'm seeing how many facets there are in loving ourselves fully. I know I'm not alone when I say that really loving who I am and respecting myself is one of my biggest struggles. Self-love isn't just about working out more or chanting positive affirmations, it's about honoring who we are in this moment and stopping the war on ourselves. It's about empowerment and courage, happiness and perspective. It's about being self-aware, setting boundaries, choosing our influences, keeping our minds active, and keeping our relationships healthy. It's also about forgiveness and peace, and service, and overall health. Mind, body, and spirit.
     I believe in really honoring our emotions, and I have worked nearly every day for years at encouraging myself to feel everything instead of trying to push away the darkness when I see it coming, and you know what? I'm still not great at it. There's a very touchy balance between putting a positive spin on hard things and not letting yourself feel at all. I've been there. There's also a fine line between having tough things happen to you and letting those things control you. Sometimes we can't help but get swept up, and that's okay. But most of the time, as Charles Swindoll said: "...we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for the day. We cannot change our past...we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way, we cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it, and so it is with you."
     One important thing that I've come to realize is that there is no finish line for self-love. There is never going to be a moment when we arrive at the precipice of happiness and can say "I did it!", because the world around us is constantly changing and evolving. We can work our hardest on controlling ourselves and our own feelings, but I believe that the default for everyone is to feel low.
     I believe that our minds are trained to gradually look past all the things that we do have and focus on the things we don't. I believe that our natural instinct is to always want to reach higher and do better, and therefore we have this habit of always feeling like we're not enough, that we're not doing enough, and that we don't have enough. And that's just what we put on ourselves, not taking into account the interactions we might have every day with people who are making us feel less-than. The people that want to see us fail and fall. The people that choose to step on others in order to feel like they have worth.

    I believe that happiness is a whole lot of work, every day. Even the happiest people you know don't wake up each day glowing in angelic peace and joy. Being positive is something we have to practice over and over and over again even after we've made it into more of a habit.
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     So, today I wanted to share a little list of 24 things that I feel can add to our jar of happiness and positivity, and that can help change our attitudes. Just remember that what works for one person might not work for another, and so if you try something new and realize that it's having little to no effect on your mood, try something else:) My challenge for you that I'll be joining in as well is to pick at least one thing (if not three) on the list to do every day for the rest of the month (we have a solid week left starting tomorrow) and check it off the list. Simple and effective, I promise:) 

One week positivity challenge
  1. Watch or listen to something motivational (example: look up Tony Robbins on YouTube, a TedTalk, or an empowerment podcast.
  2. Call a friend or a loved one just to talk about them. Every time the conversation steers towards you, try spinning it back towards them and not talking about your mood or issues at all. You might be surprised at how distracting it is for you, and how refreshed you feel about your own life.
  3. Reread an old favorite book.
  4. Get out into nature and go for a hike, swim, bike ride, etc. There's something so invigorating about the sunshine and the breeze, and getting your heart racing and your blood pumping makes us feel more alive.
  5. Try doing something childish like playing with sidewalk chalk or climbing a tree.
  6. Go for a car ride and sing along to your favorite song as loudly and off key as you want.
  7. Grab an empty notebook or pad of paper, or even a stack of napkins and just write. write to your younger self or the most trusted person you know. Tell them about your day, your week, your year, about your achievements, your struggles, your hopes, your fears. It always feels like a burden is lifted off of your mind and heart when you can spill your thoughts onto paper or a computer screen and not worry about them anymore. They'll be there whenever you need them, so just let them fade away. This is particularly healthy at bedtime. I sleep so much better when I can clear my head.
  8. Concentrate one whole day on eating whole, real, non-processed foods. 
  9. Make a list of all the things you've accomplished in the last week, instead of a to-do list for the week ahead.
  10. Smile at everyone you come in contact with.
  11. Drink a healthy green smoothie.
  12. Look up a simple yoga routine online and slowly go through as many of the moves as you can, remembering to breathe deeply and maybe even listening to peaceful music.
  13. Look up a list of positive affirmations for self-love online and repeat the list out loud to yourself. Have you ever heard of the law of attraction? It's really true. Love life and life will love you back. Repeating positive things about yourself will not only make you believe them, but you'll be amazed at what will start to happen in your life.
  14. Light some candles, turn on some music and clean a room in your house from top to bottom.
  15. Leave the dishes in the sink if you have to, leave the laundry in a heap or whatever, and go to bed early. Like 8:30pm early:)
  16. Go to a gym and work out all your frustrations. Whether it's beating them into a punching bag or sweating them out on the treadmill on in the weight-room doesn't matter, what matters is that when you leave those doors that you leave the frustrations of the day/week behind you.
  17. Pick out a new recipe and make a meal from scratch.
  18. Take a long hot bath. Just sitting in the hot water with your eyes closed will do you good, but if you can swing it, throwing in a bath bomb and lighting some candles will add a lot. Also music:)
  19. Write a letter to someone that you might have animosity towards, and then get rid of it. Burn it, shred it, whatever. Just get all the issues onto the paper and then let it go. 
  20. Make a list of 5 struggles in your life, and then next to each of those struggles list a lesson that you've learned from each of them. Working to see each trial as a lesson helps us see a benefit to even the hardest situations of our lives. You've survived everything that life has thrown at you so far, what are the scars that those experiences left behind and what did you learn?
  21. Treat yourself to something. A haircut, a pedicure, that pair of shoes you've been eying. Don't get too crazy, but a little bit of pampering can go a long way to turning your perspective around and helping you feel better about yourself and the world around you.
  22. Confide in someone. Choosing to trust someone with your true feelings about something you're dealing or struggling with can not only help get it off of your chest, but that trust will strengthen your friendship immensely. 
  23. Spend a little time researching a new skill or hobby that you've been wanting to try.
  24. Do something nice for someone else. If you can manage it anonymously, all the better.
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So what do you think? You want to try it with me? Let's start tomorrow and finish out the month of July and welcome in August with a bit more positivity in our lives, a bit more gratitude, a bit more perspective on what really matters. It's only a week:)

Ruben Chavez said "It takes as much effort to hold a negative belief as it does a positive one. Make sure that you choose beliefs that empower you rather than limit you."

Have a great week ahead fox family,


13 comments:

  1. I love catching up on your posts before bed! You're self-love challenges have hit home to me, without me even realizing how bad I needed it. Thank you so much for sharing your goals, struggles, and life stories. I appreciate your blogs. ❤️❤️

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  2. Great list!! I will try to pick a few and participate :)

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  3. Love, love, love this. The timing couldn't have been more perfect

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  4. Love this! This is something i definitely need to do. Thank you!

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  5. I love your photos, and everything about this list! Once I started going through it my heart just went "yes yes yes these are truly necessary!!" Definitely gonna be marking this post and coming back to it when I need it. :) Thank you so much for writing!

    Joanne | Life in Blue Skies

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  6. Thanks so much for your post. It was definitely something that encouraged and challenged me. I have been very wrapped up in the busyness and stresses of my job lately. I know these suggestions will help me take a step back, breathe and focus on today and the blessings it brings.
    Deb

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  7. Looking forward to the challenge! I could definitely use this in my life right now!!

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  8. Number 14 !!! I so need to do this in my library 📚
    My poor bookcases deserve some much needed love

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  9. I've also been trying to be better about feeling the emotion instead of avoiding it. I tend to do better (maybe?) when I do that.

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  10. I have just started reading your story and following your writing. For some reason I cannot get anything older then June posts to show though. Forgive me, I'm a newbie!

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  11. I am totally bookmarking this page for future reference!
    The Charles Swindoll quote is so true, especially the last line, and recently I've been reacting badly to the obstacles thrown at me in life, which is having a massive effect on my mental health, and I love the list of things to do to achieve a little positivity in life ♥
    - Rebecca ♥

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  12. Yes, life catches up with us, it's a real positivity challenge.
    my experience here.

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  13. I just have to say this is one of my favorite posts. I have come back so many times to reread your lists. Thank you for reminding us how important it is to remain positive in times of challenge.

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