Change, it’s like money in the bank. You are securing funds for your future. To be intentional, and follow through, your funds will build equity for many years to come. You will thank yourself, and your friends and family will that you too.
Change yourself, change your behavior and the way you view your world will change too. Take time, be patient, stay committed and you will see. To expect things to change overnight is unrealistic. Change is gradual and expect good things.
The mindset you are in determines how likely you are to be successful in making the change. You need to be dedicated and willing to change. As we know, change is painful as we are shedding old versions of ourselves. We are, in essence, dying to our old selves and emerging as someone new.
We have to be brave enough and willing to accept EVERYTHING that makes us who we are. The good, the bad, the ugly, the beautiful, old thought patterns, habits, routines, EVERYTHING that no longer serves us or serves a purpose in our lives.
There will be heartache. There will be pain. This is a part of life and this is normal. Pain, evokes in us, an uncomfortable feeling. We want to be perfect and just right, not having to suffer and dig deep to find the inner strength to carry on.
NO EASY BUTTON!! Hard work and dedication will get you to where you want to be in life. Doesn’t matter how rocky the road ahead of you seems, you need to persevere, keep going for your journey continues on.
How do you expect to get where you want to be if you don’t put in the grunt work, hard labor and proper maintenance on yourself? Do you think somebody is going to wave a magic wand and make all of your “problems” disappear? No way!
God, He put something in you. He put something in each and every one of us. He lives in us. He is the light. We can call on Him anytime, day or night.
If you are feeling like you can’t do it. If you feel like giving up. I want you to remember something very important. You and I are created in the likeness of Him. Who you are is a reflection of Him. We want to give Him our best. By giving our best means we are caring for ourselves holistically, finding balance and becoming one.
Finding balance, as many of us know, is challenging this day in age. We let things go, make excuses, escape, justify reasons why or why not we are performing certain behaviors. Balance in life includes: spiritual health, physical health and mental health. What you eat, drink, think, move your body or lack thereof, impacts the Holy Trinity (body, mind, soul). We are an interconnected system, whether you choose to believe this or not.
We are creatures of habit. Our brains are pattern seeking. What we come conditioned to thinking and believing takes time to transform, to change, the mindset that has been engrained within us. What you focus on you will get more of.
If you are in self-destructive thinking patterns, only saying bad things about yourself, getting down on life and thinking nobody cares. That is exactly how you will see the world. Darkness, doom and gloom. I have been there and this is not a state of mind, a place filled with God’s love.
Mini milestones is what it will take to get you on the path to freedom, changing from the old to the new. Start by proclaiming what you are grateful for (and just start by one thing a day to get in the habit and create the change). Use any art form, creative expression, whatever you are most comfortable with. Mine is writing, so I would choose that as writing is what I am most comfortable with. Use music, sing it out loud, write it down, paint it out, draw with crayons or whatever speaks to you.
I AM…… is a powerful statement to start your sentences and statements with. How you finish this can determine the beliefs you hold about yourself or the world in general. You can use this for all areas of your life to put things into perspective.
Starting with the grateful statements, an example can be, “I am grateful for the sunshine and warm weather.” Or, “I am grateful for my family staying safe and healthy.” This statement is personalized to fit you.
I AM…..statements can also be used in different ways. If you feel afraid, fearful or anxious, often times saying, “I am safe. I am calm. I can handle this.” Will help you work through your worries. Saying these words helps change the thought patterns in the brain.
For many years, I have been using “I AM…” statements to get me through some challenging times. Self-talk, love and respect for myself. I first learned about, “I AM…” statements when learning about techniques for social-emotional learning and connections with Becky Bailey and Conscious Discipline training, during the early years of my teaching.
These strategies were to primarily be used with my students, however I discovered I was using more of these statements myself to help me change my patterns of behavior and become a more effective teacher. Fascinating, in all my years of teaching how I have learned so much about myself while working with preschoolers with special needs. I know I am just as special as they, so perhaps that is why I love working with children so much. I get it! I understand them.
Same strategies that are being used for children and early learning are just as effective when working with adults. As a child, I was never introduced to any coping strategies or techniques to support my social-emotional learning.
I really, truly and genuinely believe God pushed me, supported me, helped me to change, to transform, to be, that teacher a child needs. For me, to be the person, the teacher, I wish I had as a child, to support all my needs. (By the way, I did have a few amazing teachers along the way…don’t get me wrong as I give thanks and I am extremely grateful for their presence in my life.) But, my school experience as a whole, lacked the culture of community and building up one another in order to change, transform, become the most beautiful person one could ever hope to be.
Perhaps you are starting to understand a bit more of where I am coming from regarding this change and transformation. Working hard at becoming the best version of myself, the best version you too, can be.
Life, challenges us. Some of us may be hindered by old thought patterns, negative voices from the past, telling us we are not good enough, not popular enough, not this or not that, which impacts our ability to accomplish our goals in life. Dreams may be shattered if there was failure to believe.
Not all hope is lost. God, He woke you up this morning. He gave you the breath of life. He has given you a new day, a new dawn to move forward, move on. You can accomplish and reach dreams higher than the standards you set for yourself. Fear, holds us back, for a variety of different reasons.
What if I fail?
What if I get denied?
What if I don’t lose weight?
What if they laugh at me?
What happens if I succeed?
What happens when my greatest ideas, inspiration, goes world-wide?
Than ask yourself:
What happens if we just stop, pause for a moment and just let life happen?
What if we are just in the present moment and noticing all the little things in life that are easily taken for granted?
What will happen if I sit in silence with my thoughts?
What if I start making a vision board, a plan and start following through?
There are so many questions we can ask ourselves at every given moment throughout the day. Choose your thoughts wisely as that will be the predictor or your kind of day.
Choose positive thoughts. Get your day started on the right track. See the good in all circumstances, regardless if they are good or bad. Go to bed at night with a grateful heart. Give thanks to God, all glory and praise for He has helped you through.
Magnificent Meraki 