Girl it's time for YOU!

It's not selfish, it's called self care.

At some point in your life you've heard the infamous saying "you can't help others unless you are ok first." or when you get on a plane and the flight attendants say "please put on your mask first before helping others around you.". Both of these sayings speak to the idea that if you are in a bad place or struggling you don't have the capacity to help others around you. A valid point? Sure, but what happens when it's just day to day life? When as moms you're juggling kids and a household? or When as a single woman just working on her career? or When it's just a simple day running errands, working out and cleaning? What happens then when you feel yourself start to burn out or max out and it's nothing extraordinary but the simple chaos of everyday life? No one tells you those sayings in the middle of the "norm" and the saddest part is that is when we start to forget to take care of ourselves the most. That is why right now in this moment I am here to give you a reminder that YOU matter and YOU deserve a breath of air and a moment to yourself to keep going through the "norm".

One word: NO

You don't have to take a whole day off and go to the spa...even though let;s be real that would feel AMAZING! You don't need to shut the world off around you for an hour just to find silence and recover...moms you know how much of a struggle FIVE MINS to go to the bathroom is. My friends you don't need to do anything drastic, just start with the word NO. That's right a small two letter word that has so much power to give you that breath of air. I'm sure you're thinking "I can't just tell everyone no...like my boss...thats how I get fired". You'd be right you can't go around and say no all day long to everything and everyone but you can say NO to things and people that drain your energy.

Mind over Matter: Let me break it down for you starting from the beautiful brain that you have inside that amazing being of yours. Our thoughts take up more that 70% of our own energy throughout the day. That is A LOT of energy! Why not turn some of that energy into so life giving positivity for yourself?! It's not as complicated as it sounds, it is a simple NO to negative thoughts.

Here is an example: You are getting ready for the day same as always and you open the closet and have the same thought "I have nothing to wear!" Yes we have all been there. You shuffle through your clothes and see that bold trendy blouse you bought months ago and still haven't worn. You then browse through your pants and see those jeans with the fancy back pockets you thought would look super sexy but still haven't hit the streets yet

It's that simple. Allow yourself to turn on that inner take charge babe and give yourself space for YOU to own the day and keep working it like you do everyday!

Energy Vampires: Alright so you have the idea from the inside out now let's work the outside in angle. We all have people in our lives that leave us drained and dull after the conversation ends, or those friends who text us with every little thing and no matter how much we work to find the bright side the sky is always falling around them. Today it's your turn to say NO and keep your bright energy!

Here is what I mean: You are at work and your boss is being the usual prickly person, we all know the micro-managing type. Usually you would be thinking "UGH again with the constant hover-bot attitude...just go away!" only today in this moment you decide to choose YOU and your thoughts change to "NO not today all I'm going to hear is Charlie Brown parenting voice because I know how to do my job and I am good at it. Thank you next!". You might be just thinking it but you are still saying NO to someone taking from you.

As for that one friend: Today you are saying NO through kindness and boundaries with a simple eloquent text. "Hey girl, I'd like to connect about all of this but my plate is full today and I need to focus on that so let's plan to catch up later this week.". Simple to the point and you take ownership of your day and your time.

Joy in Chaos

You have a crazy day maybe running from meeting to meeting, juggling crazy kids, cleaning the house and running errands or simply just trying to make it to the gym in rush hour traffic, whatever the reason the daily chaos can eat away at you making it hard to keep going or even just be calm.

Time to take a step back and focus on YOU. While running from your desk to that meeting take 30seconds and look around you and just smile at the fact you showed up today and get to work with a bunch of geniuses like you. Those crazy kids being loud and wild take 1 minute and marvel at the fact that those beautiful tiny humans are yours and listen to their little voices and the wild imaginations they have. Maybe while out running errands notice the people around and smile at that sweet old couple grocery shopping together. Finally my favorite one to do, while sitting in rush hour traffic instead of looking at the break lights and getting fidgety turn on the radio use that lip balm as a microphone and safely jam out and watch the people around you chances are you'll make at least three people smile with your wild car jamming.

Treat Yourself

We've all heard this phrase over and over and we tend to shrug it off more often than not. However it has serious value and I don't mean just splurging on that one top or buying the little bag of sweets because you can. I mean this phrase has value for your heart, mind and body. Yes treat yourself to those little things like a cute top or yummy food but take it one step further and treat yourself to listening to those music jams that are total guilty pleasures and let yourself be giddy about it. Treat yourself to watching that one movie that makes you laugh until you get the hiccups. Treat yourself to those extra long snuggles with your little ones. Treat yourself to that brief moment outside in the sunshine taking a deep breath of fresh air before you zip off to work. Treat yourself to that extra mirror glance at the gym when you see yourself working it!

My friends treat yourself like the amazing strong woman you are. You are a superhero, a role model, a fighter, a survivor, a brilliant beacon of light, a healer and most important a beautiful human being!