2020 has been a year full of unexpected change, worldwide turmoil and unprecedented uncertainty. For me it’s been a time of major transition, upheaval and personal changes. But as the famous quote says, “New beginnings are often disguised as painful endings”, and so I am looking at all this uncertainty as an opportunity to refresh, restart and redesign my life. Now don’t get me wrong, it’s extremely difficult to remain optimistic when you feel like you have lost almost all control of your life! After months of not working, not having my own space to call home, what seems like an endless amount of job applications and just as many “you’ve been unsuccessful” responses, it would seem only natural to fall into a heap of self defeat.
But it is so important to keep a positive mindset to attract more positivity into our lives. How do I do that? See a few of my tips below.
- Come up with some positive daily habits. This could be anything from a daily walk to get your morning coffee, a regular meditation practice, nightly journalling, or listening to an educational podcast. When you put in place some positive practices and act on them consistently, is when you will notice significant change in your life. Find those things that make you feel good from the inside out and do more of that!
- Gratitude lists. Ive said it before and I’ll say it again, focusing on what you have and are grateful for rather than what you are lacking will attract more goodness into your life. It could be simple things from the fresh air, conversations with friends, or the way your favourite song lights you up inside. We have an endless amount of things to be grateful for in our lives each day, it’s just a matter of shifting our focus and realising how blessed we actually are to have what we have.
- Setting some clear and achievable goals. I am definitely a goal driven person, in my professional and personal life, and I find that even celebrating the small wins builds momentum and drive to keep on achieving. Whether it’s starting up a regular gym practice and sticking to it, cutting out wine during the week (a hard ask I know!) or reading ten pages a day of a self improvement book, when you make small but significant achievements it will encourage you to keep going and strive for more. For me, going to the gym every morning not only starts off my day right but has saved my mental health during this time!
- Connect and surround yourself with those that lift you up. If this time has made us realise anything it’s that we rely on that daily connection with others more than we realise. If you are struggling with all the changes and uncertainty happening in your life and the world right now, then making time for a bestie catch up could be the remedy you need to put that bounce back in your step. Personally I have absolutely loved the fact that I’ve had the time to have actual conversations with my friends and loved ones across the globe. To be able to connect and chat so easily through FaceTime with those who I either haven’t spoken with in ages, or usually only have the time for a quick WhatsApp conversation, has been super special. Just feeling that support and encouragement from those that always have my back, near and far, has helped me avoid a spiral depression and kept me feeling optimistic and mentally strong in these past few months.
- Take up that hobby or pursue those things you’ve always wanted to do. For me, writing and having a blog has always been a dream and on my “must do” list, but I’ve always used the excuse of not having enough time to actually make it happen. Following my redundancy I’ve made a conscious effort to get it up and running and use my blog as a creative outlet to express myself. This is such a great time to really think about what it is you want to do with your life and make the necessary steps towards that vision. Enrol in an online course, launch your small business, start writing that novel that’s been waiting patiently inside of you (yes Stacey, that ones for you) – life is short and this is a prime opportunity to reset and refocus on what lights you up. Xx