A daily practice that only takes 3-minutes.
Some days my brain feels like the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland circa 1969 — the year it managed to light itself on fire.
A river. On fire.
Apparently, this was the norm back when dumping toxic waste into rivers was a thing because the general thinking was, hey, what can go wrong?
(I’ll bet this practice provided movie inspo for classics such as The Blob, Encounters of the Third Kind, and gave Stephen King the seedlings to imagine a psycho clown that emerged from the sewer!)
On days like these, when there are little fires constantly popping up all around, it’s IMPOSSIBLE to secure one hour of quiet time which is how my hopeful list of to-do’s — that have nothing to do with anyone else but me — gets tossed into the flames.
However, I’ve realized one incredibly sad truth to all this. The time not spent on me is 100% my fault. That’s right… my fault.
It’s not my kids, not my dirty house, not the dinners that need to be made EVERY NIGHT, or the magical laundry hamper that gets filled to the brim by some secret fairy while we sleep!
We, as humans are responsible for how we allow outside events to affect us and occupy our sacred space, which we choose to open up like a 24-hour emergency room!
This is why Operation Me is underway as I’m tired of putting myself, my hopes, my goals, my dreams of being a more well-rounded, better read, second language speaking individual, on hold!
To get a better grip on becoming the person we want to become — because let’s be honest, we all have dreams of who we want to be and many of us aren’t there yet — it’s time for a plan!
And here’s how it’s going to work:
1. Begin by ditching your mommy, wife, employee, employer, and any other role you identify with. All of them, poof! Dispersed like storm clouds on a windy day leaving you stripped to the soul.
2. Sit quietly for three minutes a day (Set a timer to remind yourself to do this because the truth is, YOU’RE GOING TO FORGET TO DO THIS!)
Life sets up ornate boobytraps, and I know you have a million things racing around within that beautifully shaped 8-inch circumference atop your shoulders and this is going to fail to register quickly.
3. During those 3-minutes, visualize yourself as the person who just accomplished their goal, or who is actively doing what you want to do and achieving amazing results.
For example, if you want to lose weight, you’re the one on the beach who no longer thinks about taking off her cover-up because YOU DON’T WEAR ONE ANYMORE!
Or you want stronger, sexier arms — you see yourself wearing tank tops year-round BECAUSE YOUR ARMS ARE AMAZING and people keep pointing that out to you!
Or you wrote a book, decluttered your attic, ran a marathon, can order dinner in Italian, are living in a new home by the beach… it can be whatever it is that makes your heart flutter and your mind joyful.
For three minutes a day, you’re going to BE THAT PERSON who has “it”.
You’re stepping into their/your shoes and you’re feeling all the feels. You’re that person, right now! You know what life feels like now that you’ve accomplished your goal.
This is a three-minute practice you implement every day!
And each day, your image becomes clearer, and you add more detail. You get more comfortable in those shoes, and here’s the MOST interesting part… life will then begin to bend in that direction.
Woo-woo?? F*ck yea it is! But it’s absolutely the truth — ask Brene Brown, Oprah, Deepak Chopra, Eckhart Tolle, Paulo Coelho, the list carries on and on!
I’ve worked with too many women to know that if you’re not taking the time to envision yourself living the life you dream of, then getting there is going to feel damn near impossible.
Life bends in the direction of your thoughts.
If you want to lose weight, yet don’t see how an inconsistent workout schedule impacts your dreams or how snacking derails them, you’re not properly envisioning your future to succeed but instead be sideswiped by inconsistency REPEATEDLY!
It’s so easy to let your brain fire up like a toxic river in 1969… but it’s up to you (and me!) to push through the muck, clean the debris, and begin to see how we can achieve the things that make our hearts sing!
I’ll leave you with these life-bending words from the poet Mary Oliver in the hopes you’ll begin to take your dreams ever more seriously than the people and events that keep you treading toxic waters:
Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?
Let these words sink in, and then answer the question.
Till next week my visioning master friend!
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