When was the last time you woke up and REALLY experienced the morning? Not the hectic craziness that can so often consume the early parts of our days, but rather the stillness and the quiet the comes at the time before the world is up and running?
Before baby, I was a huge fan of the morning. Three days per week were my 6AM workouts and three days per week were 5:30AM walks with my dog. I am fortunate enough to live in southern California so those walks with the dog were either by the ocean or by the bay – I ALWAYS had something beautiful to look at.
Quite often I would listen to a podcast or sometimes just walk with the headphones in and no sound. It’s so rare that we actually get to experience that “quiet” these days.
Since having my little guy, the mornings have become much more hectic. My sleep is not the same as it used to be. (I WAS warned that once you bring a child into this world, you will NOT experience deep sleep for years.)
It’s hard enough to wake up early and I don’t want to wake him up to do a workout. Once he wakes up, he’s ready to eat and there’s nothing quick about it. All these are REAL issues that have to be ironed out, but they’re also EXCUSES.
As part of our upcoming women’s event, we’re interviewing experts from all over the globe. Each interview is talking about the HOW and WHY women NEED to prioritize themselves. Whether you’re a busy Mom or overwhelmed Single Lady, you MUST give yourself permission to take care of YOU.
The reason, I mention this is because Shannon had and interview scheduled with an expert and due time differences, the only time that would work was 7:00AM. All of the interviews take place at my house and it works best if the house is quite – which means NO BABY.
1.) PLANNING VS. REACTION
My little guy and I NEEDED to be out of the house by 6:30AM (and I’m so glad we did.) You see, when you can plan for something like this, its easy to do. There’s not stress because you can anticipate what’s coming and you already have a course of action. There will be times that plans change and you have to react, but when you’re ALWAYS in a state of REACTION, you’re always in a stressful state.
2.) EXTERNAL DEADLINES
I’m a very motivated individual, but sometimes, I let excuses get in the way. After a lot of thought, I actually realize that its not so much the excuse, but rather, it’s the fact that I didn’t take the time to put a system in place that would hold me accountable. I now realize that I CAN find a way to take these morning walks even with the Baby. I had a non-negotiable external deadline that I had to problem solve. This gave me the REASON to problem solve it. Look for external deadlines that can give you the motivation to do something that you know you’ve been wanting to do, but haven’t quite found that motivation. Maybe it’s signing up for a race to encourage you to get on a running or walking plan. Maybe scheduling a painter to paint a room will give you the deadline you need to clean out the clutter.
3.) BETTER ON THE OTHER SIDE
Once you actual complete your task, you’ll likely realize it wasn’t that hard. It probably felt like more work in your head and now that you’ve done it, you wish you’d done it sooner. Think about this feeling when you’re having the doubts or the tough times that creep up in any new experience that we do.
Based on my amazing morning experience this week, I ‘ve decided that I want to continue it at least two times per week. I love the quiet feeling of the morning and starting my day by seeing the world as such a calm space before the hustle and bustle of daily life begins.
If you’re looking for even more ways to help you become a happier and healthier woman and doing it in a way that fits your lifestyle, then please join us for our FREE interview series – DONE WITH DIETS: Discover how the Modern Lady Incorporates Lifestyle Changes to Create and Abundance of Health, Time, and Vitality.
Click here to get your FREE access to this event.
We’ll be speaking with 25+ Women’s Health and Wellness Experts to teach you how to prioritize YOU. Give yourself this moment and in less that 30 days, you’ll see the difference. We look forward to seeing you there.
Live your WHOLE life,
Meg + Shannon
P.S. We all know an incredible woman that has been putting everybody else above herself. Please share this event with her so that she knows how valuable she is! She can register here!
Great advice Meg. Looking forward to watching the videos!
Thanks Jeni! The interviews have some AMAZING tips 🙂