I recently interviewed a friend of mine for my blog (more on that later). She is someone I truly admire and I always learn so much from our conversations.
I asked her what her best tip to creating the life you desire is. Her answer? Stop doing stuff you hate.
We spend so much times doing crap we think is important but it’s really not. We were talking about low importance daily tasks that don’t move you towards your goals and how easy it can be to get sucked into them.
Our conversation got me thinking. What else can we stop doing? What are some common things many of us do, that can really hold us back?
Here are 5 things you can stop doing now, that can have a big impact on your life.
Cancelling plans with the people you love. A perfectly clean house. Answering “only these 5 more emails”. 20 more min at work. None of these are really that important. But a laughter fit with your sister, going for long walks with a girlfriend, tea with your mom, or a glass of wine mid week on the couch with your partner, these things actually are. Sometimes an email is urgent or an extra hour at work is necessary. But I think we often make those things more important than they actually are, and under value making time for the people we love. So next time you’re thinking you don’t have time to meet up with your friends, or hangout with your nephew, put down the phone and go.
Taking care of everyone but yourself. This is such a common one for women. I know it’s hard to find time for yourself. But you need to. You can only give what you have. No one will remember that you were away 3 or 4 hours a week. But they WILL remember if you were tired, cranky, snappy, unhappy and if you didn’t have enough energy to do anything fun while you were there. If you take care of your health and well being, you show up better in all areas of you life.
Stressing over your body. There is no such thing as a perfect body and constantly trying to achieve one or get pissed off because you don’t have one is a waste of time. Respect and love your body. Be grateful for all the awesome stuff it does for you every day. Checkout my favorite ways to starting loving your body now here.
Worrying about what everyone thinks about you. This is a tough one, I know. But you are who you are. Not everyone is going to dig it. But the people who love you will.
Making excuses to not workout. Seriously. I used to work at a fitness centre where the members were 70+ years old. Some would even come in to use a machine that would help them get out of their wheelchair and take a few steps. It was pretty awesome to see all of these people make fitness important to them. Any excuse you have looks silly when you look at this example.
Now I want to hear from you. In the comments below, let me know one thing you are committed to stop doing now.
Lots of love,
Ana
Ana,
Thanks for these reminders! I LOVE the first one and I believe I try to hold these types of things in high priority. I sometimes think “if I died tomorrow, which would let me die happier” haha, maybe that’s a bit morbid, but it helps me keep things in perspective when complaining about how “busy” I am!
Thanks Emanuela!
The first one is my fave too. I think it’s the most important one.