The journey towards living your best life is certainly worth taking and is often exciting. Implementing healthy habits and prioritizing self-care can be admittedly daunting, especially if you haven’t in the past, but is also quite fun and motivating. I know that I certainly get excited to try a new workout program, try something new in my morning routine, crack open a new self-help book, meditate with a new tarot spread, or implement anything new into my life. New and fresh things in the self-improvement realm are exciting. They’re also necessary for our continual growth as human beings.
With that said, your self-improvement journey isn’t just about implementing new habits and routines into your life. To truly live your best life, there is a lot of releasing and letting go that needs to be happening as well. I mean, can you truly expect to live your best life when you’re still holding on to anything that’s been dulling your sparkle to begin with? While nothing is impossible, it can be extremely difficult to live your best life and become your best self when you’re continuing to do things that contradict who you want to become and where you want to be in life.
So let’s stop this self-sabotaging nonsense. Today!
Thing to Stop #1 – Speaking Poorly of Yourself
As humans, we’ve all been conditioned to be highly critical of ourselves. While it’s healthy to acknowledge where we have room for growth, far too many of us tend to take it too far and end up bullying ourselves. We’ll pick ourselves apart for everything and anything, without any filter. We bash ourselves through self-deprecating jokes, calling ourselves names, picking apart our flaws, and dwelling on even our tiniest mistakes. We speak to and of ourselves in a way that we would never think to speak of another person.
And you know what? It’s actually not okay. Because, whether you’re joking or not, you’re feeding your subconscious with negative beliefs about yourself. And since we manifest what our subconscious believes, we’re doing ourselves a major disservice by filling it with poor beliefs about ourselves. We want to manifest our best life, not stay stuck in a belief system that dulls our sparkle.
Thing to Stop #2 – Not Allowing Yourself to Be A Beginner
How many hobbies have you not taken up because they seemed intimidating? How many dreams have you not gone for because you were afraid to fail? Or, generally speaking, how many things have you not allowed yourself to do because you were afraid to look like a beginner?
Listen, lovely, everyone starts off their journey in everything they do as a beginner. Surely, some people start earlier than others, and some people also have more resources to propel them forward than others. Regardless, everyone starts from their own square one and builds their knowledge and skillset as they go along. Seldom does perfection just come naturally or success boom overnight. Being a beginner is an essential part of the learning process.
I mean, how can you ever expect to become an expert at something if you never allow yourself to even try, or if you give up after the first attempt? How can you build a business you never started? You simply can’t!
Of course, you should always do your research, so you’re not going in completely blind. But let’s be real, you likely already have an idea of what you need to do to get started. So go for it, girly!
Thing to Stop #3 – Constantly Making Excuses
Excuses just might be the bane of every human’s existence. It’s not difficult for us to conjure up an excuse for anything we don’t particularly feel like doing at the moment, or at all. But when we decide to find an excuse to procrastinate or not do something, that thing just looms over our heads. We know the consequences of making an excuse instead of putting in the effort. We know we’re making it harder on ourselves down the road by making an excuse and procrastinating. So perhaps, we should just drop our excuses, grab a cup of our favorite caffeinated beverage, and do the thing!
Besides, why would you let excuses come between you and your best life?
Thing to Stop #4 – Continuing Lifestyle Choices that Don’t Align with Your Best Self
Many of us have habits and lifestyle choices that objectively aren’t helpful to us and keep us from feeling like our best selves. We know that being a chronic complainer isn’t going to bring us any closer to our best lives. Nor is staying in bed all day solely because we don’t feel like getting up. We also know that being glued to our phones all day is not productive for us in any aspect. Yet, many of us may find ourselves getting stuck in these patterns from time to time.
Certainly, we should give ourselves some grace when we catch ourselves slipping into these habits. We’re all only human, after all. Life can sometimes get the better of us. However, we should also be holding ourselves accountable and stopping ourselves from continuing down a path that we know we don’t want to be on. We certainly don’t want to create even more struggles for ourselves and continue to not show up as our best selves.
With that said, we should also stop attempting to force ourselves into a lifestyle that isn’t suited for us. No matter how healthy or productive said lifestyle may seem. Or how wonderful it may be for someone else. Seriously, if you’re fighting your biological clock to wake up at 4:00 AM, only to feel exhausted and grouchy all day, perhaps it’s time to adjust your wake-up time to better align with your circadian rhythm. Or if you absolutely can’t stand the chaotic gym environment, perhaps a walk around the neighborhood would be better suited for you.
Remember, you want to create a lifestyle that allows you to thrive as your best self. Your lifestyle choices should not feel draining or inauthentic to the person you’re striving to be.
Thing to Stop #5 – Making Goals that Don’t Align with What You Truly Want
Having goals is a major part of girl-bossing and striving to live your best life! But are the goals that you have made truly yours? I mean, are you choosing to put so much time and effort into this thing because you want it? Or is it because you’re looking to make someone else (i.e. your parents) happy? Does this thing you’re working toward set your soul on fire? Or does it merely feel more like a comfortable safety net? Does it feel authentic to what you truly desire? Or does it feel like you’re missing out on something greater?
Far too many of us set goals based on how others may perceive us, a guaranteed sense of safety, or a mix of both. Sadly, many people forgo their dreams, as they have been led to believe they are unattainable. Instead, most people settle upon a seemingly more sensible career in whatever field they find to be the most tolerable. And while their income and job title may be the envy of others, they can’t help but feel like something is missing in their life. Perhaps, they feel like they’ve lost their sparkle along the way. And they know that this path isn’t truly in alignment with their deepest desires.
And it’s not just career goals that we may be making that aren’t in alignment with our truest desires. Think about how many people do things more for social media than they do because they have a genuine interest in doing those things. Or how many people strive to win over the acceptance of their peers, even when that means being inauthentic to themselves.
It’s essential to have goals in life. Just remember, your goals should align with the best version of yourself, and what you want.
Thing to Stop #6 – Letting Other People Treat You Poorly
Being a kind-hearted person does not mean accepting poor treatment from others. Regardless of how much you care about someone, by no means should you allow them to constantly cross your boundaries and leave you feeling upset. While the work to create your best life and become your best self comes from within, it’s counter-productive to actively allow other people to drag you down.
It’s hard to build up your confidence when your family won’t stop making your insecurities the punchline of their jokes. It’s hard to be your best self when that one friend keeps updating you about that thing that really triggers you. And when you’re constantly checking your phone, because your partner hasn’t so much as said “good morning” to you by 1:00 PM, you’re probably not living your best life!
Please, stop letting other people dull your sparkle. Even if you love them dearly. Have a conversation with your loved ones about how their words and behaviors affect you emotionally. Lay out what your boundaries and expectations are, and stand firm in them. And don’t be afraid to drop or reduce contact with people when needed. As hard as it may be, it may be necessary for your emotional well-being.
Conclusion
We all deserve to evolve into our best selves and manifest our best lives. There is so much magic in watching yourself blossom from self-improvement and personal growth. It feels wonderful to bring in more of what feels good into your daily routine. Whether it’s allowing ourselves a slower morning or making strides towards being the girl boss we were always meant to be, it’s quite satisfying to partake in things that make us feel amazing. On that same note, we should also be editing out what may be hindering us from living our best lives.
What are some things that you often catch yourself doing that may be hindering your growth? What are some of the biggest barriers between you and your best self, that are within your control?
No Comments Yet
This post doesn't have any comments yet.