Soooo, it’s been a minute, hasn’t it? Or maybe something like 8 months. I’m going to be honest here, as I promised I would be, I let fear and “life” get in the way.
I started this initiative with the intention to lead by example and to try to really help others set aside time in their busy days to work on rest, stillness, centering, mindfulness, gratitude, and all that jazz. To be able to have a routine and normalcy with something(s) that truly give you joy and help to fuel your spirit and soul. I worked really hard at it for about a month, and then the holidays came...and I got off track. I started again in January, and as I said, life started happening (or, more specifically, a grueling marathon training cycle happened and I napped instead of wrote).
But in the midst of all this time that has passed, I started to feel fear and doubt creep in. Why is it that we can hear the negativity so much louder than the praise? Or is that just me? When I started this, the messages and responses I got were overwhelmingly positive and encouraging.
But not all of them were like that.
And those were the ones that I let fill my headspace for the last 8 months.
Who am I? What qualifications or experience do I have to try to make this kind of change for people? I’m just a middle-aged wife and mom, working her way through crazy days and jobs, trying to be a role model and do good. But what gives me the “right” to try to help people change? I’m not a psychologist or counselor. I’m not a clinical therapist. I haven’t done research on mindset or gratitude or any of that.
But then why can’t I get rid of this feeling, this voice, that keeps telling me to come back to this? Why do I feel like I’m called to do this?
I think the list of “non-qualifications” that I just listed above is exactly why I AM qualified to do this and share this message. Because MOST people out there that NEED this movement and message are JUST LIKE ME. “Just” a mom or dad. “Just” a spouse. “Just” a boss/employee/entrepreneur. “Just” a woman or man. “Just” a person trying to figure out how to navigate this increasingly fast-paced world and yet find time to remember who I am.
A week ago I went to an annual event called Celebration. At this event, I got to hear Nick Vujicic speak. Wow. If you don’t know who he is or haven’t heard him speak, please look him up. You’ll be blessed. He spoke to us for quite a while and I was moved to tears several times. His underlying theme: “Figure it out.” Whatever you’re struggling with, figure it out. Whatever challenges you’re facing, figure it out. Whatever battles you’re waging, figure it out. But it was this specific sentence that hit right to my core.
“If you don't get a miracle, BE ONE. “
Exactly. Maybe miracle is a big word for this project, but maybe there are other tired, middle-aged moms (and dads) out there that feel that each day comes and goes and they gave everything they had to everyone else. They are wiped. They are tired. They feel like they are losing their fire. They don’t know who they are anymore except ‘someone’s mom’ or ‘someone’s spouse’. Maybe this message could help. Because while I feel like I’ve done a fairly good job for the majority of the past 8 months at keeping some “me” time in my days and weeks, this project was never about me. It was about sharing this with others so that WE ALL can be more centered, more rested, more balanced. This will create happier people, kinder people, healthier people.
Move ahead one more day at the same event and we get to hear Brendon Burchard speak. Another wow. Brendon is a very motivating speaker (well, he should be, lol!) and I find his perspective to be relatable. Again, I feel the tug to get back to blogging and sharing this message - and then the echoes of the negative and somewhat condescending comments ring in my ears. I think on the same loop, “I’m not qualified to do this. Let it go.” And yet, I can’t.
So today, Sunday, I open up Facebook and a post from Brendon Burchard is the first thing I see. I’ll post the screenshot below, but basically, he is addressing this exact fear. He says, “Stop worrying about your past or credentials and start creating and contributing now. You can find reasons to be inadequate or you can GET AT IT.”
So here we go. I’m going to get at it. I’m going to create and contribute. I’m going to re-ignite this project and message, and maybe, just maybe, it will be a message that someone else needs to hear. If it’s not you, then I’m so happy that you are able to find time in your days to be balanced. Pass this on to someone that might need it.
I’m committing to being back on the blog with ideas and tips to hopefully help. I’m also working on getting the podcast up and running. (Another thing I was trying to make ‘perfect’ and instead, I’m going to make ‘happen’.) Will it be the best thing since at-home grocery delivery? No. But it will be real, and authentic, and honest, and hopefully, a contribution to people’s lives. I fill my ears every day with motivational authors and speakers (Brene Brown, Rachel Hollis, Tony Robbins, Rich Roll) and I feel that I need to heed their advice and not ignore this little voice inside that won’t stop telling me to get back to this. To help others find their time in their days to really be, to really focus, and to really refuel.
So here we go, friends, let’s put ourselves back in our 1,440 minutes each day. It’s a new day and a new week. Five, ten, fifteen minutes is TOTALLY doable, even for the busiest people on the busiest days. Let’s commit to that, and I commit to doing it, too.
~ Melissa
The post from Brendon Burchard that motivated me to get back on here and start again.