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Slow Down Summer

8/5/2021

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Summer days can often go by so quickly and before you know it, the busy fall routine returns.  Here are three ways that you can slow down the pace of your summer, spend time in nature, and enjoy the world around you.

​Cloud Watching

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You might feel silly at first, but that is part of the fun.   Bonus points if you have a friend join you. 

Lay a blanket out on the grass and look at the clouds above you.  Look for shapes (animals, food, vehicles) and point them out to see if others can see them too.  Notice how the clouds move differently whether it is a windy or calm day.  Notice how long it takes before your shape disappears or rearranges into something else.

Quiet Observations

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If laying on a blanket watching clouds feels a little too silly and kid like then give this one a try. 

Find a comfortable place in your yard, close your eyes, and sit quietly for 2 minutes just listening to the sounds around you. After two minutes write down all the sounds you heard and compare with the others listening.  What did you hear that you normally wouldn’t have observed? 

Explore Your Neighborhood

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​You may think you know your neighborhood inside and out, but I bet there are certain hidden corners and areas that are undiscovered.

Be a tourist in your own city. Go for a walk and get lost. Enjoy a bike ride on a different path. Make a wrong turn.

​Appreciate the little things and actively look for things you’ve never seen before.
​​Make sure you make the most of it! 

Summer will go by so quickly, but then again, so does life. I think the most effective way to get the most out of life is to live each day like it matters, because it does.

In our fast-paced, hyper-connected world, if we don’t take control of our summer, it will pass by unused and unenjoyed. We all need a great summer, so, let’s get out there and make the most of it.

xo,
​Cher
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How to make work feel like play

6/10/2021

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Hiya Herd!

We've got another self-care tip for you in what is for many a super-hectic time of year.  If you are a parent or a student, June can feel like a marathon with endless events and deadlines.  For me, it's all of the above plus approaching fiscal year end at work.

Love it or not, June is jam-packed and a little reframing can help you get through it all.

Reframing is a dynamic tool that helps you open your mind to new ways of looking at a situation or belief.  This simple shift can yield profound results in how you feel and approach your life.

Example: I have to go work
Reframe:  I GET to go to work

See what happened there?  By switching out HAVE with GET, we have taken what seemed like a mandate or chore, and turned it into a privilege.  

Not everyone gets to go to work.  Some people wish they had a job.  
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This subtle tweak puts you in a place of gratitude and appreciation. And I promise you that when you walk in with the energy of gratitude and appreciation, your day will flow so much better than if you approached it from a place of feeling beholden to a chore.

Ready to take this to another level?  Let’s change it up again.

Example:  I GET to go to work 
Reframe: I GET to go PLAY

Whaaaaat? 

Think that’s a stretch?  Well maybe it is from, “I HAVE to go work” but not as much from "I GET to go work".

So quit rolling your eyes and hear me out.

Work has such a negative connotation and brings up feelings of toil and sacrifice.   But play brings up a whole other energy.  It’s cheerful, light, and imaginative.  It’s FUN.

To be clear, it’s not as if a day at the office will automatically become a day at Six Flags (if that’s your jam.  Six Flags would be the equivalent of hell for me).  

It’s a shift in your energy and how you approach things.  The vibe you emit will also feel lighter to your colleagues and could promote funny banter as opposed to gossip and complaints, which tends to drain one’s energy.

I GET to PLAY can make an 8 hour day feel more like a half-day.  It can even make your commute home pleasurable.  

Before recommending this to our Herd, I tried it for myself.

I GET to go to work really felt really good to me.  The day felt special since I am still largely working from home. 

Going into work got me out of my house into different surroundings.  I met with people other than my family.  Given we are all emerging from our COVID cocoons, this one felt like an easy shift for me.  I felt grateful and happy to be around other people.

The next day I decided to try the far-fetched, “I GET to PLAY”.  I even chuckled to myself about trying it as I got into my car.

Guess what?   I experienced the biggest shift with this one! 

I sang loud and proud along to tunes in my car.  At work, I cheerfully met with clients and happily greeted colleagues.  I knocked off to-do's with bemused ease, including my least favorite annual task of dealing with delinquent accounts.  

The cherry on top was that the energy shift extended beyond my work day.  When I got home, I wasn’t ruminating inside my head.  I was chatty about my day which helped draw out my teens and as a result, we all had a really nice dinner together.

Reframing is a nifty little trick but like most self-care tools, it takes practice.  It’s very easy to slip into old ways of thinking and being -- the “I HAVE to’s”.  That was yesterday for me.  

I HAD to get my reluctant 8th-grader who has been remote all year to graduation practice, help my daughter get all of her art supplies back to her school and get myself to work for a day filled with appointments and calls, and get this blog post up which you guessed it! was a day late. 

My day also included losing my patience with my daughter in the school parking lot, yelling and tears, and just feeling so drained when I got home. 

Yesterday was overwhelming for sure.  It could have gone more smoothly had I done a little reframing early in the day.

The next time you start to feel anxious, depressed, overwhelmed, helpless, or just bored to tears, give it a try!  It can be applied to any area in your life including:
  • parenting
  • relationships
  • household chores
  • work

You name it, you can reframe it!

If you found this helpful at all, please share with your friends and family. Better yet, share your reframing experience with us in the comments below.  Your share might be just what someone else needs to hear to have her own breakthrough.

Lots of love,
Carolyn
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