Self Care Tip of the Week #22 – Something more for the Silly Season.
Is this good for my soul?
This morning I was having some time out and I decided to order a hot chocolate! After I ordered, I waited…. and waited…. and waited… It was definitely taking longer than I expected (especially for a take away drink).
As I waited, I began to notice what was happening behind the scenes at the popular coffee shop. The line was big (because I was at the beach and it was a STUNNING morning! So there were a lot of people around.) And…. it became obvious to me that the shop was short staffed.
There was another man waiting for his take away coffee as well and he began to get impatient, asking the worker “where is my coffee?” “Have you forgotten my order?”
His order was, of course, not forgotten, however the workers were over worked and under staffed as the patrons increased in number. This is what inspired me for this week’s (and the next couple of weeks) Self Care Tip. The tip is more about being aware of what’s happening around you and one way of doing this is by asking yourself:
Is this good for my soul?
As I stood there waiting I thought ‘there’s no point getting annoyed and impatient with this situation, people are obviously busy and trying hard to keep up with the demands. Other patrons are stressed because of the time of year… or… because of whatever is happening in their life (we will never know). So I decided to choose to be patient. Getting irritated was not going to help anyone. It had the potential to cause a ripple affect, first the workers getting less patient, then other patrons get impatient and before you know it the mood of the coffee shop could be affected. Because this is how our body’s and emotions work – they have the power to affect our day and to affect other’s around us if we let them.
So this Christmas, New Year and holiday season, I am encouraging you to make a choice and ask yourself in any given situation:
Is this good for my soul?
Getting upset over this, being picky at Christmas lunch, dreading going to that event when I don’t want to?
If the answer is “no, this isn’t good for my soul”, can I encourage you to consider making a change or compromise in order to care for your soul this Christmas and New Year season?
Your soul and mine, are fragile – often even more this time of year. We deserve to care for it and ourselves in the best way possible.
Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I will be back in 2015 with more Self Care Tips and encouragement to help you continue on your journey.
More Self Care Tips to check out:
#1 – Take a relaxing bath.
#2 – Spend intentional quality time with family. Take a walk, go out for coffee, have a chat with the TV turned off.
#3 – Write a bucket list. If money or time was not a question to consider, what would you like to do before you die? Dream big! Let your creativity run wild!
#4 – Look through some old photo albums – or photos saved on your computer. Remember the smells, noises and people you were with or places you saw or went to.
#5 – Be kind to yourself. Find a place to to relax and take time to breathe.
#6 – Give someone a random hug, just because.
#7 – Treat yourself to something yummy and take in all the textures, tastes and aromas of the treat.
#8 – Laugh for no reason at all. You might want to be somewhere by yourself when you do this. When I first heard this suggestion I thought it was a bit weird! After I did it, I felt different and almost couldn’t stop laughing. Give it a go!
#9 – Celebrate an achievement or success – Something that is a big deal for you. The art of celebrating when you’ve achieved something – big or small – is really important to learning to value who you are.
#10 – Keep a Journal. Something happens in our brain when we put pen to paper – or it might be fingers to keyboard. Our brain needs creative stimulation and writing with a nice pen or coloured textas can be an incredible process.
#11 – Have a hit of golf – or something else that will get you outside being active.
#12 – Be kind to Yourself.
#13 – Listen to your favourite song and sing or dance around like no one’s watching.
#14 – Watch the sunset.
#15 – Make your favourite drink and drink it while sitting in the sun.
#16 – Tick something off your bucket list.
#17 – Begin to declutter and make space.
#18 – Scream as loud as you can at a big event.
#19 – Give someone a call just to say ‘hi!’.
#20 – Have a longer shower.
#21 – Go for a walk through a garden.
Journeez Counselling and Training, Adelaide, are specialists in Self Care and learning to look after yourself in this fast-paced society. Please contact me today for further information about counselling or my Self Care workshops and seminars for businesses, churches or community groups. You are also welcome to join the Journeez community by subscribing to this blog above or follow me on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Discovering Life to the Fullest.
