Celebrate good times, come on!
Hello Dear Reader, how was your week?
My week was surprisingly grown up, I made some business decisions, went to a networking meeting and signed up some new clients! All very grown up, all very exciting. So exciting that I responded by eating sweets, having a dance party and starting a blog post with a picture of partying pineapples!
Old me would have pushed past these things and said, yep, done, tick, on to the next thing. The me that has emerged from the chrysalis of the last year or so now knows that she needs to do two things when big things happen:
1) CELEBRATE! Even if it is just sticking on some music and having a boogie, it's really important to acknowledge the achievement and celebrate it.
2) Do something childish. Now this one may be a bit left field, do something really grown up like start a company and you then want to go and splash in puddles?? What the hell?
It took a really long time to realise that a life lesson I'd been given by my friend Sarah many years ago wasn't just her being quirky, it was actually a really important part of being human. "Whenever I do something grown up, I have to do something that little me would enjoy. If I go to the bank and open an account, then I'll get my ears pierced. Or if I go to work and give a big presentation, then I take myself out for an ice cream with sauce and sprinkles afterwards".
In my experience, the times when I Do. All. The. Important. Big. Things. Like. A. Robot. I become completely disconnected, I get fed up and miserable and anxious. And yet it was only really recently that I realised, the reason for this is because these big things are too big for my inner little kid to understand and she gets scared. When she gets scared, fear takes over everything and until that is shifted, we're in for a rough time. Have you ever felt like that Dear Reader?
Sometimes it's easy to catch, we have a little chat and say "this is OK, we can do this, we're safe" and that's enough for her to say "OK, I'll go and watch random old adverts and make jingles randomly pop into your head". (For anyone who has watched Disney's Inside Out, I swear that movie is my brain!)
Other times, she gets so worried "but what if this happens, or that happens or this happens or we end up homeless under a bridge??" that she becomes completely overwhelmed and it paralyses me entirely.
The way out of this is not to just put up, shut up and get on with it. All that does is make it worse. Instead, we do something childish that she will enjoy. When she's having fun, she feels safe, creativity flows, anxiety goes and we get SO MUCH more done than we would have before. What she needs is to know that she's safe, and if she's having fun, then she is A-OK.
So with that in mind Dear Reader, how often do you celebrate your achievements, big or small? How much time do you spend being the grown up vs nurturing younger you who wants to feel safe and have a bit of fun now and again? If you find this a challenge then you may find coaching helpful. I have ONE remaining free space on my 12 week coaching programme up for grabs. Once it is gone, it is gone for good so act now by clicking the link below!
Give yourself the gift this week of celebrating something, big or small, celebrate with champagne or a gorgeous cup of your favourite tea. How ever you do it, really do it, you'll be amazed at the difference it makes to allow yourself to enjoy something. And if you feel like you can't do it alone, book a call with me and I'll support you while you figure out how.
Until next time Dear Reader, have a fabulous celebration x