YOUR LIFE A-Z: PRIDE

Take Pride in Yourself!

PRIDE

Wikipedia says PRIDE is an inner directed emotion, from a positive connotation is a satisfied sense of attachment to ones Own choices or actions.  PRIDE is also a sense of belonging to a group or family where one's positive feelings of connection run deep within each other.  An example of that would be the GBLTQ community celebrations of Gay PRIDE.  Pride is a bubbling up of positive emotion   that naturally expresses itself through a wide smile and relaxed facial expression.  In yesterday's word, Own, I spoke about the PRIDE of ownership, taking responsibility for the decisions and choices you are making.  Today, I am asking you to dig deeper and allow a sense of belonging to yourself make you feel PRIDE deep within. It is true that when we feel PRIDE we Invest more self-care into whatever it is we feel PRIDE about.  A new car gets washed and waxed more often than an old beater car.  Take better self-care of your self today.  File your nails, get a new haircut, or take a bubble bath. Do something today to make yourself feel PRIDE in who you are.  Take a hot lunch to a homeless person or write a check to your favorite organization to Invest something of your success into the lives of others.  Allow yourself to take PRIDE in who you are, not just what you do.  Self-care and care of other are two sides of the whole, Invest in both to achieve PRIDE in yourself.   

YOUR LIFE A-Z QUIT

A SLOTH IS A GREAT ANIMAL TO HELP YOU QUIT

Just for today, one day out of your life, QUIT talking negatively about yourself and others.  In order for you to do this, you must become aware of how negative you are.  Awareness, as I have spoken about is the first step to change.  Without awareness you do not really live life, you just exist. In order to live more fully it is important to QUIT doing things that harm yourself.  It is often helpful to imagine that negativity is a big icky ball of green slime.  Each time you are negative in your thoughts, words, or actions, that green slime attaches itself to your physical body.  So by the end of each day you are covered with smelly, icky green slime that weighs you down. The way to QUIT slimming yourself is to QUIT that old habitual negative talk.  A good technique to help yourself QUIT, is to wear a rubber band on your wrist and snap it each time you catch yourself being negative. The snapping sound keeps the slime away.  If you are too self-conscious for that, then choose a different bracelet or watch than you normally wear.  Each time you catch yourself being negative twist your bracelet or watch around your wrist once as an awareness building tool to help you QUIT.  You can use this QUITTING tool to help you QUIT whatever it is you want to QUIT, but it is essential to QUIT talking negatively in order to be happier on a daily basis.

YOUR LIFE A-Z:JOURNAL

WRITE IT OUT...ALL OF IT

JOURNAL

Yes, write it down.  To JOURNAL is to record a story.  Think about it. Journalists are reporters that write down the event.  They don’t just report the event, such as, today there was a bank robbery at the corner of Bell and Jack Rabbit, they describe in detail the robbery.  Today, at 1:07, a blue pick up truck pulled into a very active strip mall and parked near the exit.  Two heavy set white males, appearing to be about 5’6” got out and walked to the bank.  As they entered, they nodded to a woman wearing a purple shirt and blue jeans.  She got in the bank line, fiddled to get her check book out of her leather purse, and when it was her turn at the teller, the two guys rushed behind her and stuck a gun in her back.  She told the teller, “I need $10,000 or these guys are going to kill me and everyone in the bank.  They are armed and have three hand gernades to dislodge if you don’t do this now and without any cues to anyone else. Understood?”  See, got interested didn’t you?

Make your journaling a written and interesting report about your day. Now, take ten minutes and describe your day as definitive as possible.  “My first thought this morning was, I want taco’s tonight.  As I dressed in my black suite and turquoise blouse, my taste buds were remembering those tacos at Sierra Blanco.  You get the point.  Now go do it.  No Excuses.  Do and Do It Now!