Have you ever said: ‘I’ve always worn this shade of lipstick’ or ‘I mostly wear black‘ or ‘My husband doesn’t like me to cut my hair’ or ‘This is just how I eat/exercise/think/vote/worship – and I’ll never change it’?
Any time that you find yourself using the words ‘never’ or ‘always’, be aware that it would be good to pause and reflect on what you’re saying. Whenever you’ve been thinking, feeling, doing – or even wearing – something for a long time without questioning it, it would be a healthy thing to review the situation.
Stay current
Everything in life moves on all the time – and it’s good to keep up. Obviously there are some things that are just ‘new’ for the sake of being ‘new’ – fashion is a good example of this – but there are lots of things that it can be very refreshing and inspiring to take a fresh look at.
Your hair and the sort of clothes you wear are a relatively easy place to start – and then, once you’ve reassessed these things, it’s a bit easier to reflect on come of the other things that you may be doing without consciously thinking about them.
Take some time to reassess
For example, do you always do the same things over weekends or mix with the same people you’ve always mixed with? Do you ever try any new foods, new recipes, a different, healthier way of eating – or you do stick with the way you were taught to eat growing up? What are your spiritual beliefs? Are you satisfied, fulfilled, inspired and motivated by the spiritual and religious system you follow? What do you feel about the systems around you, the way you work, how you exercise?
Taking the time to review some of the things that you take for granted and that you do almost without thinking about them can be very enlightening and can bring a breath of fresh air into your life. Looking at things differently and/or trying new things can give you a fresh new lease of life and allow all sorts of new possibilities to open up for you.
Check for authenticity
Any time that you take stock of your life in this way gives you the chance to make any adjustments that need to be made at this stage of your life. It’s an opportunity to become more authentic and more in alignment with who you really are.
What may have worked for you before may not be quite right for you now so check and see whether some shifts and adjustments may be necessary. These may be as simple – or as meaningful – as cutting your hair or growing it a bit longer, adding a bright scarf or handbag to your clothes, listening to some new music, taking a walk over your lunch break (or even taking a lunch break!), trying food you’ve never tried before, breathing and relaxing in heavy traffic instead of reacting with frustration – whatever you do to pause and reconsider your habitual responses can open up new possibilities for you.
This isn’t change for the sake of change but rather opening yourself up to other opportunities. Let’s see what interesting things await you!
