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In this episode of Creatives Crushing Anxiety I share the 8 changes I made in 2017 to start living a better life and grow as a person. 2017 was a huge year of change for me. I have been wanting to do an episode or blog post like this for a while. I had originally felt like it would be a good way to close out the year and kick off 2018 but then decided why not share it now? There is still time to improve 2017, so let’s use it!
Get Healthy
When you’re in your twenties it’s easy to feel like you’re invincible but the truth is young people get sick just like old people. This year I made major changes to drop 40 pounds and keep them off this year. When you aren’t physically healthy you really are making things harder on yourself. An unhealthy diet makes you feel tired, bloated and can even make you feel depressed. By eating a diet of lean meats, greens, grains and reduced natural sugar only your body literally works and feels better.
Read More
When I was growing up you could almost always find me reading. I was an extremely shy kid and I got to read these stories of people living lives so different from my own. I lost that a bit after I graduated high school. The demands of college and working full-time took that away and it didn’t get any better after finishing college, This year I have really committed to reading at least two books each month. I used to read that many in a week growing up but considering my schedule, it’s great. I have been enjoying classics like The Picture of Dorian Gray. I’ve tackled my mindset issues with books like You Are A Badass. I’ve blushed in the car listening to guilty pleasure “romances” like Right. I even have solved crimes reading true-life crime novels such as Precious Victims.
Reading isn’t always about learning, sometimes it’s about relaxing, laughing, crying or just getting away without having to go anywhere.
[bctt tweet=”Reading isn’t always about learning, sometimes it’s about relaxing, laughing, crying or just getting away.” username=”Diadoll”]
Talk It Out
I went to therapy after a really tough time during college. I had fallen into a deep depression, lost one of my best friends in a car accident and was just really having an emotionally hard time. I started feeling myself fall back into a depression, I was crying all the time. I felt like I was drowing in more ways than one. One day everything kind of exploded on me and I made the decision to go back to counseling. It has been such a process and it hasn’t always been easy but I am so glad that I have that outlet. The connection between your body’s health and your mental health is extremely strong. I would have these emotional and mental pains and they would physically manifest in my body. I’d get horrible headaches, toss and turn all night, get ulcers and horrible inflammation in my back. Don’t hold it in.
Invest Wisely
Let’s be honest there are so many ways to “invest” in yourself online. You can join one of the 1000s of courses launching every day. You could hire a coach or mentor. You could read all the books on self-development and business. There are a lot of options. It can be tempting and easy to go into debt trying to get out of debt.
[bctt tweet=” It can be tempting and easy to go into debt trying to get out of debt. ” username=”Diadoll”]
The key to investing in yourself is to make smart investments. Decide what it is you want or what your goal is and then invest in what will help you get there. It might be a program or a coach or a book but it also might not be those things. People think, “I want to be rich,” or “I want to have my own business.” Then they hear false vague promises and say, “Sign me up!” This doesn’t work because it isn’t a wise investment. They don’t actually have any clarity other than, “A six-figure salary would be nice.”
Time is also something we don’t value as much as we should. We will give hours of time doing stuff that ultimately does us no good.
[bctt tweet=”Your time is as valuable as your money. Don’t waste it.” username=”Diadoll”]
Before you put out the cash or time to do something, you need to really decide if it’s is going to get you where you want to be.
Say No
This is one that so many women had trouble with. It’s my experience that women tend to be nurturers. Even myself who doesn’t want to have children, I find that I still have this nurturing attitude towards the people I care about. I also want the people I like to like me back. It can be hard to say no because you feel like you’re letting people down.
You can’t pour from an empty pitcher! I can’t tell you who originally said that but I will tell you the second I heard it I thought, “Ding ding ding! We have a winner!” You can’t give and give to others if you aren’t ever giving to yourself. Sometimes giving to yourself doesn’t have to be a spa day or new pair of $300 boots. Sometimes the best gift you can give to yourself is to tell someone else, no.
By saying no to things you don’t want to do, you are opening up a whole new side of your life.
Show You The Money
I know it can be scary to look at your finances especially when you aren’t making the sort of money you want to be. Over the past few months, I have started to check my bank account and revenue every day. I have a daily spreadsheet where I do certain tasks and part of that is checking to see how much money is in my business and personal bank accounts, checking my affiliate balances and making note of any money I spend on my business. It’s not always an exciting time but it does help keep me in the know about where I am.
Get Familiar With Your Mindset
I know mindset has become a bit of a buzz word but it holds some weight. A lot of weight, all the weight. Yes, everything takes work to get done but sometimes the biggest cockblock to success and happiness is in our mind. If you haven’t read The Big Leap by Gay Hendricks then you need to go download it right now! It’s so easy for us to fall into these limits and restrictions that we mentally set to protect ourselves during childhoods.
Start figuring out what is holding you back and take action.
Plan big and small
You need to have big goals but you also need to plan small actionable steps to get things done. When you are working towards a big goal you’ll find that you get frustrated when you aren’t having any wins. By setting up goals that give you small wins from time to time you feel victory while moving forward.
Episode highlights:
- How a breast lump and hereditary condition sparked a major lifestyle change.
- How I fell in love with reading again.
- Why I started taking care of my mental health and mindset issues.
- How I invested in myself.
- The one word that gave me back my power and time.
- The small way I started to own my finances
- The new way I plan for my business.
Mentioned In This Episode:
- Lucky Bitch
- The Big Leap
- Chasing Life
- 6 Tips For Saying No When You Don’t Like Letting People Down
- 5 Times You’ll Be Happy You Said No
Therapy and Mental Health Resources:
iPrevail
7 Cups
National Suicide Prevention Hotline
Krysta Lynn
Saying “no” is probably the hardest thing for me!