February Ambitions

February

Romance Myself

Write my own manifesto/mission statement: There is something so powerful about proactively defining my mission. I wrote something like this last year and found it to be so invigorating to lay out what I truly wanted in life and how I wanted to go about getting there through my actions. Another approach I may attempt is to write a letter to my younger self. Often times I seek so much information from books and websites yet neglect the overflowing wealth of wisdom that I have simply collected through my own experiences. By taking the time to do this I will be learning from my past and previous lessons.  I should be operating like this daily but I know that I ‘m not. This is going to be one of the first things I chip away at in February.  When I’m done with it I’m going to frame it for myself… after all, I know I’m never really going to get to printing out the pictures that are meant for all of my empty picture frames…

Some great inspiration to get started...

 “If I Had My Life to Live Over” 

Girl on A Mission: How to Write a Personal Mission Statement 

Letters To My Younger Self

The Turned On Woman

Figure out what I truly want: Start with a vision board. I haven’t done one of these since before Miss USA. For some reason it’s been very challenging for me to set a clear vision because my previous vision had an expiration date and I've struggled to navigate past it. I’m a huge advocate of vision boards; I truly believe they have played a large part in all of my accomplishments. This is a project that I’m going to commit to this month. I don’t want to finish it because ultimately my vision should continue to evolve and adjust as life does. 

My vision board creation madness looks & feels like this: I commit to a night either alone or with a friend (shout out to Sarah and our vision board frenzy we had back in December 2010). I gather all the supplies that I’ll need, glue stick, push pins, assortment of magazines, stickers, foam or cork board ect. I set up my favorite Pandora station and have at it. I start by just flipping through magazines and tearing out any pictures or words that compel me… some may not make sense, but I don’t believe they should. Some things may feel superficial but I try to navigate my way around judgment, this is for me and value judgment should not exist. Then I start to lay everything out and plaster the pictures and words onto my board. When all is said and done I step back and marvel with pure giddiness. Then I put it up and let it work its magic. 

The most important thing to remember is to just do your own thing. Let your vision form naturally; don’t force yourself towards something that has been influenced by someone else or societal expectations. Listen to your heart.

“The paper collages you probably made as a teen were feverishly personal manifestations of what you loved. Vision-boards, the grown up alternative, can be just as passionate- with more intention…” -The Oprah Magazine (& here is what Oprah has to say about the art of a vision board) 

Journal 3 things about myself that I love every night: Through continuation of journaling my gratitude  I will also be journaling things that I love about myself.  I am hoping that through this endeavor I will come to learn more about who I am and what I believe my strengths are. I’ll also be journaling things that make me happy, and compliments that I have received along with compliments that I want to give. 

Purposeful ensembles & colorful lipstick everyday: This is my attempt to embrace my creativity and delight myself in my own style. Lately have I become so infatuated with bold lipstick colors, but I’m always so afraid to wear them. Through this endeavor I’m going to stop being so afraid. I know that fear is only stemmed from what I think other people think of me, not what I think of my self…. And that’s just silly. Just a simple effort to make my days a little bit brighter.

Be content in the approval from myself rather than others: Gala Darling is my one stop shop for all adventures on the pathway to what she calls Radical Self Love. I’ve been following and adapting her methods for years and this months I’ve enrolled in her Radical Self Love Bootcamp (how exciting!) and guess what?! It’s half priced right now! It’s a great time to join me on my quest if this is something you are interested in as well. Check her out, she’s beyond fabulous.

I am going to seek SARK! for further wisdom. Two of her books I absolutely adore are Inspiration Sandwich and Succulent Wild Woman. SARK does such a great job empowering women to dance to the beat of their own drum, a practice I very much value & appreciate.  Through this I hope to discover my own ability to approve of myself and identify when I am my best and why, and when I am not my best and how to overcome it.

I will also be seeking opportunity to extend my love and approval outwards so that others are embraced by my actions. I’m going to deliver more random acts of kindness & joy. 

Rabbit! Rabbit!