These 2 words have been a GAME-CHANGER for me. You see I am a long-time expert at criticizing and judging myself. Pointing out what’s wrong, slamming myself when I make a mistake, harshly questioning why I did what I did or not allowing me to feel what I feel, “should”ing all over myself... I was trapped in the shame spiral.
Who else feels like our weekends can be so full that you need the week to recover from them 😁, but so often they are just as full.
Sometimes it can feel like we're on a spinning hamster wheel, going round and round and round with sometimes no pit stops. And in the spin, we can loose our why, our purpose, our focus, our passion. And find ourselves not even remembering what we're doing or why we started in the first place or even getting bitter about what we once loved.
Let's not let us get to this place of burn out (been on my way to this station many times). And instead MAKE TIME, CREATE SPACE, SCHEDULE REST, so that even in the midst of crazy busy, we're still enjoying life, pursuing our passion, and feeling energized by what we're doing instead of completely drained. Don't feel bad if this is where you're at, to be honest I'm on the edge here too. But as soon as you realize, you can make steps to change. Or get others to help. Sometimes you just need to completely stop, take time off, get refreshed, while other times you can keep going with smaller pit stops. You know what you need. But listen to that louder than all the demands on your life.
So even if you're completely flat out this weekend, carve out even just a little (few mins if that's all you have) of time to be refreshed, do what you love, reflect and remember your purpose/passion/why you're doing what you're doing.
You're doing amazingly. And as we go, let's look for the beauty in everything around us to light up this crazy journey - stop and smell the flowers.
So what have you got on this weekend? x
💜Ruth
📷@floretflower
Working in schools, I met with Erin, a year 6 girl who told me the popular girls told her she had to change her hair, her clothes AND her personality if she wanted to fit in. This broke my heart, she had no idea how valuable she was and was willing to trade in her REAL identity for what she thought she HAD to be. The saddest part was that she thought this was the only answer. She was about to become a clone to please others, throwing away her own interests, values, talents, goals and dreams.
Unfortunately, this is not a rare story. But this story, fired me up. That is ENOUGH! Our girls have to know their worth and value – not based on how others see them, their past, or what the media says, but because they have always been MORE THAN ENOUGH.
This is how ChooseREAL Campaign was born. I wanted to create a platform to bring freedom around the onslaught of debilitating messages of NOT ENOUGH! Encouraging girls and women to embrace and celebrate their REAL identity and value, and live the life they CHOOSE. Living out the truth that no mater what, we are MORE THAN ENOUGH, just as we are.
I am so privilege to share this journey with you as we create a shift in our culture of true acceptance (of ourselves and each other). We love the empowering community we are all creating. Thank you for what you bring.
💜Ruth
What fires you up? What are you passionate about? x
What would you tell yourself? What would you do now? How can you make a difference for someone else? Who do you need to be now? Who can you encourage and stand alongside? x
Be who you needed / who you wish you had, right now for yourself and for those around you.
That is why I am so passionate about what I do - I didn't have someone when I was a teen (outside my family) to reach down and help lift me up, to constantly speak worth and value over my life, to remind me of who I really am, to encourage me, to tell me this won't last forever, to bring truth to all the lies I was believing, to know that I belonged, that I was loved and more than enough. To journey with me.
How different life could have been back then, but I don't regret and wouldn't change a thing, because my experiences have given me the empathy, compassion and drive to make a difference for others. To take a stand for them. To speak words of life everyday. To empower them to know and be content and confident in who they really are. To be brave. Be you. Be free. For girls and women everywhere, and for myself. I am still on the journey, but reminding myself everyday of who I really am, being my own encourager and cheer squad. And you can too. We don't need to rely on others to make us feel good. We can choose right now in this moment. We're all in this together. So grateful to journey with you x
💜Ruth
