A morning ritual practice is great way to give yourself a little YOU time; and is the first step in learning to give yourself what you need; when your mind sees that you are “giving to you,” you send yourself subliminal messages that YOU are IMPORTANT and WORTH IT. This also works the opposite as well; when you don't carve out time for you, you send messages to yourself that you aren’t worth it, and the universe will send you tons signs supporting your decision to put yourself on the back burner as you put everyone else’s needs in front of your own. Don’t do that!
I have a ritual practice that I am in love with, and look forward to doing each and every day! It gets me started in the morning and enables me to go through my day with more energy, creativity and peace because I am giving to myself first.
Here’s a sneak peak of my morning ritual…
Upon rising, I drink a glass of water to hydrate myself, go to the bathroom and brush my teeth. I do a 5 minute meditation, and do some quick journaling in my Five Minute Journal. Then I heat some hot water and add some fresh squeezed lemon. Drinking lemon water is a great way to detoxify your liver, and put your body into a more alkaline state. Sometimes I add a touch of honey for sweetness.
With my cup of warm lemon water by my side, I type away on my laptop for about 25 minutes; I will write blog posts, LoveLetters, thank you notes, Facebook posts, scripts for my videos; work on my website; I get out the stuff that is rolling around in my head. Then it’s on to my yoga practice, a breakfast elixir or smoothie, and showering. I am onto the rest of my day relaxed and ready to take on the opportunities that arise!
Now I realize that this is an extensive morning ritual… I didn’t start this overnight; years ago my morning ritual consisted of getting out of bed and either going to the gym or going out for a run before work every day. Over the years I have tailored my morning ritual to what makes me happy and fulfills me.
What kind of morning ritual would fulfill you? Could you imagine what it would look like? Let’s play a little bit here and see what a morning ritual could look like for you:
Waking just 5-15 minutes earlier in the morning, stretch a little in bed, go to the bathroom and brush your teeth. Then make yourself a hot cup of tea or hot water with lemon and honey, or your beverage of choice. The house is quiet and still. You sit with your warm “hug in a mug” beverage and you write, “I see beauty in so many things,” in your affirmation journal. Set a timer for 5 minutes; (you are more than welcome to use your phone) close your eyes, and repeat your affirmation over and over to yourself. After your 5 minutes are up, open your eyes, and write down 1-3 beautiful things that you are grateful for in your life right now. If you have a few extra minutes you can elaborate on them. They can be anything from your beautiful mug that is holding your beverage to the beautiful house you live in. No judgement here…….if you want to be thankful for material things go right ahead! The goal here is to get you to slow down and recognize all the many blessings and miracles that you have in your life every day! Bonus: at the end of the day, jot down 1-3 beautiful things that happened in your day as well.
7 Day Challenge
Take just 5 minutes in the morning, just for you, for the next 7 days; it is a small amount of time that will start to shift your way of thinking. Observe how you are feeling over the 7 days, and even jot it down for reference. Email me at cindyholtsmith@gmail.com and let me know how you are doing, and what cool discoveries you have made!