As we come into another season, we can see the physical changes, a sign of the year moving on to yet another beautiful time of year in nature. But I can’t help but feel, like many of you I’m sure, that there seems to feel like a weight pulling + holding us back. We keep mustering up the strength to keep on going through 2020, hoping that as we move on into the later part of the year, symbolising us finally getting out of this mess, but unfortunately, COVID isn’t quite letting up. Like many, I would’ve thought when we came into spring full of lockdown + a summer full of masks, socially distancing + restrictions, that autumn would be full of normality, a world finally leaving behind COVID.

So what do we do, when we can FEEL the change in the seasons but feeling like we’re not moving with the seasonal change? How do we keep lifting ourselves up through change?

Surrender.
Accept.

Change is a natural part of life. As shown through the beautiful seasons. And although we feel like we’re not changing + growing right now, we totally are. There’s always a lesson to be learnt. So mine right now is surrender + acceptance -  in yoga, we call it ishvara pranidhana.

There are days when I try to make sense of the world. But it just leaves my head feeling fuzzy. So I come back to the practice + reminder of ishvara pranidhana + try to focus my energy on the things that I can control.

On the things that are changing so beautifully, no matter what is happening in the world right now, like the beauty of the seasons. Like the beauty, of autumn. 

So we’re what, 3 months (or is it now 4 months?! I’ve lost count!) of being in lockdown?
 
How are you feeling now compared to the start? Has your motivation lost its spark? Have you lost motivation?
 
Have you set out to achieve all the things you wanted to do? All the books you were going to read? All the studying you were going to do? All the jobs around the house that were finally going to get finished? 
 
No? You’re not alone! You’re human.
 
And in case you need telling or reminding - it’s totally okay to have not done all the things you set out to do. We place SO much pressure on ourselves.
 
When it comes to setting habits/goals/intentions, one of the things that stops us from achieving them is the famous old excuse of ‘I don’t have time’ or ‘When I have time . . .’ Well - lockdown has granted us the gift of time + slowing down + some of those goals we set for ourselves haven’t been achieved (again, totally okay, we’re not giving ourselves a hard time about it, right?!).
 
So, that has been the inspiration for this month’s blog. I thought I’d write about creating habits. How to make them. How to keep them. (My inspired version!)
 
I recently did a workout with the fabulous Shona Vertue. She said something during the workout that was really impactful.
 
“The mind will give up before the body will.”
 
How true is that?! 
 
Let’s use getting fit as an example. How many times have you said you’re going to regularly exercise each week - you’ve got off to an amazing start but then that initial fire begins to dwindle. You KNOW you have the physical strength to be able to perform the workout - but what holds you back? Your mindset!
 
TIPS
 
BE REALISTIC
Are your goals realistic? Are they manageable? We get so excited at the beginning + go in with so much enthusiasm you could burst. So you set yourself so much time each day to do this new habit but is that really realistic? Do you really have that amount of time to stick to it? If for example you want to study for something every day, is 2 hours feasible? Or would 1/2 hour work better instead? Break it down into smaller chunks, it’s much more achievable + you will get it done!
 
KEEP IT SIMPLE 
Try not to set a new habit for every aspect of your life. Start with one. And do that one well. Your poor brain will be going into overload if you give it too many habits. Put your energy + focus into giving something your best. Give the best of you, not what is left of you. 
 
HOLD YOURSELF ACCOUNTABLE
If you’ve set yourself something to do, because you really want it, you’re going to have to work at it. Nothing worth having in life comes easy. It takes your hard work + commitment. Enjoy the journey of learning a new habit + keep yourself accountable to stick with it. In yoga,  one of the niyamas (which represent a series of “right living” or ethical rules) is called tapas. And this is our inner power. Our inner strength. That courage + determination that lives within us. Use that to hold yourself accountable + achieve your dreams.
 
MOTIVATION
Like any emotion + feeling (I like to think of them as rainbow waves that we ride) they are never a permanent state. You aren’t always going to feel motivated. So don’t expect to. When you can’t find the energy to do the work for your goal, remember, “The mind will give up before the body will.” Remind yourself of the physical strength that you do have to get it done.
 
INTENTION
Does your goal, your intention serve you? Does it come from a good place? Is it going to be something that adds value to your life + to the lives of others? Something to think about. 
 
BE GENTLE
Some days you won’t stick to what you set out. And that’s okay. Listen + lean into how you’re feeling each day. Decide if you’re going to give your habit a day off. But try to find the difference between not being bothered or genuinely tired, physically + energetically.
 
MINDSET
You’re creating a new habit. You’re creating new neural pathways in the brain. They take TIME to create. People say it takes 30 days to make a habit. I say more. 
 
ENOUGHNESS
YOU ARE ENOUGH EXACTLY AS YOU ARE RIGHT NOW. Repeat that. And again. Growth is an incredible + necessary thing, but don’t forget how awesome you are right now. 
 
I hope these tips inspire you to go out + achieve all the things that light you up.
 
Caroline xoxo