what’s your story?
Happy Home Life Tip #39
What make-believe stories are guiding your life?
(If you’re human, I know you have some.)
These are the stories that aren’t necessarily true, but your brain believes, and keeps repeating on a daily basis.
Stories like:
I can’t be happy until my family is happy.
My kids are disrespectful.
I’m not very good at parenting.
Marriage is so hard.
Things will never get better.
I’m not appreciated.
My house will never be organized.
I’ll never lose this weight.
They’ll never be enough money.
It’s too late to start my own business or a new career.
Other moms make it look so easy.
Most of us have one predominant story that colors everything we do each day, and leaves us with unwanted feelings. (And it might not be true at all, but our brain’s convinced us it is.)
My story is:
“This is taking too long”.
These are the things that are “taking too long” and keep me feeling edgy and impatient:
Our home renovation project.
Losing weight.
Growing my coaching business to the point it can support us.
When I think our renovation project is moving too slowly, I miss out on noticing how much has already been done. I forget to appreciate that my husband has worked 6-7 days a week repairing our 1772 Vermont farmhouse for the last year and a half. I forget to remember our house was vacant for 25+ years before we bought it and was considered more of a “tear-down” than a “fixer-upper”. I also forget to appreciate all the money we’ve saved by doing 75% of the work ourselves. And most important…I forget to enjoy that we have a working heating system where this time last year, we didn’t.
When I’m in a hurry to lose weight, I start seeking immediate gratification. I give in to urges, overeat, and make my weight loss journey that much longer. When I remind myself that weight loss isn’t meant to happen overnight, I begin to set smaller goals and celebrate my mini wins along the way. This week I noticed how full I felt eating half a medium pizza (my husband and I used to order a large a few months ago). I think I’m ready to eat some of my half of the medium size next time, and save the rest for lunch. Progress.
Growing my coaching business to a point where we can live off the income has two parts. It relies on me getting better at reaching moms who want to feel better, and it’s about moms deciding that investing in coaching is right for them. The first part I can control, the second part I can’t.
I recently decided to take a break from figuring out how to compete on Facebook. I went old-school; I put out a notice in my rural community, created a parenting group, attracted new mom-clients, and had so much fun coaching in-person each week.
I’ve decided to give myself permission to just concentrate on the joy of coaching instead of putting pressure on myself to become a master at marketing.
My story is no longer “It’s taking too long”. I now think “I’m making progress and I’m appreciating the journey”.
So…what’s your story?
Do you have one that’s holding you back from feeling how you really want to?
If you struggle with identifying your false story and creating a new more helpful one, I’m here to help. It feels amazing when you can let an old story go.
Hugs,
Krista
Photo: Today the fall colors, the beauty of Lake Champlain, and seeing our animals enjoy some of the land we’ve cleared, reminds me of why we chose to purchase this property and why I’m willing to let it take as long as it does for it to become what we originally envisioned.