So I did. February is the traditional month of love. The holiday where we show our loved one just how much we love them with gifts, cards, chocolate, flowers....but, we won't be focusing on our loved one...no, no, no. We will be focusing on a very particular kind of love. SELF LOVE, because after all: "learning to love yourself is the greatest gift of all". (George Benson, Whitney Houston)
Welcome to a special month of self acceptance,
self appreciation, self celebration, self love.
Love yourself! Celebrate who you are!
Accept all your quirky parts!
Pamper yourself! Get yourself gifts!
Honor yourself!
I will be giving you all of this month's tasks in one shot this month because I will be away and will have limited internet access. I hope to be back for March 1st, but might be a little late. I will keep you updated in the Facebook Group.
I'm breaking them into 4 tasks, which you can do as you wish! You can do them as slow or as quick as you want, you have all month. Enjoy!
Task 1: Practice positive self talk or affirmations
Task 2: Spoil yourself with gifts
Task 3: Write a contract to yourself
Task 4: Celebrate who you are and who you will be
Bonus Task: Write a love letter to yourself!
Task 1: Practice positive self talk or affirmations
I started doing this in my bullet journal this year and have really enjoyed it. I try to read them throughout the week over and over. With all the negative self talk (and maybe the negative talk we receive from others) it's nice to sit and focus on good things. I like to dedicate one page every week in my BuJo where I write in my self affirmations in fancy writing once a day, every day (it's a way for me to practice my fonts and write in positive messages to myself). If you enjoy doing this, maybe it's something you can add to your planner or journal on a daily basis too! You can make it your first appointment of the day.
If you have a hard time coming up with some positive self talk or self affirmations, try these resources: I started a collection of affirmations in my reference journal so I don't have to keep checking the internet for ideas. But, with smart phones always within reach, a Pinterest board would be an excellent digital resource to have.
Love and Blues Blog by Leah 9 Happy Things to Tell Yourself
100 Positive Affirmations from Potato Mama
You are always welcome to check out my Self Improvement board on Pinterest! I am a chronic pinner, I admit it.
Task 2: Spoil yourself with "gifts"
This week will be so much fun!!! That is, if you like getting gifts! You do like getting gifts don't you? :) You can be as extravagant or as thrifty as you like for this task. You don't even have to spend a dime for this...or you could spend thousands. It's entirely up to you and your budget. The idea is to give yourself gifts that shows you how much you appreciate everything that you are and everything that you do. Show yourself how much you love yourself in the form of "gifts". A "gift" can be 15 minutes to sit and listen to your favorite songs, it can be a new purse or pair of shoes, a meal out, a chocolate bar, a nap, a tv show binge day, a long drive, jewelry, or whatever you can come up with! Spoil yourself. I hope that if you can't manage to find 15 minutes to yourself, you'll find someone who can help you get it, you can consider that in of itself a gift. (You are loved and appreciated).
Task 3: Write a contract to yourself
I did this one time when I started a new diet program. The leader had me write out a quick little statement to myself acknowledging how I had been neglecting my health and what I would do to improve my eating and exercise habits. I wrote a promise to myself that I would do better. And I signed on the dotted line.
I would like us to do the same but this time it will be to treat ourselves better. To forgive our failures, to do our best, to stop negative thoughts and replace them with affirmations, to grant ourselves permission to cry, to believe in ourselves, to say no, to rest, to pamper, to remember that the greatest love of all is to love yourself. Yep, had to sneak that in there! You can, of course, write whatever you want. Write your own contract. No lawyer needed. Take your time, sign on the dotted line, and bring it out and read it whenever you feel you need a reminder of how important you are to yourself.
Task 4: Celebrate who you are and who you will be
This week you will take all that you have learned about yourself last month, add in all you discovered this month, toss in a little whipped cream and call it cake! Be proud of what you've done so far. All the treasures you've written in your journal. All the goals you've taken the time to write down. All your plans, your lists, your words. Take the time to review your journal this week and address anything that needs some tweaking. Once you've done that, celebrate yourself! Celebrate the you you were last year, the you you are today, and the you you will become. You could even light a candle and make a wish. I gave you an excuse to eat cake!!! Go get some!!! And coffee....get coffee. Or you could get me coffee. (I kid, or do I?).
Bonus Task! Write yourself a love letter
Maybe it's been a while since anyone has sent you a love letter. Maybe you've never gotten one. Well, now's your chance! The greatest love of all....ok, ok, I'll stop. Write yourself a magnificent letter. If you struggle, pick a love song. Write the lyrics down. I will never make any task difficult or impossible. My personal favorite is I Can't Help Falling In Love by Elvis Presley. I actually think that's what I'll do. I'm no good at making mushy stuff up, I leave that to the professionals, like Hallmark. Hey, there's an idea!! Go snap a picture of a sappy Hallmark card and write it to yourself. I amaze myself with my endless brilliance. (Getting a head start with my positive self talk).
Have a beautiful, loving month.
All my love,
C
