Monday, 5 December 2016
FOCUS
I thought it would be suitable to have a Reflective series throughout this month. Personally I have been participating in a lot of deep reflection the past couple of days as it has been dawning on me how quick the year is drawing to a close. In this blog post I really want to emphasise the importance of focus as we get closer towards the new year.
Producing clear visual definition or “tunnel vision" as Justin Timberlake refers to is exactly how I feel we should lead our lives going into 2017. Despite how the year may have gone for you individually, I really want to encourage us, not dwell on your current or past situations but place your efforts in re-alligning yourself to regain focus so the tunnel vision of your life becomes clear once again.
1.DECLUTTER
Having a minimalistic approach to life is extremely important. Most minimalists live with as little clutter in their lives as possible and this translates through to their lifestyles making room for what you deem most important in your life. It creates value in your life , and this may look differently for everyone, but it will lead to a path of a more meaningful life.
2. CLEANSE
After Decluttering the next stage is to clean. We see this in many stages such as when dieting you stop eating unhealthy foods and perhaps may start undertaking a detox to cleanse your system. Another example is in cleaning; after removing the obstacles you swept away you now mop the floors, and its vital to cleanse yourself in order to really regain clear vision for your life. The question I want to ask you guys is how would you cleanse yourself? What are the things that you enjoy doing ? What ways do you invest in yourself that brings you the most joy ? Its vital that we focus on the aspects of life that makes us happy, that we can derive for ourselves without relying on others to do so. This brings up back to the most important person which is YOU.
3. ACTION
At this stage you have identified what is really important and what brings us value, now we implement those plans and steps to achieve those things. You should be executing tasks that bring you the most satisfaction and joy. Regaining your focus reminds you of what is important and I think it is vital for us all to dwell on this before the new year so we can start the year with a clearer head and concentrate on creating a life that we love.
Lots of love
K x
Monday, 14 November 2016
UNINSPIRED.STRESSED. LONELY.
(MY STORY)
So a few months ago I was feeling really uninspired and at one of my lowest points in life. We all go through these periods in our lives where we may feel these emotions very heavily, which then may impact the way we communicate or just live our lives. I know for myself I was finding it very hard to even yield myself fully to God and spent more time with myself which amplified all of these negative emotions I was encountering.
During this period when I was feeling very low, I remember not having a passion to do anything I enjoyed, not caring to write content, feeling a lot of pressure with other areas within my life and this resulted in me having a serious meltdown that nobody was aware of. I spent time with people but still was left feeling like I was alone. (Does anyone else know what I mean?) I felt like it was completely eating me up on the inside and I couldn't identify why, or what the root cause was which was extremely overwhelming for me because its completely the opposite of my character.
The first day which I experienced a breakthrough was when my friend invited me to her church, (even though truthfully, I genuinely was not feeling it), but God truly encountered with me and genuinely changed how I felt internally in seconds. I usually love going to Church and enjoy singing, so this day actually allowed me to actively pursue what I usually enjoy doing, which helped me to get back to old the me. Going to church really did help me get out of the funk I was in and I would recommend also that if you feel this way to spend time in the presence of God and allow his fellowship to minister to you.
I also noticed that actively engaging myself with things helped me a lot also. I forced myself to leave my house and do things I personally enjoyed doing. Such simple things like having a pampering session to make me feel better about myself. I found also I started a new hobby of bullet journalling which I found very therapeutic (being creative while creating an organised space) and as silly as it sounds, I was so happy that I unlocked calligraphy talent that I was unaware of.
Tips I would recommend:
- Try and talk to someone or write your feelings down - This is is something that I didn't do because I usually don't like being a burden to others but as hard as it is, it probably would have helped me a lot sooner to make sense of my thoughts.
- Write out your goals, visions and dreams. - I started to write down my goals for different areas of my life which helped me to become more inspired about life.
- Take the opposite approach - when you feel low you tend to want to stay at home a lot , but try and do the opposite and experiment by being spontaneous, by trying out new things or take a walk !
- Focus on how you are feeling currently - when you are feeling low and uninspired but you always feel like you should be passionate and upbeat about life, can make you feel even worse. So it is okay to recognise that you do feel the way you are feeling.
- I just want to encourage anyone who may be feeling like this, that it is normal to feel like this sometimes, but you CAN get back on track and feel positive about whatever you may be doing again.
“Remember, God knows about every tear which comes to our eyes. Christ cares and is concerned about us. Your heartaches are known to Him.” Lee Roberson
“And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.” – Phil 4:19
Friday, 7 October 2016
Unapologetically Selfish
From the title of this post some of you may find this very alarming or strange to talk about being selfish, as there are so many negative connotations attached to word. For example, the dictionary definition shown below, literarily throws it in our faces and reminds us of what an awful attribute it is to have.
selfish
adjective
- (of a person, action, or motive) lacking consideration for other people; concerned chiefly with one's own personal profit or pleasure
However, I would like to come from the angle of placing yourself first and explain why being selfish with yourself is the TOTAL OPPOSITE of the dictionary definition of selfish. Even though it might sound very self explanatory, it surprises me when I hear that so many young people are afraid to make the necessary selfish steps in order to pursue their own personal growth.
I believe a lot of us give our absolute all to our friends, families and loved ones - and there's nothing wrong with this - but when you place their needs above your own personal priorities, this is where it can go all wrong and frankly become extremely draining. We should all learn to cultivate more love for ourselves so we are able to be selfish with our time, energy and anything that will contribute to pursuing our own happiness and self care.
Here are 3 main reasons why I will be entering the academic year being selfish with some of my own personal time:
1) It will train your own perspective powers
Being selfish allows you to build up your inner gut-feeling or intuition in order to make decisions which are best suited to YOU and you only. It means that you are able to engage in things that ultimately keep you satisfied.
2) Being selfish allows you to improve how you see yourself
You are able to improve your self worth; as you start to look out for yourself, you begin to appreciate and value what you believe you deserve for yourself.
3) You will be Healthier
Healthy mind , healthy life! Being selfish allows you to focus on yourself and not take on some of the unnecessary burdens that you may be taking on, which limits and distracts you from achieving your desired goals.
I hope after reading this you have allowed yourself to view being selfish from a different perspective. As being selfish for yourself allows you to know yourself better and achieve your goals. Being selfish is not about acquiring all that you can gain, but adding value to your own life.
I definitely believe that once you become selfish with yourself and become content and secure in who you are and what you want, it will radiate true happiness that is infectious, allowing it to be spread and drawn to by others around you.
Lots of Love,
K x
Lots of Love,
K x
Saturday, 3 September 2016
With Love from China
Its very ironic that the title of this post says with Love from China and I happen to be writing from the walls of my bedroom in London. However, despite my inconsistency I thought it was important to share what I learnt from my one month trip away in Shanghai.
I found that travelling can teach you a lot more than what our textbooks might every will. Throwing yourself into a new environment, with people who speak a completely different language to you , delving into unknown experiences challenges our comfortability in ways you can only imagine. Many of us are so used to our safety nets in friendships, our environment or even the food we eat and are satisfied with the comfort that this gives us that we never want to try something NEW. During my time away the most valuable lesson I found and what made my trip FANTABULOUS was because I learnt the importance of pushing beyond my boundaries and benefitted greatly from this.
Personally I was always that person who was okay sticking to "what I knew', however recently I have found a new confidence in being uncomfortable and realising that this sparked something new in me that has contributed to my personal growth tremendously. Being slightly uncomfortable can help us to achieve the goals we thought that we never could, it allows us to cross paths with people we could never met and learn so much from our surroundings and others. There is nothing wrong with being comfortable with what you know but I challenge you after reading this to begin to get comfortable with your discomfort and trust that it will determine and contribute to your success.
Reasons for leaving the comfort zone
- Challenging yourself with activities you may not participate on a day to day basis allows you to tap into the personal potential that you have locked up and you were unaware you stored the resources and knowledge.
- Leaving your comfort zone allows you to become more creative. ' Creativity is innately risky'
- Our comfort zones tend to shrink as we get older but if we keep expanding them we open ourselves up to greater fulfilment and improved well being as we age.
"Be Strong and Courageous, Do not be afraid, do not be discouraged, for the Lord our God is with you' - Joshua 1:9
Inserted is a short video of content I created using clips I found from my trip. I was way too shy to record myself talking out there and bringing even more attention to myself but anyways
Enjoy :)
I found that travelling can teach you a lot more than what our textbooks might every will. Throwing yourself into a new environment, with people who speak a completely different language to you , delving into unknown experiences challenges our comfortability in ways you can only imagine. Many of us are so used to our safety nets in friendships, our environment or even the food we eat and are satisfied with the comfort that this gives us that we never want to try something NEW. During my time away the most valuable lesson I found and what made my trip FANTABULOUS was because I learnt the importance of pushing beyond my boundaries and benefitted greatly from this.
Personally I was always that person who was okay sticking to "what I knew', however recently I have found a new confidence in being uncomfortable and realising that this sparked something new in me that has contributed to my personal growth tremendously. Being slightly uncomfortable can help us to achieve the goals we thought that we never could, it allows us to cross paths with people we could never met and learn so much from our surroundings and others. There is nothing wrong with being comfortable with what you know but I challenge you after reading this to begin to get comfortable with your discomfort and trust that it will determine and contribute to your success.
Reasons for leaving the comfort zone
- Challenging yourself with activities you may not participate on a day to day basis allows you to tap into the personal potential that you have locked up and you were unaware you stored the resources and knowledge.
- Leaving your comfort zone allows you to become more creative. ' Creativity is innately risky'
- Our comfort zones tend to shrink as we get older but if we keep expanding them we open ourselves up to greater fulfilment and improved well being as we age.
"Be Strong and Courageous, Do not be afraid, do not be discouraged, for the Lord our God is with you' - Joshua 1:9
Inserted is a short video of content I created using clips I found from my trip. I was way too shy to record myself talking out there and bringing even more attention to myself but anyways
Enjoy :)
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