Starting With Simple Goals
The journey of mental and overall wellness is not one that is linear, and it is one that can be overwhelming at times, especially when we feel we are starting at square one. With endless articles, blogs, online influencers, and videos within our easy grasp, it is easy to feel overwhelmed or over-eager with so many new habits and routines to introduce and include in our daily lives. It can be tempting and easy to want to incorporate all of them in our routine. While continuously trying new techniques and plans can be helpful, if we do so before even seeing the last one through, we can’t process and learn if these actions benefit our overall wellness or if another technique could be a better fit.
In my own wellness journey, I find myself exploring and trying to add too many new techniques to my routine, and end up expecting too much of myself only to find my own shortcomings to be disappointing. I remind myself that this process is a slow one, and taking gradual baby steps can help build new habits and reach new goals in a gradual and successful manner. When it comes to our wellness journey, it is one that will be with us our whole lives, and it is important to remember that sometimes one small step is all it takes towards improving our mental and overall health. What’s beautiful about moving through this lifelong journey slowly is it allows us to see our progress and improvements along the way, learning which habits and techniques work for us & which ones may not be well suited for our needs.
For those who know me, they know how much emphasis I place on the small things in life: small simple pleasures, small victories, small steps forward, and so on… and the same idea applies when we begin and explore our ever-evolving wellness journey. It is beneficial and important to focus on small goals and strategies first, ensuring we see them through to the end & analyze the results before we add new habits or techniques into the mix. Those small goals could look as simple as drinking a glass of lemon water first thing in the morning, or including a morning meditation into your routine, maybe stretching as well. But if we were to include all those little goals at once, maintaining our routine and overall wellness journey could become overwhelming and counterintuitive. With too many new things in our routine, we can’t reap the benefits each individual addition could have in our daily lives, as well as overall wellness journey.
All of us are on our own wellness journeys, all at different places and with different goals. But what I remind myself and what I believe is applicable to all varying wellness journeys is it is important to give ourselves grace & compassion, while staying focused and patient as we take one step at a time. With compassion and patience, we allow ourselves the opportunity to see the measurable improvements in the practices we have already began, no matter how small or large they may be. To get your wheels turning, I have curated some simple goals below to try as you begin or continue your wellness journey.
01
Drink a glass of lemon water first thing upon waking up in the morning.
02
Take a few moments to stretch your body upon waking up in the morning or prior to to going to bed in the evening.
03
Include at least five minutes of breath work in your daily routine at some point in your day.
04
Sit down & take the time to actually enjoy your morning coffee/tea and prepare a healthy and nutritious breakfast that helps you feel nourished.
05
Dedicate thirty minutes to an hour each week to self-care of your choosing, entirely focused on you. This could look like a face mask, quiet time to read a book, exercise, taking a bath, or anything that helps calm your body and mind.
