July's Reminder 🤎🌼

Happy New Month!

There's something about acknowledging a new day, week or month that makes me grateful for how far God's brought me. But if I'm honest, this acknowledgement also makes me feel like I'm running out of time, I can't explain it, maybe it's just a part of adulting🤷‍♀️.

The pressure to stay hustling, always busy and accomplishing goals NOW can be overwhelming, especially when the goals are influenced by societal norms. Society has taught us to compare our social and personal worth and success against each other, this self-comparison can keep us driven, inspired and motivated but it can also be detrimental to our holistic well-being, confidence and esteem. This pressure can make us say to ourselves, "at my age I should have this or be that, or be doing this" or even make other people feel like they can say to us, "at your age you should be this or that or be doing this or that". Don't get me wrong, it's an honour to have genuine people who are selflessly determined to push you to be the best version of yourself, but their determination should never outweigh your own and their influence should have boundaries.

Something I'm understanding better as days go by is that, we really do have our own individual lanes and life can be a lot smoother when we stick to them. What works for someone else is not guaranteed to work for me, no matter how many similar characteristics we share. Being inspired by other's success but also learning to stay in my own lane and honing my capabilities, is one of the best things I can do for myself.

So this first day of July, I would like to remind you and me of the following three things;

• cherish your lane,

• it's okay to take your time, and

• it's also okay to change your mind.

There are some things in life that can not and should not be rushed.

I came across this excerpt from Bianca Sparacino's book, A Gentle Reminder. It was the encouragement I didn't know I needed when I found myself succumbing to societal pressure, here it goes:

"It's okay to take your time. We live in a generation that romanticises moving forward as quickly as possible when it comes to careers and our futures and our success within them. But there is no point in rushing quickly towards a life that will not inspire you or fulfil you. It is okay to slow down. It is okay to take the time you need. You are in no rush to figure out your own soul. It's never too late to start over, it's never too late to change your mind, it's never too late to redirect yourself, to replace the dreams you thought you wanted for the ones that genuinely excite and challenge you.

So keep going - because the world needs your uniqueness. It needs your talent, your art, your mind. The world needs you to take up space within that, so you can change it with the vision that you have. You are so deeply capable of doing something beautiful with your life. Don't let roadblocks, or self-doubt, or the way your journey is unfolding convince you otherwise. Leap towards all that scares and ignites you. Just try something while you're here".

I hope this encouraged you!

Catch you in the next post!

Chich