Well what a year it has been! How great would it be in a few years time to look back at this period and look at all the positive things you managed to do whilst having to adjust to an extremely challenging time.
It's important to keep positive and build that growth mindset to help you achieve good things in the coming months. It may take some time to adjust to a new normal as we return to school, college or work premises and ultimately back to the sport we have been missing for so long but there are things that you can do to help you keep positive.
The key here is to focus on what you HAVE and what you CAN do. It's very easy to get into a bad habit of focusing on what you can't do and what you don't have but if you can shift your mindset to seeing the positive in a bad situation (i.e I can’t get in the pool yet but I can do some strength training at home!) you will begin to feel a shift in how you think about other negative things in your life.
Think about this phrase for a few minutes:
Attention Energises – Intention Transforms
How does that resonate with you? I know if I over think a situation (give attention to it, talk about it to everyone who will listen) I will attract bad energy back to me as that is what I am giving my attention to. However, if you flip it and make it your intention to see a positive you will transform the situation.
You know how on a day when you're running late, you hit every red light, get stuck behind a bus and end up being even later? And those days when you have all the time in the world you sail through traffic effortlessly? Think about how you feel in each of those situations? How does your day pan out when you are late? Quite often everything else that can go wrong that day does. Why? Because you are giving energy to it. If you can make it your intention to relax, take some deep breaths and calm your mindset you can enjoy a better and more productive day.
Let's take a look at the Healthy Mind Platter. If we are balanced within each element of the platter, we can feel happier. If one element needs giving more time to, you may not feel as fulfilled. Have a look through and work out which areas in your life need giving more attention to.
Do you move enough? (Physical time)
Are you having enough down time? (Walking the dog, doing something for you, relaxing)
Are you being creative and playful? (Playtime)
Are you connecting with people or nature? (Appreciating the world and people around you)
Are you setting goals and working towards them? (Focus time)
Do you make time for quiet reflections? (Time in)
Are you resting your brain enough? (Sleep time)
All these 7 points can help optimise the brain matter and create wellbeing.
Stay focused and happy and remember it is ok and perfectly normal to have days when you can’t be happy, and things are hard. You are not alone. Reach out and communicate with someone (connecting time!) - it always helps. If you are always the talker, try and listen more and if you tend to keep quiet try to express yourself more - pushing yourself out of your comfort zone to communicate is a positive (trust me).
If you have had a bad day, when you fall asleep try and think of all the things you are grateful for. It may be the food you have had for dinner, or the fact that it wasn’t raining. I can guarantee that once you start finding things you are grateful for, you will keep finding more! Falling asleep with positive thoughts will help you sleep better and set you up for a more positive day tomorrow.
Good luck, try and use the healthy mind platter to guide you to a more positive outlook.