Challenge Yourself, With Kindness

A couple of months ago, I spotted the countdown to the end of the year on the Peloton app and was a bit flabbergasted to learn that there were only 56 days left in 2023.  If you’ve been on a Zoom with me, you know I’m often the person in the room to point out markers of time.  “Can we do that on Friday?,” you might ask and I might say, “Sure, Friday as in tomorrow?”  This usually earns a chuckle, a gasp, or both–it’s rarely intended with snarkiness on my part and almost always simply me, thinking out loud, and figuring out that tomorrow is Friday.

Anyway–for some reason the approaching end of 2023, combined with the approach of my next birthday, struck a chord and I decided to challenge myself to take on some new habits before the end of the year.  I thought about my perpetual list of “I oughttas” and came up with this;

Over the course of those 56 days, I found that my motivation to meet these "challenges" was inconsistent. Sometimes the presence of the challenge itself did what I hoped--it motivated me to find a way to do something good for myself, even on days when I was exhausted and really not feeling it. I was able to re-invent my morning routine to something that sets me up for the day in a much more peaceful and open mindset. The greatest "challenge" was being kind to myself when I missed the mark on these goals. Which happened often.

So often in a New Year, we challenge ourselves in the pursuit of becoming what we perceive to be a better version of ourselves.  I am a believer in short term challenges, I think they can be really helpful for introducing new habits and shaking up old routines.  But I’m learning that the trick to these challenges is not just the grit it takes to get through the grind.  The trick is to challenge yourself, with kindness.

As you move into the second month of this New Year, I hope you'll find ways to be kind to yourself.