I have been working on cultivating a spirit of positivity. A "yes, of course!" mindset. I know a lot of books have been written on the topic of saying "NO", creating boundaries for yourself, respecting your limits, all that stuff, but have you ever thought of how you could improve your life, and the life of others by saying "Sure!"? It is not always easy, in fact it can be really hard. When your child looks at you at 9:30pm and says, "Mom can you sew my jockstrap tonight, it broke today at practice"--- meanwhile he has been home since 5:30, ate dinner, did homework, played a bit of video games, and it didn't come up until I was completely relaxed. Of course my gut reaction is to rant about how inconsiderate it is, and yes, I have been guilty of that rant more than once. What I aspire to do however, is to say, "sure honey" kiss him on the cheek goodnight, then remind him in the morning that it would be helpful to me if he presented me with these needs earlier in the evening. When a friend needs help, maybe their child needs a ride, maybe they don't feel well and are in need of a break, these things don't always happen when our schedule is wide open-- sometimes we have to put aside the busyness of our schedule and say "sure honey, I'd be happy to help, just let me know what I can do." "No" comes easier and faster on my tongue, followed by a list of reasons why I am too busy, or to tired to help (my sons, my husband, my sister....etc...), but I don't like the way it sounds coming out of my mouth. I don't like the way it makes other people feel. So, I made a choice a while back to say "Yes, of course", way more often than I say "No". I like who I am WAY better as a woman who helps. :)
Every woman has things in her life she is willing to pay for, and things she feels like she can and should do herself. My list is generally a little different than most women I think. My sister would tell you it is because I think I can do things better than other people, hee , hee ... she thinks I am a bit on the controlling side. I cut my own hair, do my own hair color, do my own facials, make jewelry, that sort of thing. I will admit, it is a rare occasion that I pay hundreds of dollars for a color and cut, and walk out feeling amazing. I am almost always disappointed in the result. I get a manicure & pedicure, and always regret the color choice- or see smudges. It just makes me mad to pay a lot of money for mediocre results. (I can get mediocre results myself!) One thing I definitely am willing to pay for, that I easily admit I am the worst at, is CLEANING MY HOUSE!! I really hate it. I love the calm and peace that comes with the clean, well organized home. I thri...
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