Tuesday,
A day that honors the god of war reflecting on themes of combat and authority.
We can harbor internal struggles with ourselves that we mask when we are in the outside world.
We hide those aspects of ourselves and take great efforts not to show them to others.
We can move through our lives and not always feel as though we are an authority of them.
It can feel as though we are governed by many forces outside of us.
Whether that is the conditioning and rules of the societies we live in or within our own family structures as well.
As children we are very much at the command of the adults around us and we assume that as we enter adulthood that we become more in charge of our own lives.
But if we have acquired the habits of people pleasing for example then we can very much still feel like we are ruled by others.
We are very aware of what the wants and needs of others may be and we do our best to meet those requirements.
But they very well may not be aligned to what we want or need for our own lives but we put ourselves into a secondary position and put others first.
This can happen without us even being aware of it,
We just see it as things are.
Whether you have people pleasing tendencies or whether you feel that you are abiding by a lot of rules set by others in positions of authority you may feel that you have little say in your own life and in your own world and that is something we want to explore.
If you were to take an honest inventory of where in your life you feel that there is an issue of you feeling like you have little say in what happens even though it impacts your world what would it be?
Take some time to answer these questions for yourself.
Maybe get a piece of paper and a pen or just speak them out loud to yourself.
Do you feel that you have little control at work or your personal life?
Do you feel that you are at beck and call to others wants and needs and your own get neglected?
Where do you see this pattern?
What are the impacts of this pattern for you in your life?
Are you forever putting what you want to do on the back burner and waiting for a better time?
Once you have the areas where you feel that others govern your world more than you do I want you to take a look at how you could reassert that power back into your own hands.
For example,
If you have strong people-pleasing tendencies with your family members you can become more informed and ascertain to yourself what it is that you want and need as a priority.
You can then have boundaries set around what you are willing to do and where you are not willing for those boundaries to be crossed.
This will take some time to get in the habit of and it will feel extremely uncomfortable This will take some time to get in the habit of and it will feel extremely uncomfortable to you when you make changes.
Start small.
Begin with saying no to a favour that you would normally say yes to.
You can practice this alone in your own time so when the event occurs you are better able to deal with it.
You'll feel more prepared.
This really is about feeling empowered in your own life and anywhere you feel there is a leakage of that power.
I want you to take notice of it and begin to amend it in any way that you feel is suitable and sustainable.
Don't forget when you are making changes initially these changes can feel uncomfortable but that is not a sign to stop.
Be gentle and kind for yourself and assert your wants and needs.
You matter just as much as everybody else does.
Now we are going to head into our affirmation session So take a full deep breath in through your nose and exhale slowly through your mouth.
Release it as a big sigh.
Drop your shoulders,
Relax your jaw,
Release any tension that you're holding in your muscles.
You can repeat these statements to yourself or out loud or alternatively you can allow them to wash over you for them to be absorbed as you listen.
I am the authority in my own life.
I get to choose what I do with my time and energy.
I appreciate who I am and the life I need.
I have a right to my wants and needs and set that as a priority.
I radiate gratitude and it amplifies my sense of well-being.
My wants and needs are equally as important as anyone else's.
I value myself and my life.
And I regard myself as worthy of my time and attention.
I care about how I feel and what I need and I make efforts to meet those needs.
My journey is filled with moments of grace and I welcome them.
Go gently as you assert your boundaries and take good care of yourself.
And if you'd like an accompanying course to go with this meditation then I have one called The Antidote to People Pleasing and it would make a great addition.
