Let us begin with a moment of gratitude for setting aside this time for ourselves.
I'm grateful you were here.
Today's reflection is very flexible.
You are welcome to practice sitting,
Lying down,
During a mindful walk,
With a journal,
Or however else this journey is best accessible to you.
Feel free to pause at any time and adjust your approach,
Coming back ready for deeper investment in yourself as you're ready.
Think first about someone in your life that you might consider a supportive person.
Someone who lifts you up when needed or offers a listening ear.
Who is this person and how might they describe you?
Now feel invited to be as creative and broad thinking as you want.
If you could choose anyone in the world,
Alive,
Passed on,
People you know,
People you don't know,
Public figures or even fictional characters,
To be a part of your personal motivation crew.
Your own cheerleading squad,
If you will.
Who would you choose?
No rules.
Perhaps a member of this team is not even human.
Try to think of five to seven people or otherwise that you would like to hear from most when you're having a tough time.
Feel free to pause here if you need a little bit more time to think.
And when you have your thoughts together,
Come back and press play.
When you're ready,
Take a few moments to reflect on why you've chosen this group of people.
Are there qualities they have that you admire?
How does their outlook on life benefit their well-being or the well-being of those around them?
Maybe their aura just feels nice.
If it's someone you already know,
How do they treat you?
Allow your mind to settle on some reasoning that these folks have been included in this group.
Imagine that this group of people is here with you wherever you are,
Standing in front of you in the room or walking alongside you in the park.
They are here to offer you the gift of a motivational speech.
This group of people wants to see you do well,
To be well,
And they'd like to offer you their thoughts to help you along in that journey.
In your mind,
Or perhaps you prefer to journal,
Think about what they might say,
Or what you hope they would say.
You can choose to think about the group speaking as a whole,
Or if you prefer,
You can go through one by one and notice what each member of this group might say individually.
Take some time here to really think it through and read back to yourself any writing you've done.
Really hear this speech in your mind and take its message to heart.
If you like,
You are encouraged again to push pause and take all the time needed to gather your thoughts.
Return back to this mindfulness whenever you are ready.
Welcome back.
How did that feel?
Are you noticing any emotions or physical responses to the kind words of others?
Make space for any reactions you're having to the offering of these supportive people,
Or even to the experience of having to generate their words for yourself.
Try not to attach any meaning or judgment to these reactions,
But simply let them be.
Review over these speeches one more time.
Truly hear them as if the people speaking are right there in the room with you.
Notice as you listen or think or read if you can find a statement from this supportive group that you can recompose as an I statement.
For example,
If someone said,
You've got this,
Let's rephrase that,
I've got this.
Take a moment,
No need to rush,
But see if you can use the words of others to formulate your own affirmation.
Once you find your I statement,
Try repeating it a few times out loud or to yourself.
I've got this.
I've got this.
I've got this.
I am strong.
I am strong.
I am strong.
Consider yourself saying these words.
Allow this to become your mantra.
Whenever you need a boost,
Anytime you need help finding the courage or tenacity to move forward,
Return to this affirmation.
It might help to write it on a post-it and place it on the bathroom mirror or on the refrigerator so that you can see it and are reminded of it often.
You can be as creative as you want with how you write and display these words.
I've got this.
I've got this.
I've got this.
I am strong.
I am strong.
I am strong.
It's normal to struggle from time to time with finding self-compassion.
Sometimes it can be helpful to embrace the words of others in our efforts to find goodness to share with ourselves.
You are encouraged to remember though that today these words ultimately came from you.
You have the capacity to encourage,
Love,
And offer grace to yourself.
How wonderful to be able to offer this gift to yourself.
Hold on to the kind words you've generated today.
Return to them often and be well.
Until next time,
Namaste.
