Do you need a helping hand?
Some months just have it. Drop-dead gorgeous, utterly unique and packing a powerful punch, September is the superhero month of the year. So, no matter where you’re at in your 2019 journey, this month could be just the thing you need to put aside the doubts, distractions and disasters and zoom in on a little self-love and satisfaction.
Although autumn doesn’t officially begin until the 23rd September, there is nothing to stop you harnessing the power of this awesome month to your own good. Need a reboot? Some buddy back-up? Got too much on your plate? Dreading the first mention of the big C? Well, read on, and let me show you what September can do for you.
Take comfort from the maths.
The first huge thing to grasp about this month is that there is still one whole third of the year to check your progress and achieve your goals. This is massive news to those who feel like they’ve made no headway and are ready to throw the towel in. Don’t. Just don’t. Because the maths alone says, even if you have done NONE of what you wanted, you can start now and achieve at least one third of what you hoped. So, quit telling yourself you’ve already failed.
The superpower of September is change. It’s a time of both release and action. The natural world is gearing up for a big change. Change of light, change of temperature, change of seasonal activity. Nature is drawing on the last reserves of summer, taking it down deep into the roots of life to nurture what’s yet to come. It’s intense, it’s rich, it’s nourishing, and you can pull on all of this too.
For those of us who have children, work in the education section, or simply remember back-to-school stationery as one of the highlights of the calendar year, September is a special time of year. It’s really a beginning, wrapped up in the notion of an ending. A springboard into a new year, into new lessons, into new friends, into a new you.
The big question you need to ask yourself is…What do you most want to achieve by the end of the year?
NOT…what did you tell yourself you’d achieve in the New Year…but what can you do right now, right here, to get yourself back on track?
If you had a goal and it’s gone off track, then go get that goal, write it down and then bite a third off it and aim to get that done. You cannot achieve everything you thought you might in the wee hours of the new year’s start, but you can achieve a portion of it.
If you didn’t have a goal but feel washed out already by 2019, then don’t slump your way towards the big C, buying your way out of denial. Take a moment, a day, a week, and ask yourself is there something you’d like to achieve by the end of the year?
And if life has hit you with some serious curve balls you’re still struggling with, then take a moment to remind yourself you need love and support too and, like nature, draw on some final sustenance to get you through the tough months ahead.
Wherever you’re at, whatever you need, focus on your journey, your place and your needs, right now. Here are some of the things you can do to utilise superpower September.
1 Take some time to focus:
• A walk in the quickening air. Take a new route. Check out your emotions.
• Morning pages. Write your thoughts out the moment you wake up and see what you’re trying to tell yourself.
• Check in with your body. Aches, pains, cravings? What is your body trying to tell you?
• Meet up with a friend. Ask them how they’re doing, get them thinking with you.
• Write yourself a letter about your year so far. What comes up?
• Remember that you matter too.
2 Get some inspiration:
• Read a book. Choose something motivational or outside your normal genre. Make notes as you read it. Finish the whole book.
• Watch an old movie that reminds you of who you are and what you love.
• Change one thing in your daily routine. Drink a glass of water before coffee. Change your route to work. Wear something outrageous. Go to bed half an hour earlier.
• Get some fresh stationery. There are so many awesome back-to-school deals it’s impossible to resist.
• Give out compliments and good vibes for a whole week. It will lift you as well as the people you uplift.
3 Choose your task:
• Have you got an untackled goal, wish, dream for the year, or even for your life? It doesn’t matter how big or small it is. Write it all down.
• Separate that goal into chunks. (use the shiny new stationery here!). Ever tried to eat a chocolate bar in one mouthful? No! You go one chunk at a time.
• If you’ve got several, narrow it down to the one thing that means the most.
• Spend some time getting clarity over this.
• It’s all about asking what are you going to do first.
4 Clear the decks:
• No one can achieve everything.
• Ask yourself what in your life is overwhelming you.
• Reschedule anything you can until next year.
• Apologise if you have overloaded yourself with tasks and help to replace yourself.
• Sometimes this stage of the task is about recognising you have a problem with oversubscribing.
5 Make a magic arrow:
• Take that first task and frame it. Make a mantra. Write it on a post-it note. Tell your most trusted person. Wrap it in a present to yourself for the big C day.
• Make it special.
• Put it somewhere visible.
• Set a date with your own destiny.
Crack out the self-care and share.
So however you need to take a bit of time to recharge yourself, this is the time to do it.
Look after yourself, and share some of the superpowers of this month with those around you.
You got this.
