First and foremost, I am going to preface this weekly obsession with one truth: This isn’t something that I do EVERY day, simply because I don’t always have time. It’s something that I desire to do every day, but the truth is that everything is best in moderation… even moderation, so said Maya Angelou. I will say, though, when I have a peaceful morning that isn’t filled with rush and extra responsibilities this practice is lovely. I wanted to start with that big, fat truth because sitting down every morning to focus on how I want my life to look ten years from now isn’t always a possibility. Some mornings I have all the peace and quiet I can get, but my mind won’t let me settle on writing. It’s okay to be inconsistent when life ebbs and flows, and it’s even more that okay if you need to take weeks off of good practices. The important thing is that you eventually get back on it.

In recent months, I have been doing my start today journal and it’s been helping my mind settle into what I actually want. Even though we think we know how we want our future to look, do we really? And is what we are really praying for something that we would find a blessing if we had it? I’m not sponsored by The Hollis Co. and I don’t benefit from sharing this product with you at all… other that knowing I can share something wit you that helps me, and I hope it helps you, too.

If you choose to purchase a Start Today Journal, if has in depth instructions on how Rachel Hollis uses this practice, but I’ll give you a quickie and let you go from there…

You start with your grateful list: You make a short list of things you’re grateful for. This can be anything from “I’m grateful for my strong body” to “I’m grateful for my daughter” to “I’m grateful for my home” or anything in between. You can even be grateful for “The woman who smiled at you at the grocery store.” This step helps us remember what really matters and pay attention to all of those little moments that we would miss fi they never happened. I’m reminding myself how grateful I am to have little messes from my daughter around my home, because sooner than later those won’t be there, and she will be grown. Each little mess is a reminder that she exists, that she is little, and that I am so, so lucky to have a daughter when thousands of people pray for one. Little messes are little miracles, because they come from our most prized things.

Next Step: This next step can feel a little tricky, but here’s the rule: You’re going to write a list of goals down as if you’ve already achieved them. Foe example, if your goal is to pay off your home mortgage faster, instead of writing, “I want to pay off my home in 10 years,” instead you’ll write, “I’m grateful that my home is paid if full.” This, if done properly, allows us to take the time and FEEL what it feels like to step into this version of us. It gives us the opportunity to meditate on this future version of us and actually see and feel if it fits with who we want to be. It’s interesting how some of the thing we thought we most wanted, like that Mercedes, would never fir our lifestyle because we gave dogs, kids, garden, and we like those parking spots in front at Target… which is unfortunately where all those damn door digs come from. Can you tell I’m speaking from experience? haha

This week, I challenge you to write down what you envision as your dream life and see fi it actually fits. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how so many of the thing you already have are so many of the things you’re asking for… you just didn’t see it that way before really, really looking.

Jena