Journaling is a powerful tool used to evoke mindfulness and to help you to stay in the present moment. Journaling is important because it helps you get your thoughts down on paper and it creates an opportunity to get your emotions out of your head and onto the paper where they can be easier to understand. 

If you are new to journaling, a good place to start is making a routine of it. Schedule a few minutes every morning or night and start out by writing some gratitudes, some affirmations or even just how you're feeling.

OBSERVE YOUR THOUGHTS

GRATITUDE

Practicing gratitude is a tool that allows you to raise your vibration, it allows you to take the time to notice and reflect on things that make you feel good. Making this a regular practice can bring about positive emotions, can make you feel more alive and is a great way to focus more on the good things happening in your life.

If you are new to practicing gratitude, set a few minutes aside everyday to think about, or journal the things you are grateful for in your life. Start off by thinking about things that make you happy, people in your life that you love and even the small little things that bring you joy. 

PUTTING YOUR HEALTH FIRST

Health isn't everything, but without it, everything else is nothing. We need our health to allow us to feel our best inside and out, we need our health to ensure we have enough energy to do the things we love and we need our health to live a joyous, thriving life. 

We would love to share a few small habits that you can implement in your daily life, to start putting your health first. Firstly, nourishing your body with a balanced diet is important. Eating a mixture of healthy foods along with some good for the soul treats! Secondly, moving your body in ways that you love. Keeping fit and healthy by exercising in a way that brings you joy. Thirdly, learning to relax and destress is a great way to put your health first. Even if you're just setting 5-10 minutes aside to do something relaxing for YOU. 

LEARN TO FORGIVE YOURSELF

This is a great practice to get into, it can sometimes be hard to forgive yourself for things you may have done in the past. However instead of developing feelings of regret and guilt, you can look at it in a positive light, by reflecting on those mistakes as an opportunity for growth and learning. Nobody is perfect, everyone makes mistakes, you are only human and it's important to give yourself grace, to accept yourself and to embrace yourself. 

Here are a few steps that you might find helpful, when learning to forgive yourself. Acknowledge the situation or mistake that has happened and think about how it's making you feel. Then think about the different things you can learn from what has happened, how can you grow from it and how can you make sure it won't happen again. It's important to feel the emotion but not to dwell on it, accept that it's happened and try to not be too critical of yourself. You are enough. 

TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR OWN HAPPINESS

This is an important thing to learn in life, it's key to be responsible for your own happiness and not to blame others for your unhappiness. This means figuring out and finding ways you can be truly happy, despite other people's behaviour and despite external circumstances.

Here are a few ways you can start taking responsibility for your own happiness: start by letting go of control, we cannot control other people and all circumstances, therefore it's important to accept that things are out of our control and our happiness shouldn't be defined by them. Start accepting others, everyone is different and has different values, beliefs and morals. It's key to not let your happiness rely on other people and their actions or words. 

PRACTICE SELF CARE

Self care is any activity that we do to care for ourselves on a mental, emotional or physical level. This is one of the most important things when it comes to loving yourself because you can't give from an empty cup, it's key to do things for yourself to fill your cup up first and ensure you are taking care of number one (YOU.) 

You can start caring for yourself by practicing getting enough sleep, eating foods that give you energy and bring about joy, moving your body and exercising. Start making time for things that make you FEEL GOOD! Read a book, go for a beach walk, make a home cooked meal, take a bubble bath, practice meditation and make sure you're turning it into a habit. Do one thing everyday that lights you up and brings you joy.