Queen,
This is the final module of the fourth step of my 4-step Value Programme. You’ve arrived at Celebrate Yourself! How amazing is that?!?
This has been an incredible journey. There was a good dose of fun, some not-so-fun hard truths, a lot of inner work, a huge heaping of reality checks, lots of learning about yourself and your inner strengths, and a lot of planning for this new phase of your life. You’re here, and you’re ready to Celebrate it all. You deserve the celebration, no doubt. You put in the work, you’re continuing to put in the work, and you know what? You deserve it regardless.
Celebrating Yourself isn’t about waiting until you’ve achieved something great. It’s about taking stock of where you are in the present moment, congratulating yourself for being right there, and giving yourself the time to acknowledge just how special your own, personal journey is. It’s taking on the role of your own personal cheerleader, and showing up for yourself as your biggest supporter. It is, truly and simply, you loving yourself, with both your strengths and your weaknesses, and giving yourself the credit that you deserve.
Celebrating Yourself is about expressing your gratitude for YOU. Your resilience, your spirit, your character, your challenges, your successes, and doing so in a way that means something to you. Treat yourself like you would a loved one. You want to celebrate them because they’re awesome, and you pay attention to what they like, so that you make sure that the celebration is something they would enjoy. Turn that energy towards yourself, and Celebrate You.
All right, having trouble thinking of ideas on how to Celebrate Yourself? Well, for the Queens in my inner circle, you might find it useful to check some of the ideas which were featured in the Self-Love Challenge. There were some marvellous ideas there, and for the Queens who don’t have access to the CQA platform, give these amazing ideas a try:
Take stock of your accomplishments. Making time to really savour your victories, your wins, and your successes is such a gratifying, motivating way to celebrate yourself. I cannot talk this up enough! Just give it a try, and let me know in the comments below how this makes you feel. Set aside a chunk of time to do this, and set yourself up in a nice quiet space. Get yourself something to write in that you find pleasing. A nice-looking journal, a few pieces of paper in a colour you love… I don’t want you to go around scribbling some notes hastily on some gross crumpled-up paper. These are your accomplishments, give them the respect they deserve and a nice spot to lie on. If you’re more into computers, then make your document look nice. Format it, choose fonts that are pleasing, maybe add in some graphics.
Write out all of the accomplishments that you can think of, the hurdles you got over, and how your accomplishments have positively impacted your life. List them all, big and small. I had set myself a challenge to hydrate myself properly, and I’ve done that consistently throughout the challenge. You best believe that completing that challenge is going on my list of accomplishments! I kept up a habit that I know is good for me, I’ve done it despite being incredibly busy and naturally not being one to reach for water, and I’ve demonstrated to myself that I have the consistency that I need to make amazing habits that will support my wellbeing. Keep that book, the papers, or the document in a safe place, and keep setting yourself time to add to those accomplishments. If you’ve got a bit of an artistic inclination, how about making an accomplishments board that you can put up and admire the next time you feel like you need a bit of a pep talk?
Give yourself a bonus. Literally, give yourself money. Dig some out from your savings, or give yourself a larger chunk of your revenue than you would otherwise done, and do something different with it. If your employer gave you a nice bonus, what would you do? Whatever it is, do that. Put a down payment on a car, pay yourself some classes you’ve been dying to take, set up a travel fund… It’s your bonus, you decide! Well, remember, you are the CEO of your life, give yourself a bonus!
Give yourself a holiday. Life gets really busy, and taking genuine time off can feel like… well, something that’s meant for somebody else. Kids need taking care of, maybe there are pets, you have your place to tend to, obligations to fulfill. Even on vacation, you don’t really feel like you’re on vacation. Well, change that. You’re Celebrating Yourself, and you need some time off to do it! Set some “holiday” time, hand the kids (or pets?) over to a trusted sitter, reschedule whatever it is you want to be doing (come on, the cleaning can wait, and you can most definitely turn your phone off for a bit – just give whoever needs to know a heads up first), and commit to your holiday. You don’t need to go anywhere to enjoy it! Make a room in your place off-limits, schedule bubble bath time, get yourself some bubbly or an alcohol-free alternative, set the mood with some music… Get creative with it. You’ve developed your ability to plan your life, channel some of that energy into planning this break and get on it! If you are in the mood to travel, take your holiday on your own terms. No compromises, no ifs ands or buts. This is your treat to you.
Get to partying! If this is your thing, have a gathering with people you love, or even just by yourself. I see my Queens who value their own company, this is your green light to go ahead and crank up that music and dance with you! There are no rules, design your party and enjoy it. If you want to share your party with others, let them know what you’ve accomplished, and invite them to share their own accomplishments as well!
Invest in you. An absolutely amazing way to Celebrate Yourself is to set yourself up to achieve even more. If you’ve been wanting to add to your profile with another degree, or have been wanting a coach to get you to your weight loss goals, or maybe you’d like to acquire some new techniques to step up your baking game, then go for it. Set aside the money you need, and Celebrate Yourself by investing in yourself. You are absolutely worth that investment, and your future successes are SO worth that investment. Give yourself permission to invest in you, and go for it.
All right Queen. This is going to be an awesome month! You are the hero of your story, the maker of your future, and the CEO of your life. Celebrate You, everything you bring to the table, the journey you’ve been on, and where you are today. Let me know in the comments below, what will your Celebrations look like this month? I can’t wait to hear about them!
Fix your crown.