Tag: Motivational Monday

Motivational Monday: The Permission Slip to Life

Have you ever waited for someone to give you permission to start something? I’ll bet you have. And chances are that permission that came from someone else started with an idea you had for yourself. So why do we wait so long to begin something until we have permission or continually ask others if something is good enough before we begin?

Why is it that we wait until we absolutely must do something in order to start? Until the doctor gives us permission to change the diet or to lose a job we hate before starting a job we love. Why can’t we say yes to ourselves? To the things that make us happy. Or knowing what you want to do will take work but make excuses for ourselves that we can’t do something until someone else tells us we can.

Stop letting everyone else give you permission to change your life, and just start. No one else can do the work for you. You must make time for yourself, even if it’s an hour a day. Let that time be your alone time to think about what you want for yourself. Figure out a plan of how to change yourself for the better then start it. Your happiness depends on how hard you work for yourself.
Personally, I often look to others who are already doing things I want to do. Those people will always tell you to start. Start when you have no idea what you’re doing but start because you want to. Trust that you’ll figure things out as you go. Stop waiting for someone else to tell you you’re good enough. A successful person will never look down on you for trying. They’ve been there and understand the work it takes. Everyone has had failures and successes because it’s all part of life.

I’ve also learned that if I don’t start what I want to, I’ll continually think about it repeatedly until starting. I even become angry at myself when I know I can do more. Do you ever feel that way? You have a dream for yourself and spend time avoiding it to take the easy way of life; watching TV instead of exercising, or instead of reading a book, but because you make excuses or are too tired you don’t start. I believe there is a difference in taking time for yourself with self-care and completely avoiding in what you should be starting. It’s easier to avoid than it is to start but I believe that if you start, you’ll be happier, you just have to keep going.

Today, give yourself the permission to say YES to yourself. Today, give yourself permission to believe in yourself instead of seeking approval from others. No one is going to live your life the way you will. You don’t need permission from anyone else other than yourself to start. Once you start, seek out people who’ll support you. You may find people who will criticize you, but just keep going and find people who’ll give you the same permission you give yourself, which is to keep going.

Happy Monday, Loves! ❤

Motivational Monday: Be the Hero of Your Life Not the Victim

I used to spend most of my life being the victim. Anytime anything would go wrong in my life I would be sad for longer than needed, including becoming depressed. But what I’ve realized over the past few years of rebuilding my life by living alone, having great therapists and a good support system of people I trust, is that you deserve to be the hero of your own life. While I have my support systems, I know that I am the only person who can change my life. No one is going to live your life every single day except you. No one can tell you how to live, where to live, pay your bills, do your job, etc. No one is you.

The moment of change for me, was when I recognized that my routine of unhappiness needed to change. By routine I mean, I’d come home from a job I didn’t enjoy, would be tired, constantly thinking negatively, reliving past trauma I’d experienced and go in the shower to be alone and sulk. One night while in this routine, I’d realized I needed to change. I was SICK of being unhappy. My happiness didn’t truly come until now (a few years later) but it only came because I put in the work. I left relationships that made me unhappy, I went to therapy once a week, I wrote love letters to myself to make myself feel better and eventually I moved into my own place, completely alone. I learned how to live with my past, changed jobs, lived in a place I could afford when everyone else told me to live elsewhere. The point is to know what’s best for yourself when you are stuck and can recognize you need to change. If you don’t recognize this within yourself yet, take a look at your daily routine – are you happy with it? Is it fulfilling? If not, then why? What do you NEED to do to make yourself happy? I’ll bet there is a calling within your mind telling you over and over again what you need and until you listen it will be pushed in the back of your mind. I promise when you listen and set yourself free you will feel better. ❤

Everyone needs a hero, and everyone needs themselves to be their own hero. When you stop playing the victim, you’ll open your eyes to an entirely new life. This new life will be one that you’ll never want to give up on or go back to your old ways. It will be so good, you’ll forget your old routine and only focus on your new one. Start small with your new routine, by picking out one thing at a time to change, and once you get a hang of it, try adding something else to it. This could be eating healthy dinners every night, which includes budgeting for meals, meal planning and cooking. Next, start a fitness routine, it is so good to move your body and once you begin this routine, your body will want to move (you’ll realize this after a month of working out or when you happen to miss a class). You can even try small things like listening to a podcast while doing dishes (a great way to learn while working) or playing music (a great way to make yourself happy and dance to move your body). Journal daily about your dreams and find small ways to make those dreams come true. Start with your big dream (the end goal) and work backwards by taking small steps to get there. Know that your dreams take work but that you can make them happen by putting in the work one day at a time.

Introducing small changes in your life means you’ll be changing your habits which will eventually become your routine. Put the work in to make yourself and your happiness a priority, and eventually you’ll realize you don’t have to be a victim to your circumstances, you’re already a hero because you’re devoting yourself to becoming the best version you can possibly be. ❤

Happy Monday, Loves ❤

Motivational Monday: Be the Visionary for Your Life

When I was growing up, I had a vivid imagination. My best friend and I would play in the backyard (which was the woods) and we’d go on adventures, tell stories and act them out. We even created our own radio show with a small tape recorder and microphones. Once I got into third grade, I realized I had a photographic memory that tied into my visual mind. I knew that by looking at something-words or pictures I could remember it. I could close my eyes and see the answers. Another thing I’d learned at a young age was a love for writing. While I struggled with writing back then, it made me work hard to learn how to write properly. I’d always find myself taking out a notebook and writing about my day or keeping a journal to write about the boy(s) I liked. I also would write short stories that I’d imagine in my mind and bring to life on paper. The year I graduated college, I sat at a coffee shop to have lunch by myself and dreamed about interviewing someone for a magazine I had written. Throughout my working life I’d always think about jobs I wished I’d had and thought about all the ways I could provide the company with great ideas. Then, I began reading blogs and realizing that if normal people could write their ideas and have people read them, without the celebrity status or people just in general knowing who you are, then I could too.

As an adult, I have taken my imagination to the next level by using it as a building block for a positive mindset. I use my imagination to envision where I want my life to go. Everything from where I want to vacation, who I want to surround myself with and what I want for my life. I let my mind wander all the time and take my dreams as far as I can. I’ll even dream as I’m walking through a store while shopping. I know that a blog can turn into a business, I’ve seen it with other people. I know that if you surround yourself with people who work just as hard as you or harder, they can be inspiration for you. I know if you choose to go on a vacation where you’ll learn something, like at a conference or master mind, you’ll come home a new person. However, you must do more than just envision, you must do the work. The work can be messy but if you’ve started that’s what’s important. If you try, it means you didn’t give up on yourself. When you put the work in it means you’re determined.

Today, as a 32-year-old woman I close my eyes and see the answers to the vision of my life: the answer is that I can have the life I envision. You have an imagination for a reason, and you were put on this planet for a reason. I believe you were born to live out your vision for your life, all you have to do is start.

Happy Monday Loves! Check out my social media pages on Instagram and Facebook at: Stylestomakeyousmile

Motivational Monday: A Lesson in Timelines and Goals

Throughout your life, you’ve probably thought you’d like to achieve certain goals by a particular age. Maybe you want to be married by thirty, have a kid two years later or be established in your career by age thirty-five. Then as that age approaches you find yourself not at the job you dreamed of or aren’t in a relationship where the other person wants to get married…there are a million scenarios of what why your goals aren’t being met. The upside to not having your goals met is that you realize why something didn’t work out the way you wanted. Maybe you need to find yourself in a new relationship or find a new job that you can grow in. It also lets you see what you do and don’t want from life.

Don’t let your timelines for yourself dictate your life. The problem with not achieving timeline goals when it comes to a career or relationship is that it can be very disappointing. The key is to be relaxed in what you want to happen and let things come as are. Live out your life without a deadline of needing something to happen by a certain age or timeframe. This will take the pressure off, so you won’t have to be so hard on yourself. The more you express to others what you want in life, the better off you’ll be because people can then understand your wants and needs.

I’ll bet if you go through what your plans were from a young age until now, they’ve probably changed a bit. Restructure your mindset so that you know what you’d like to happen in your life but be okay with knowing it might not happen at all or if it doesn’t at the age you wanted, it’s okay because there is still time. Every bit of life is a lesson always teaching you what you need to learn and grow. Listen and learn from those lessons, they’ll make you realize what you need in the future.

Happy Monday!

❤ Always, Amy Beth

Motivational Monday- The True Importance of Knowing When to Say YES to Yourself

Do you ever have those days/weeks/years where everything that could go wrong does? You lose your job, your car breaks down, you slept in late, you get sick, your relationship fell apart. Any time that you have a setback, you still need to say yes to yourself. That project you’ve been meaning to work on, hobby you’ve been wanting to start or anything you’ve been putting off, those are the things you need to listen to yourself about while your setbacks are in full swing. The reason being that the things you’ve been wanting to do, you’ve been manifesting and those are the things you need to say yes to. They will drive you out of the negativity while the setbacks are happening.

When you say yes to yourself, you are giving yourself the opportunity to learn, grow and give yourself a small amount of happiness. It doesn’t matter if you don’t have a clue as to what you’re doing, you learn and grow from the start, but the key is to just start! When you say yes, just one time, you’ll learn to say it more. So much more in fact, that you’ll eventually find and meet people who’ll believe in your mission and you. You’ll learn from these people and become best friends with them. They’ll help you and you’ll help them, because we all need people to grow with.

The true importance of saying yes to yourself is simply, knowing that you can say yes. Don’t let people tell you that you can’t or that you aren’t good enough or not smart enough. The longer you say no, the more disappointed you’ll be in yourself until you say yes.
So, what will you say YES to for yourself today?

Happy Monday!

P.S. This post was inspired from purchasing a ticket to Pays To Be Brave, in California this fall. If any of you are going, please let me know in the comments or on social media, at @stylestomakeyousmile on Facebook or Instagram.

Motivational Monday: A Reminder of the Realities of Life

Because of social media, we all have preconceived notions of what everyone’s lives look like. The reality is that no one will ever know what your life is like because no one can hear your thoughts. It doesn’t matter if you spend every single day with someone beside you, live with someone or see each other for eight hours a day. The thoughts, feelings, experiences and emotions a person can have won’t always be shared with everyone they know, let alone the internet. So then why do we think we know a person’s life so well? We have no idea how much that person struggled to get to where they are now. Things don’t just come to people out of the blue. Most people work for what they have. And while you may only see their success, they may always remember the failures, the times they were told No, the criticism and that may be the driving force to their success.

So, my suggestion to anyone who believes they truly know what someone’s life is like based on social media, is to just talk to them. Ask them how they got to where they are, why they are so happy all the time, how they became successful, etc. Everyone goes through so much in life and we all have a story to tell about why we are the way we are. Sharing and listening to life stories will change your perception and earn more respect towards people. Learning how to talk to people is better than always being envious over someone’s life. It may even help you understand something in your own life a little clearer.

Once you’ve talked to them you can take the lessons you’ve learned and change your mindset around where your life could go. If for some reason you can’t talk to them, learn from them by what they do show you online. If it’s always happy pictures, quotes, funny videos or their hobbies then take what they’re looking at and sharing daily and do the same for yourself to see how your mindset changes.

The biggest life lesson from anyone is one that changes your mindset to thinking more positively about life. Instead of thinking we know about everyone’s life online, try to take a cue from what they’re sharing and learn to bring positivity into your own life every day.

Happy Monday! ❤

A Love Letter To My Readers On The One Year Blog Anniversary

Today marks my one-year blog anniversary! Thank you so much to everyone whose read/commented/followed my blog! I’ve also loved receiving all your feedback around the motivation I post on social media – @stylestomakeyousmile Whether it’s a post about a barre class, what I ate for dinner or a quote, I always love hearing from you guys and finding out what helps motivate you throughout your life by providing inspiration.

Motivational Monday – This concept came from an idea I had of learning and sharing a lesson with you all each week. There is something to be learned every day, and I took the most important lessons I could think of to share with you all.

Love Always, Amy Beth – This is a new concept I’ll be sharing once a month -they are love letters to you, my readers ❤ I began writing them a few years ago in order to help me get through a difficult time in my life, I thought, what would the strongest version of me say to myself to help me get through this? So, I began writing in a small notebook and decided to write 12 of them, publishing once a month and I hope you love them as much as I do ❤

When I first started the blog, I wanted to be a lifestyle blogger, and I wrote articles on motivation, fashion, food and blogging. The more I wrote, the more I realized what I enjoyed the most was motivational posts. They came naturally to me and it is where I plan to stay with my blog and social media.

While it’s been somewhat of a difficult year in my personal life, I’ve found that blogging was always a way to stay positive and do what I enjoy, and I hope you all can find your passions in life. I find that on social media we all see the beautiful finished pieces of content people have worked on, whether it’s a musician’s music, a book, a popular Instagram account with tons of followers, sometimes we all forget how much work goes into gaining the popularity and the amount of work people do every day to get to a finished product. I’ve learned blogging is not just about creating content, it’s about making connection with others online and meeting them in person. I’ve been lucky to be able to meet some beautiful bloggers who are truly talented and wonderful people and are SO supportive of what I do, and I’m very thankful for them ❤ The other huge lesson I’ve learned is to be yourself online! You don’t have to create the same type of content as someone else just because you see that it’s working for them. You just need to find what makes you happy and share that with the world. Whatever that is is what you will excel at because it’s something that interests you and is what you are knowledgeable in. Nobody is you, has the same mindset as you or can create the same content as you!

I’ve learned that some of the content I’ve put online will take off right away and others won’t. You must put a lot of thought into planning your content and know what you truly want to say. There have been weeks where I won’t put out any content on my blog because I haven’t thought of a good idea or my personal life is too hectic, and I need a break. I’ve realized I’ll always come back to blogging because it is my happy place, just like going to barre makes me happy. The two are similar in that they push me to strengthen my mind by telling myself I CAN do something – hold a plank for 90 seconds or write a new blog post. Do I always FEEL like working out or blogging? No. Somedays I’d rather be lazy and lay on the sofa all day and binge Netflix…and sometimes I need those days or weekends. But I also know I’ll eventually find the motivation to get back on my feet because I’m passionate about what I do.

So, with all that being said, I want to THANK YOU for reading my blog, liking my pictures on social media, following me and engaging with my content. You all have no idea how happy it makes me! I started writing in my notebooks a few years ago and had the idea to create a blog but never went through with it because I wasn’t in the right frame of mind, but I’m so happy I finally started this blog. I’m so grateful to you all for following me on my journey and I can’t wait to share more lessons I’ve learned in the future.

Love Always, Amy Beth

Life Lessons From 2018

Change for yourself-You’re the only one living your life, so all of your decisions will be for you. Make decisions that will bring you happiness in long run and trust yourself enough that a change is for the best, because it always is.

You cannot change anyone-Recognizing that everyone will do things on their own time is the key to realizing that you can’t change anyone. People will only change on their own. While you can give them advice, they must do the work to change themselves.

You cannot please everyone-As someone who has been a people pleaser for years, I’ve simply learned this year that I can’t please everyone. There will always be situations that occur where someone will not like your decision and that is OKAY.

Everyone has an opinion-Everyone will try to give you advice on what they think is best for you. The truth is, you’re the only one who knows what’s best for you because you’re the only one who can live your life. Not everything that everyone wants for you is possible, so knowing your boundaries of what can and can’t work for your life is key to recognizing what works and doesn’t work when it comes to someone else’s opinion of you.

Know your priorities-Knowing what you need to focus on for the next year as far as health, finances, personal and work goals are all crucial for a good year. Be realistic with yourself about what did and did not work with each of these and see how you can change each category for next year.

Listen to your body-Mental and physical health are SO important to living a long life. When you can recognize what your body needs such as: certain foods, sleep for eight hours, knowing when you need a break to be alone and recharge and how much exercise to get each week, your body will feel good. Once you can recognize all of this you’ll know when your body feels off.

Find Supportive People-The people in life you can talk to, accept you, challenge you and help you be your best self are worth keeping in life. They’ll believe in you, give you advice, make sure you are okay and listen to you.

Knowing when to end something-It’s always good to know when to end or leave something that is no longer working, whether that’s a relationship, job, home, etc., you’ll get a feeling that will tell you when to let go. Sometimes letting go of something can take years, but it’s all about doing things on your own time.

Know your worth-Always be confident in knowing your worth and value to anything and anyone.

Acceptance-Accepting where you are in life, what you need to change in order to make you happy and make decisions for yourself.

Don’t play the comparison game- You must do the work inside yourself to figure out what is causing you to compare your life to someone else’s. If it’s looking at someone else’s life and believing they have more than you, then reach out to them to see what their life is REALLY like, because I promise, no one’s life is as perfect as it seems. If you are on the receiving end of someone comparing your life to theirs, it is up to you to make peace within yourself of the way people perceive you.

Perspective is Everything-Life does NOT have to be SO HARD. It doesn’t have to be filled with anger, jealousy, hatred, sadness or negativity. Life can be whatever you want it to be. Choose to be happy, positive and believe in yourself. Make the best choices for you. You’re the only one who can live your life. Be nice to yourself, treat other’s well and be happy with your life.

Cheers to 2019!

Motivational Monday: Learning to Do Things In Our Own Time

If there is one thing I have learned from this entire year of 2018, it is that people will always do things in their own time. No matter how many people we seek (or not seek) advice from, people will always give their opinions of what you should or should not do with your life. The thing that I have learned is that you will only do things when you are ready to do them. Some decisions may seem simpler than others, however once you process them and can justify your own needs that is when you will make your own decisions.

Once you’ve decided to begin something, it can be easy to look back and wish you’d started earlier. However, you can’t start anything new if you aren’t in the right mind frame.

Sometimes dramatic events need to take place for your life to change and other times, you can get caught up with living a certain way until you are sick of it and decide to change. I think we become so used to making excuses for things even when we have a small interest in doing them, when if we would just start it might end up leading into something we’ve never dreamed of! Or that we might fall in love with doing whatever that thing is. If starting whatever it is that you want to start is seeming difficult, try taking small steps-write out what you want to start, begin for a short period of time to see how you like it and go from there. Whatever it is that’s on your mind that you want to begin, will continually come up until you start it! It’s your brains way of telling you what you NEED to be doing with your life! Whether that is eating healthier, going to bed earlier because you feel exhausted, starting a workout routine, changing jobs, beginning a hobby, whatever that feeling is, here is your permission to start.

I hope that for the New Year of 2019 you will look at things as easy to start because you listened to what you needed. I hope that whatever your desires are or feel your calling is, you can listen to yourself and begin to change. ❤

Motivational Monday: Promises to Myself

 I promise to listen to myself. You know those ideas that your mind keeps thinking of? They won’t go away until you listen to them and put into play what they are. The longer you ignore them (day after day, year after year) they’ll sit in the back of your mind. When your mind becomes clear they’ll appear. It is when you take action that those thoughts will be released. Once that happens, you’ll be able to drive upon those ideas and turn them into dreams and plans for yourself.

 I promise to always do what is best for me. Listening to yourself is the most important feeling in the world. It goes beyond what everyone else is doing, what the trends are-diets, clothes to buy, workouts, etc. You must know what makes you and your body feel the best then keep doing that.

 I promise to keep going. Dreaming is one thing but having plans are another. Your dreams can only go so far without a plan to action. Short or long term, all dreams and plans are important because you can’t get to one without the other. And, while everything seems hard in life, you must keep doing the work. If you give up, you end up going back to where you started. So, if you’ve already chosen to give up the life you’ve lived before, why would you want to go back? Remind yourself of this when times get hard and I promise you won’t want to go back.

 I promise to hold onto the people who get me. No matter what you do in life, everyone is going to have an opinion that you should be doing something different (even if you’re already doing what you enjoy). Very few people in this life will get you, so hold onto the one’s who do. The one’s who believe in your work, dreams and passion to fulfill your desires of doing more than you already are. Learn from the people who are in the midst of and accomplishing their dreams-manifest their lessons of the good times, the mistakes and hardships of what it takes. Listen to all their advice. Most importantly, cheer them on because they are the one’s who’ll continue to push you to your best self.

What promises do you make for yourself?

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