I want to clarify what I mean when I use the word "strength".
In the previous post, I encouraged you to stand up for those who are told to be less than who they are. I defined what “weakness” means, but not “strength”, so much. This post will further clarify things.
This aspect of strength is something that is in short supply these days.
I want to clear up what I mean by “strength” in layman’s terms. It may be a little different than what you might think it means.
I’m not talking about physical displays of muscles, anger, or athletic ability, although physical health and well-being are important things that I encourage.
What I’m primarily referring to is mental and emotional strength. Mental strength is simply the will to not give up easily in the face of hardships and disasters. A large part of this is owning your feelings and getting real with them, in every way, when you do feel a bit discouraged or that your life is lacking a little “something”. Or, maybe that’s a big “something”. Strength isn’t ignoring those feelings, or pushing through them, or attempting to pep-talk your way through them. They need to be looked at and worked through.
Ignore the idea that tough, strong people just charge through and never feel anything. People with real strength look at their issues and do what they must in order to address them in healthy ways.
A personal example of how I examined & worked things through.
A good example of how I handled this situation took place a few weeks ago. At that time, I’ve been feeling surges of pure anxiety take me over. I could feel the sensations of panic come over me. As someone who has had plenty of experience feeling this, I also know what causes me to feel this way from time to time.
For the past few days, I’ve had eggs for my mid-morning snack. I get up at 6 A.M. every morning, weigh myself, meditate, eat a protein bar, put on headphones and go for my morning walk outside, in that order. I normally don’t return until about 9-ish, and I eat every 3-4 hours or so every day. For the past few days, this snack was nothing but eggs. No toast, berries, nothing. Just eggs. Protein & fat, no carbohydrates.
Full disclosure time: My body doesn’t do very well on low carbs. My serotonin levels drop like a stone and the anxious feeling that result came through. I ate a high carb early lunch as soon as could feel this coming on. This provided instant relief. I felt more calmer and like myself – this works like a charm.
It was a feedback signal. Which are just what those sort of feelings are – valuable feedback. They are an indicator that something is ‘off’, and it needs your attention. Ignore these feelings at your own risk and detriment.
The value of self-care and inner awareness is immeasurable!
Journaling is a wonderful way to get thought out on paper. Go out with your pals for a night out on the town. Give yourself permission to drop everything and enjoy life. You will be so glad that you did.
As you kick ass and take names in life, remember to take time for yourself. Workaholism isn’t a strength. Always getting down on yourself isn’t a strength. Trying to put on a tough front and flexing some imaginary power isn’t strength, it’s weakness masquerading as strength. Even the best role models of strength and courage rested and took time off to tend to themselves. It could be a vacation, or a high-carb lunch in the middle of the day, a bit of exercise…. or anything else you would like or need to feel better and more grounded.
This one trick will provide the mental and emotional strength to keep you going strong. I’ve learned firsthand that being a workaholic and always on the go is not a very good strategy for life. It will lead to burn out, mental and physical fatigue, and will turn you into another stressed out statistic in the end.
Make time for you. Indulge in what you love. This is your life. And this will help you cultivate real strength.
Normally, I'd end this post here.... but I have to get you up to speed on what's going on right now.
My book, "Become Whole" is out NOW on Amazon.com in Kindle and paperback!
After about 11 months in the making, “Become Whole: How to Avoid Being Too Nice and Being a Jerk to Get What You Truly Deserve in Your Life”, is now available on Amazon. You can place your order here. I also have the direct link in the book section of the site.
You can view the trailer for the book here and in the book info section. Special shout out to Ravinder18 on fiverr.com for his incredible effort in putting this together.
You can purchase the Kindle edition for $4.99. This is the best deal of the two available options and if you have a Kindle or the Kindle Reader app on your phone, you can receive and read your copy right away upon ordering. You can also purchase the paperback version for $12.99.
Good things are coming down the pipeline!
Other incredible content is coming up and good things are in store. Media exposure such as podcasts and other related media are coming up very soon, and I will keep you posted as things develop. I won’t say any specifics now, just that very good things are coming in the future. Stay tuned to this blog for more info as I receive it.
If you have any thoughts related to the content of this post, please leave a comment below!