What does the word summer evoke in you?
Summer time, free time,
going on vacation,
having no obligations,
no dress code,
(re-)connecting with friends and family,
being you,
recharging your batteries,
living a simple life,
being in nature,
…
Does this resonate with you?
Can you connect with this feeling?
I hope you can all create this blissful feeling, and an image of ‘dolce far niente’ now in your mind.
It’s one thing to be able to recall this feeling, but the most important thing is:
How can we keep feeling like this, even after the holidays are over?
How can we continue living this simple life, feeling happy, being content?
I believe the answer lies in living a simple life.
Simplify your life,
make space,
free yourself from all the ‘too much’ in your life.
Vacation comes from the Latin verb: ‘vacare’,
which means being free, being empty.
And that is exactly what I am talking about.
Make more space in your life.
Empty your agenda as much as you can.
And yes, you can.
We always think we have to say ‘yes’ to everyone and everything,
But is that so?
At what cost?
We all feel:
too busy,
overwhelmed,
frustrated,
tired,
as if somebody else is planning our lives.
But we do have a say in it you know.
Embrace JOMO (Joy of missing out) instead of FOMO (Fear of missing out).
By saying ‘no’ you create space in your agenda, you create time:
time you get to spend the way you want,
time to breathe,
time to do things you never found the time for,
time to actually enjoy what you’re doing right now,
(without already thinking of all the other stuff that is on your agenda)
time to feel in control again, to feel you’ve got this,
time to be you, just you,
no obligations.
Make space in your house:
the less stuff you have lying around,
the less you need to take care of,
the less you need to clean, to organize,
the less choices you have to make.
We always think we need that stuff, but we don’t.
Less stuff also means:
the energy can flow freely through your house,
and that makes you feel light, free, happy as if a burden has been taken from your shoulders, as if you can finally breathe again.
Free your mind, empty your head.
We think and think and think.
We worry about the future, we overthink past events.
The only moment we can change is now.
So, live today, solve today’s problems and nothing more.
The past is the past, so let it be. Learn from it and let it go.
The future is not here yet, so, we can’t know what is going to happen.
Let go of all the assumptions you make of what might happen.
Have you already noticed that, of all the worrying you’ve ever done,
hardly anything actually happened of all the things that you feared would happen?
So let go of overthinking what might or might not happen.
By emptying our lives of all this stuff, by simplifying the way we live, eat, think:
we make room for so much more:
more energy,
more happiness,
more lightness,
more meaning,
more health,
more love,
more life!
That is what I wish for you this summer, and beyond:
vacare,
vacation,
feeling free.
You can find tips on how to do this in many of my articles here on Medium, and also in my book “Less is Yes!”
You’ll find very practical guidelines on:
how to simplify your stuff,
how to make your body more healthy, more energetic and
how to train your mind to stop worrying, to stop thinking worst case scenarios, and how to see the positive side of things.
Once you get rid of all the excess, you’ll wonder how on earth you ever thought you needed all that stuff. The key lies in being grateful for what you have and knowing it’s more than enough. You don’t need more, you need less.
Once you start taking care of your body and you feel your body getting fitter, healthier, less tired, you’ll be motivated to keep living this healthy lifestyle and at some point, you’ll be doing this automatically so that it feels easy and ‘normal’ to do.
Thinking with a positive mindset, believing in the goodness of people, being kind, is something you have to train your mind to do, and will give you so much bliss and happiness in your life.
Once you’ve created a habit of thinking this way, it’ll be your new ‘normal’ way of looking at people, at things and you’ll feel a shift in your life as if suddenly everything feels lighter, easier, as if only good stuff comes your way.
Love is our true nature,
Love is who we really are.
Make space, ‘vacare’, to let that love blossom!
Have a very fine holiday!!!
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Katrien