Day 1, HYHB Challenge: … And I Wore Pink

I just launched a 30-day challenge for a healthier you, healthier business over at International Alliance of Motivated Part-Time Entrepreneurs. But who is kidding who, I’m doing it for me as much as for others.

I need a kick-start, reset, refresh, rewind, review. Well, you get the idea.

So, I’m joining my own challenge and going to push myself to really try to make some changes. Not obvious changes – I’m pretty darn great and I love myself. I’m not damaged or abused or lost or hurt (much). I’m normal.

But normal is no excuse for accepting how I’ve been feeling lately. Which is stuck.

So I have to stop just facing the truth, but acting on a few things. I’d love you to join the journey with me! You can request to join the private Facebook group, you can comment here or over at IAMPTE (like the page first please!).

The day 1 challenge of Healthy You, Healthy Business 30-Day Challenge is posted here.

My response to the challenge (deep breath)…

• My business health is solid, growing, inspiring and good for now because I stick to my values – put my kids first, do good work, tell the truth, share the best information, connect the best people, grow slow and steady with purpose until my baby is in grade school, practice patience hourly with myself – reminding I chose to grow slow and steady so I can be mom first for now. My business is also stuck in ways I can manage. I need to meet new people – a full-time mom’s challenge. I need to trust others even though I’ve been hurt. But my business is good. I still love it and I’m inspired daily. I feel lucky.
• My emotional health is fluctuating but mostly in control because I am honest with myself that I have serious PMDD and migraines, I have engaged my doctor – literally in a process of getting tests done, I am practicing engaging my friends, I am starting medication to help (hopefully temporarily), I started this challenge, I can accept that my reasons I can’t fulfill all my goals ARE REASONS not excuses, and that it can be helped. And that I’m still awesome and normal.
  
• My physical health is ignored because I put my family, my clients and my work before myself. Always. This is an excuse, not a reason. I know how to do better, I don’t know why I don’t. This is my journey.

There. Now you know my whole truth! And it only took me 5 minutes to spill it.

Except why this is titled… “And I Wore Pink”

Here’s the scoop. I recently participated in a photoshoot for my feature pages in Crave Calgary: An Urban Gal’s Manifesto and I tormented myself trying to find “my colours” – turquoises, greens on advice that they make  my eyes sparkle. (Golly, thanks!) I found those colours. But in a flying fifteen minute shopping spree I also bought a pink shirt – a shade of pink never before seen on this body. Not a big deal, really. Until I shared the photos. And the comments came back of “I love the pink. I love the pink. I love the pink.”

Pink is NOT my colour. But that doesn’t matter. The point of the pink shirt is you don’t always know how others will react to something new and different you put out there. I’m very stuck in my opinions sometimes. This is a month where I’m listening more than I’m doing. Observing more than I’m creating. I want more pink shirts. I want others to see more of me than they think they know.

Kathleen Sullivan (who taught me WordPress) just shared this on the Facebook group, and is perfectly timed for this article:

“The longer you stay in one place, the greater your chances of disillusionment.” ~ Art Spander

Join the Healthy You, Healthy Business 30-Day Challenge with me. Share your blog posts if you are “putting it out there” like me over at IAMPTE so others can be inspired by you. Request to join the private Facebook chat with our experts or other challengers. Or keep it private in a journal. But whatever you do, start now.