Fulfillment is Yours to Own

“People take different roads seeking fulfillment and happiness. Just because they’re not on your road doesn’t mean they’ve gotten lost.” -H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

I have found my space in this world. I’ve found the things that fill my soul for this season. I’m sure as I grow and mature, new things will spring up and fulfill me in ways I never knew I needed. One thing I had to learn is that it’s only my job to fulfill me, and it is my responsibility to myself to own that. Once I took full ownership of my own fulfillment, I learned that fulfillment comes much easier when I allow myself to be fully present.

Keeping Your Commitments for Fulfillment

Fulfillment- the achievement of something desired, promised, or predicted.

We’ve all been through hard times, but even then, we can still follow through with our commitments to ourselves.

I oftentimes say I yes before really thinking about it, but now that Sunday is my day of solitude, I am immediately hesitant about making any plans that day. It’s not always a definite no; it’s usually more like, “I’ll have to see how I’m feeling.”

Since I started doing Sunday Solitude, like 10 years ago, I’ve learned to trust myself, which led to more self-confidence and security in myself and my own word. This allowed me to fulfill my own desires (that usually rise or originate from my beliefs and values). So today, I wanted to think about and share how we can go into August with the intention of deep fulfillment.

There’s a few ways to ensure we keep our commitments to ourselves even under pressure.

  • Ensure you have a reminder about your commitment on all your calendars and scheduled into your routine.
  • Have go to lines that come easily and off the cuff. “Let me think about that.” “I have to see.” “Wow, thanks for thinking of me. Are there any other days that might work?”
  • Make it easy. Set the mood, and add things to your commitment that bring you joy. For example: a playlist, a planned outfit, a candle to light with your favorite scent, your favorite water bottle or mug to sip from.
  • Create little mementos or reminders that light your fire and inspire you to keep that commitment: Post-it notes, stickers, a little reminder on your desktop background, figurines, and maybe even a tiny pebble as a reminder.
  • Make it a game. This can be funny. Have people ask you for help, and your only job in this game is to say no. Don’t explain. Don’t cave. Just say no.

When you’re used to giving to the point of depletion, it can feel weird to do these things. They may feel silly at first but these tools have worked for me. I think it’s important to share them.

Buuut

what’s most important here is your commitments to yourself. It’s great to write them down! Yes, but it gives us even deeper fulfillment to follow through with our commitments to ourselves.

I hope we carry deep fulfillment into August!

What do you think? How you feeling about this post?

Action Over Words

“Don’t tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.” -Anton Chekhov

This month I was craving deeper fulfillment and greater emotional satisfaction. But listen up, I’m not bringing all that with me into August. I hope you don’t carry it all either.

We don’t have to talk in detail about how we’re not going to do it. Let’s just communicate through action. Let’s make this real!

What does deep fulfillment look like for you? Show me.

What does greater emotional satisfaction look like? Show me.

That’s where my focus will be and what I’ll be keeping my eye out for ways to do it in August. 🧐

Inspired Plans

We’ll be wrapping up July this week, and wow! We made it!

I spent today in the sunshine planning out my next few days. Not in detail since the stay-at-home mom life requires flexibility, but just enough to inspire me. There’s a writer who says he writes just enough to keep writing the next day. That’s how I planned out my week. I just jotted down some notes and some doodles to give me some vision. I sipped my iced coffee and poured through my books as I thought about my future projects.

I found the quote:

“I stop every day right at the point where I feel I can write more. Do that, and the next day’s work goes surprisingly smoothly.” – Haruki Murakami

Sunday Solitude

I took the day to recharge. I took a salt bath and breathed in the scents of my favorite candles. I wandered in stores where I knew I wasn’t going to buy anything and listened to my favorite music on full blast in the car. There was no planned destination. Just a day and a time. No ideas. The only commitment was to myself. And now I’m curious to see how this week turns out. I mean, now that I’m full recharged and ready to go! Where will my focus be? Reading, writing, building and creating?? I just don’t know.

Did you take intentional time to relish your creative freedom this week?

Sunday Solitude

Tomorrow is Sunday Solitude!

I cannot wait. I’m so tired from this week, and I’m ready to get some hours to myself. I got my books and my curiosities, and all the pens and notebooks I could ever need. I’m going to think and not think and sit in silence. I want to laugh, learn, and ponder the complexities of life. And take time to appreciate the simple things.

When you take intentional time to yourself, what do you hope for?

Rest is Essential for Success

I am several things and all these things want my 100% but I heard something the other day. It was, if you’re everything to everyone, you become nothing. So maybe I don’t have a completed storefront, I started one and I will continue to add to it over time. I don’t have a fully running nonprofit, but we’ve founded and maintained one (side note: that’s one of the hardest parts), I don’t have my BA but I have my Associate’s in Psych. I’m still going. I’m still here tinkering and progressing. I know you want me to finish and publish the damn book, I do too. I know you want a program tossed together and up and running, I do too. But I’m one human who lives in a world where burnout is a rite of passage. Honestly, I’m not interested in entering into anything that demands burnout for me to excel. No thank you. I’m taking my slow mornings. I’m serving my community in ways that make me and those around me feel loved, seen, and heard. And I’m prioritizing my values. This is the closest to free, I’ve ever felt.

My affirmation today (as a cap rising): I don’t need to be productive to feel worthy. Rest is productive and I’m always worthy.

What’s the latest with you?

Motherhood as a Writer

“Motherhood has a very humanizing effect. Everything gets reduced to essentials.” -Meryl Streep

I absolutely love being a mom. I like being around my kids. I enjoy helping them and guiding them toward their best lives while we all learn to navigate this life together. I also have my own dreams and goals, so I have to find a way to make some time to prioritize those. With that being said, today was a great day. I was bursting with energy, and my little one played with Play-Doh for hours. We sat outside and enjoyed the weather. Today felt like something my past self could have only dreamed of. So I took it all in.

How do you navigate motherhood and writing?

Write For Today

When I think about writing, I like to keep in mind how important the Egyptians’ hieroglyphs are to us today. I like to think that my writings will add one more perspective to our history. While it’s fun and inspiring and gives my work some razzle-dazzle, that’s not the primary reason for why I write. I mean, the world could end tomorrow.

That’s why I write for today.

I write to give myself a space where my voice can be heard. I write to learn more about myself. I write to encourage myself. I write for a million other reasons, but mostly because it’s a stabilizing force in my life.

I mean it’s always there for me: at the end of the day, lingering in the back of my mind, pushing me to think of my act of storytelling in new ways, and that’s not all. I’m sure you can think of some ways your writing is always there for you. Maybe it provides you a paycheck. Totally valid.

Why do you write?

Stories I Like

“After nourishment, shelter, and companionship, stories are the thing we need most in the world.” – Philip Pullman

I have always loved imaginative stories. They light up my life and give me so much possibility, hope, and excitement. I like stories of metamorphosis, love, and things that remind me how human I am. I like being around people like that, too.

What kind of stories do you like?