Radical self-respect in my life means:
- Putting my health (physical, social, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual) first. I can only serve if I have something to give.
- Setting a work schedule based on a realistic assessment of what my body can handle. I'm no longer teaching voice lessons on weekends and I'm done with lessons at 5PM on weekdays so that I have the time and energy to do things that bring happiness to my life.
- Not feeling guilty about needing time to rest and re-charge. (Still working on this one.)
- Speaking my truth and living with integrity. I used to be a different person depending on which group of people I was with. Now my conservative friends know my liberal side, and my liberal friends know my conservative side, and the beautiful thing is, because they are really my friends, we can disagree and it's OK.
- Loving my body for what it can do, and not getting so frustrated about what I wish it was and could do instead.
- Saying no when I know it just isn't going to work at this point in my life. Plus, I'm giving up feeling like I have to justify my choices to other people.
- Challenging myself to grow and improve, but at the same time, knowing that sometimes "barely sufficient" or "good enough for who it's for" is OK.
- I don't have to do everything, and I don't have to do everything perfectly. When I was growing up, I was smart and I was musical, and I took pride in those things and in being the very best. But, not being the very best scared me. Anything that required physical coordination meant that I wasn't the best. Gym class was the most stressful class of the day because I didn't want that thing I was horrible at to ruin my GPA. I hated it because I wasn't the best at it. Now, I'm a tai chi instructor and I'm working with a personal trainer and I can't tell you how much I love these physical things. And it's because it's all about how they make me feel, not about being perfect, or achieving a goal set by someone else.
- Knowing that what I look like, what I do, and what others think of me does not in any way change my value. I am a person of divine origin with unlimited potential and I bring something beautiful to the world.
What does radical self-respect mean to you?
Love it! Amen and amen! I too, am trying to incorporate those guidelines into my life. Being a grown-up is hard! :-) Thanks for your blog! Well done!
ReplyDeleteI love this Jeannine! I find that allowing myself to be flawed and imperfect is deeply difficult for my ego to handle, but incredibly liberating. Thank you for sharing.
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