How you dress is a reflection of your personal reality

For as long as I can remember, I’ve always felt a personal conviction to leave my house “dressed up”. I would always have my make up done, my accessories on point and ready to take an outfit shot #OnceAFashionBloggerAlwaysAFashionBlogger.

But along came motherhood, a pandemic, all sorts of geo-political situations and the desire to feel put together was cast aside. I lost “my why” or at least felt it was drowned out by all the noise around me.

However a few years ago, I remember leaving the house with a baby tow and in a very unflattering outfit (think: saggy sweatpants and uggs) feeling extremely embarrassed at the thought of running into anyone, that I vowed to never do that to myself again. It wasn’t the “running into” someone that bothered me, it was “I don’t care about myself” mentality that made me realize that in fact I do care about myself (a lot!).

How you dress is a reflection of you personality. And your personality is just your personal reality. Dr Joe Dispenza’s theorizes that our thoughts, feelings and actions (including how we dress, present ourselves etc) shape our personal reality. If the action of dressing your best forms your personal reality – a strong connection could be made for dressing in a way that represents your best and highest self – whether that be aligning your personal reality to that promotion, business owner, professional athlete or just a hot mom ;)

In all honestly, it’s been a journey to find my personal style again, but it’s fun to shop my closet, save outfit ideas on Pinterest or invest in some great pieces.

Some days I love what I’m wearing, and I sometimes still leave the house in an outfit that doesn’t hit the mark – but I’m giving myself grace (as one should!)

In an attempt to keep myself motivated, sharing a few reasons why I choose to dress well in hopes that it will inspire others to rethink their own style journey.

  1. Demonstrates confidence: How we dress creates an impact on how we are perceived by others but also how we perceive ourselves. Luckily confidence can be cultivated and is usually starts with self-love and self-care. An easy way to figure to show yourself love is buy wearing things that make you feel confident. But what outfits make you feel confident?
    An outfit that fits well and feels good – is a great place to start. Next your follow your intuition as it tell you pretty quickly that an outfit will increase your confidence. You’ll have a pep in your step, you’ll stand taller, you’ll radiate a sparkle and you won’t even need to look in a mirror to confirm – you’ll just feel it
  2. Attracts positive attention: Call it what you will: “first impression”, “pretty privilege” or “divine feminine” – dressing in a way that exudes these attributes will get you some stares but it will also give you power. You will also be perceived as more competent which in turn builds trust and credibility. I know some people will say “but we shouldn’t be judge by our appearance” but unfortunately it happens – so why not use it to your advantage. People will be drawn to you, doors will be held open for you, friendly conversations and kind stranger interactions will be had. This is all to say is that you’ll be surrounded by positivity. And in today’s world – sprinkling more positivity into our day is a MUST!
  3. Encourages creative self expression: I love to be artistic – and being creative with outfits is a form of self expression just as making a painting, junk journaling or photography would be. We all have a unique identity and show casing it in how we dress allows us as individuals to express that uniqueness and experiment with our creativity.

Journal prompts for your birthday!

If you know me (or have been around my blog for a few years) you know that I love to journal and truly believe in the benefits of journaling

Journalling is a form of therapy.  It offers a mental and emotional release that you may not even know you need.  Furthermore, using journal prompts offers a quiet reflection and forces us to be honest and thoughtful.

For my birthday this year, I chose a few birthday journal prompts to get me to both intentionally reflect on the past 12 months and refocus on the year ahead.

  1. How are you celebrating your birthday (today, this weekend, later this week/month)?
  2. When you think about the last 12 months, what is 1 word that immediately comes to mind? why?
  3. What happened this year that you are so grateful for?
  4. How have you stepped out of your comfort zone this year?
  5. If you could speak to yourself 10 years from, what would you say to yourself? What would Older Self say to you?

Do you use Journal Prompts? Which journal prompts do you love to use?  

Happy Journaling!


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How to find your why + a small exercise!

You might have heard the popular sayings:

Come back to your why!

What’s your why?

Find your purpose!

I’ve been hearing it for years.  But I’ve only recently made the connection.  This is the way I see it: Passion is a day dream, but purpose is a S.M.A.R.T goal on your “life’s to-do list”.  Passion is about doing something because you have an emotional connection to it.  Purpose is direction and the reason for which something is done.  Purpose is fuelled by reasoning and usually the reasoning is the answer to a why question.

OOTD, Why Statement, Purpose over Passion, Follow your heart, Know your why, Purpose filled life, New World, Style, Creative, Big Magic, Goal Setting OOTD, Why Statement, Purpose over Passion, Follow your heart, Know your why, Purpose filled life, New World, Style, Creative, Big Magic, Goal Setting

It’s the answer to your why aka your why statement that gives you motivation to do what you do.  Your why statement will be the reminder you need to keep moving in the direction of your purpose.  For individuals your why statement is not only your purpose, it’s who you are, your cause, what you stand for or your belief.  Of course many companies and organizations identify their why statement as a way to keep employees motivated in their work.  So why shouldn’t individuals have a why statement for their lives?

Your individual why statement is evergreen.  That means it makes sense and is applicable to any part of your life, whether that’s your career, your hobbies or your life overall.  It is simple, actionable and expressed in affirmative language that resonates with you.

Employees who have identified their why statements are clear in their direction and therefore are more inspired to do the work they feel compelled to do.

OOTD, Why Statement, Purpose over Passion, Follow your heart, Know your why, Purpose filled life, New World, Style, Creative, Big Magic, Goal Setting OOTD, Why Statement, Purpose over Passion, Follow your heart, Know your why, Purpose filled life, New World, Style, Creative, Big Magic, Goal Setting OOTD, Why Statement, Purpose over Passion, Follow your heart, Know your why, Purpose filled life, New World, Style, Creative, Big Magic, Goal Setting OOTD, Why Statement, Purpose over Passion, Follow your heart, Know your why, Purpose filled life, New World, Style, Creative, Big Magic, Goal Setting OOTD, Why Statement, Purpose over Passion, Follow your heart, Know your why, Purpose filled life, New World, Style, Creative, Big Magic, Goal Setting OOTD, Why Statement, Purpose over Passion, Follow your heart, Know your why, Purpose filled life, New World, Style, Creative, Big Magic, Goal Setting

Organizations who see this as a win will support employees and employees will be more engaged at work.  I recently participated in an innovation program at work.  The experience was both challenging and awakening.

Part of that awakening was determining my why statement.  Here is an EASY exercise to find yours.

Tools: poster board, post its notes (standard size & few different colours), permanent markers, chart paper.
You don’t need any of these tools, but using actual paper products, pens and a wall helps your body and brain align and really get into this activity.

Step 1: Think about your life and brainstorm 5-10 times you felt most successful and then felt most challenged.  Once you have these memories are listed (on your post it notes, piece of paper or word doc), review everything and try to notice any patterns.  You may start to see some themes pop up like “team work”, “technology”, “lack of control” or “creativity” – the number of themes doesn’t but finding the themes does.

Step 2: Based on your themes, take note of your motivators.  This will help you understand what your contribution to others lives will be and the value of those contributions

Step 3: Write your why statement with this format “To ____, so that _____”.  The first blank is your contribution and the second blank is the impact of that contribution.  This should come easily but also may be an iterative process (ie: write down your statement, then tweak it a bit, write it out again, change a little something and write it again – continue this process until you have something you feel good about).

Step 4: Share your why statement.  Share it with your partner, your kids, your friends, your co-workers.  Share it on twitter, on blogs, on IG and in whatsapp/teams/webex chats!  It will be easy to share your why statement because it’s all you so there will be a level of pride and excitement.

And in the spirit of sharing, this is my why statement:

To create and lead an agile team, so that we build transformative solutions, achieve goals and inspire people.

Also it’s okay if you aren’t ready to share it or if you feel like the wording is a little off.  Keep at it, you’ll get it to where it needs to be and be thrilled to share it with the world!

 

Happy New Decade!

Happy New Year/Decade everyone! Thanks for stopping by and reading my blog, thoughts and motivations over the years (or even just today!).  I definitely plan to continue creating content that resonates with me and you in hopes of helping those who choose to be here take the positivity and inspiration with them into own their lives!

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I figured I’d pop on here and quickly post about my New Year Resolutions :)

I’ve always been a big believer in goal setting.  I love sharing what I’ve learned about goals, motivation and productivity over on my Instagram and Twitter and here on the blog as well (check this and this)!

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So for this year I am looking into developing a better skin care regimen.  I drink a lot of water and eat my greens but I think I need to pay more attention to vitamins and the products I am using on my skin.  Of course continuing my wellness journey is top of mind as well.  I got a pull up bar for Christmas and I’ve already started a new workout program.  Wellness also includes my mind / soul and making time for meditation and yoga is key for me this year.  Also looking to increase knowledge and really explore and share my purpose. Lastly, I want to be a leader and not hide behind my fears.

More Selfcare | Less Careless
More Purpose | Less Panic
More Leading | Less Hiding
More Knowledge | Less Scrolling
I saw this great blogger do #LessIsMoreGoals and I thought it was an innovative take on New Years Resolutions

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Shoes | Leggings | Hoodie | Coat | Sunglasses

Do you set New Year’s Resolutions?


More Like this? Check out my resoutions post from last year