Five Ways to Get Inspired During Lockdown

This time last year I was on my way to a three day retreat in Cuba with other female entrepreneurs.  It was a fabulous trip and really gave me the rest I needed and inspiration to come back and get excited for the year ahead.

How many of you are feeling like a change of scenery could really help with a fresh start to the new year?  I feel your pain.

We are in lock down and it’s difficult to get that fresh start feeling that a trip to the sunny south would provide.

So the question is, what else can we do to get our endorphins revved up this year and make it through a long winter?

Here are some ideas I came up with:

1)      If you can do it, get yourself a rescue dog or cat.  They need a loving home and you need the unconditional love, it’s the perfect match.  I never thought I would want a dog, Wayne talked me into it 8 years ago and rescuing our little Miss Boink has been such a gift.  As Wayne always says, “She found us.”   The nice thing about rescues is, they end up being the ones who rescue you.

2)      Advocate for something.  A cause you believe in, a friend who is unwell, resources for the community.  Raise some money by calling on your network of friends, colleagues and family members.  Our most vulnerable need help now more than ever and people want to hop on board and support initiatives with a special meaning.  (I just happen to know of a really great jewelry company who can help you with this, nudge, nudge, wink, wink.)

3)      Purge!  I mean everything.  Throw out all of that paperwork you no longer need, empty your inbox on your desk and on your laptop.  Shred, donate, if you no longer need it, take it to the curb!  Give yourself the gift of space.  At home right now we are tossing one thing a day for 30 days.

4)      Create a spot in your home that is just for you and no one else.  Make it your happy place.  If you can include a craft table, somewhere you can start a new project.  It could be organizing family photos and putting them into an album, it could be a place to journal, a place to try painting, maybe just a game of solitaire.  It’s important that when we do spend time alone we use it as an opportunity to nourish our souls with playful activities.

5)      Change the habits with family members in your house.  This can be done in baby steps.  I would recommend you first write a list of all the ways you would like to spend time with your family that is new and different.  It could be Mondays are board game night, Tuesdays are the kids cooking night, Wednesday cards, Thursday a movie that takes place in a different country, Friday a fun meal like fondue or fajitas combined with a family memory game (you could put all of the special things you have shared as a family into a jar and then someone picks one  and has to share their favourite memory about it.) Saturday, a family walk where everyone picks a colour and has to take photos of anything they see in the colour they chose and then create a collage, (thank you to my friend Nancy McMillan for this brilliant idea) Sunday, each person in the household takes a turn sharing how they would like to spend time together. 

On Saturday, to celebrate 24 years since our first date, Wayne and I had a lovely steak dinner and then played scrabble instead of rushing to the couch to Netflix binge after dinner.  It was so much fun, also because I won!  Ha ha!

These are the five things I am doing to try and switch things up and get inspired.  It might not be a trip to a sunny location but I always have my Yacht Rock Radio on in the background, I wear my brightest, happiest clothes most days and I have nothing against making myself a Pina Colada while the scrabble board is out.

Have fun with it and change your body lotion to something with coconut in it. What the heck, just moisturize with Coppertone!

Monica XO

PS – Add a little sparkle to your winter while helping an inner city kid in Hamilton get creative.  Check out our glamjulz sparkle project by clicking HERE!