Monday, 10/28/19: Talking fall weather, a first date story and the best facial oil
Happy Monday!
Welcome to the first-ever edition of my Monday motivation e-newsletter. I am so glad you are here. If you are interested, you can read more here about why I started this e-newsletter and what you can expect from it every week. Now, without further ado, let’s dive in and get our Monday started!
Three Tactical Steps to a Happier Monday
Take a moment to jot down answers to these three questions.
- What are three things I appreciated from the weekend?
- What is one thing I am excited about today?
- What is my intention for this week?
It feels SO good to sit down and get some thoughts out on paper or in the Notes app on your phone. There is power with starting our weeks with gratitude and simple intention setting. For an example, I’ll share my answers…
GRATITUDE: I am thankful for FaceTime because I was able to FaceTime my friend who moved away and it felt SO good to catch up while being able to actually see her face. Almost like we were together in person! I am thankful for the beautiful fall weather Chicago had yesterday (lots of walks outside – my favorite!) and I am thankful that I had all the ingredients in my pantry to make these delicious cookies on a whim (pro tip, I only baked two and froze the rest of the dough so I wouldn’t eat all the cookies in one sitting).
TODAY: I am most excited about sending this newsletter today for the first time!!
INTENTION: My intention for this week is owning “Being Megan.” You’ll read more about this below, but I have a couple of get-togethers with friends this week and I really want to own showcasing my real self (so much easier said than done!). Stay tuned for next week’s newsletter to see how it went.
Okay, your turn! And if you want to share your three steps, I am all ears. 🙂
Lesson of the Week: Don’t Just Smile and Nod.
Last week I went on a date. It was admittedly my first date in a while so I was pretty nervous. I think of myself as a confident person, so I was really surprised when I found myself having negative self talk about not knowing more about things I perceived would contribute to some “cool girl” persona I was trying to put out there.
For example, when asked what movies or TV shows I was watching, I felt a tinge of insecurity because I didn’t have a “good” answer. The truth is I love my fair share of Bravo reality TV shows, but I have recently found myself more likely to listen to a podcast while I do a task around my apartment or read (see below for a tip on this!) or work on creating this newsletter. These are all MORE THAN OKAY answers, and now in a reflection mode, I see these answers are actually more interesting than mentioning just another TV show.
However, what I decided to do in the moment was fake it, smile and nod. He was asking me about a list of TV shows and I got tired of saying “oh, I haven’t seen that one” so when he mentioned a show that I had at least heard of, I nodded, smiled and replied with a “oh, of course! Love that show.” I felt cool for a second…until the next question.
“I know right! Who’s your favorite character?”
Cringe. I had to confess that while I had seen the show and, quote, unquote, “loved” it, I didn’t actually pay close enough attention to know the characters name. Infinitely more awkward than just speaking truth from the beginning!
I reflected on this after the date had ended and felt thankful for the interaction. I made a promise to myself that, even when uncomfortable, I didn’t want to be the “smile and nod girl.” I want to own what’s unique about me and share it with others in the hopes they do the same with me.
I feel it’s important to caveat that honoring who I am doesn’t mean being rude. When he wanted to talk about movies or TV shows, it doesn’t mean I should demand we change the subject to something that is catered to my interests. But how much better would it have been if I had instead said, “you know, I haven’t seen any TV shows or movies that I liked that much recently. Do you have any suggestions?” And then, at another point in the conversation, ask him if he listened to podcasts or whatever topic I felt like I could contribute interesting information. SO MUCH BETTER!
Just something to think about as we start our Mondays and set the intention for the week. I have a few different get-togethers this week and I am really excited to put my intention of “Being Megan” to use. We will see how it goes 🙂
Do you have a lesson from last week? I would love to hear about it!
On My Radar
Sometimes we just aren’t ready to jump into our Monday to-do list right away. In case you need content for some procrastination but don’t want to scroll Instagram again or the turbulent news cycle, here is a roundup of five positive things on my radar:
- This interview with Gabby Bernstein about her book, Super Attractor. I had the idea for this newsletter while listening to Super Attractor. She was talking about doing things from a place of service for others and inspiration and all the sudden, I had such a clear vision for this crazy idea of a motivational Monday morning newsletter. I recommend starting with this podcast interview (it’s only 19 minutes!) about her book Universe Has Your Back.
- The Modern Love podcast. I spent a lot of my weekend watching the Modern Love series on Amazon Prime (hey, now I have a popular TV show to talk about!!). I laughed, I cried and absolutely fell in love with the stories. The show is based on the New York Times’ column, which is also a podcast! Additionally, the episodes are read by famous people (like Ben Platt, Kristen Bell and Ellie Kemper)! So excited to add this podcast into my rotation.
- This facial cleansing oil. I bought this cleansing oil when it was on sale at Whole Foods and really enjoyed the ritual of using oil to take off my makeup. However, I really fell in love with the product when three different people (two who don’t see me often and on who sees me every day) told me they noticed something different about my skin and how it looked great. I had not changed anything else in my routine except for using the oil to take off my makeup and then washing my face with my regular cleanser. I’m sold!
- Last 90 Days Challenge. I’ve been following Rachel Hollis for years (starting back when she was a lifestyle and food blogger). I love the annual “Last 90 Days” challenge aimed at making the last three months of the year just as intentional as the first couple months of the year. I’ve been doing the “Five to Thrive” items every day since October 1 and am feeling great. It is definitely not too late to join in and I recommend listening to Rachel’s podcast about the challenge if you are interested. Friday is the mark of the last two months in the DECADE and I am here for it to finish out 2019 strong!
- Renting e-books through the public library. Did you know you can rent e-books and audiobooks with a public library card? It’s so simple! I signed up for a library card online and then downloaded the Overdrive app and immediately had access to so many books for my Kindle! I am currently reading The Royal We and Gretchen Rubin’s Better than Before (anyone else prefer to read multiple books at one time..?). I’ll report back on both after I finish!
That’s all for today! I hope you found something in today’s newsletter that sparked motivation, made you smile or inspired a positive Monday thought. Don’t underestimate the power of starting small… a fulfilling week starts with just one fulfilling day. You’ve got this!
Let’s make it a great Monday!
Megan
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