My Guide to Positivity

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I hold a healthy state of mine at the very top of my priorities in life – along side spending time with my family. A healthy state of mind to me is the be all and end all, if my mental state isn’t at its best then I will not be as good a wife, sister or daughter. I will not be able to be productive, and when you work for yourself if you lack productivity then you lack income pretty quickly.

I started thinking about positivity and how to keep your mind healthy last week whilst I wasn’t having a great week, I just felt like a lot of things were happening all at once and to top it off I was run down with a cold that I’d had for two weeks that felt more like a flu when I woke up in the mornings and I was incredibly emotional; I felt sensitive to everything and distracted. However, despite everything going on and despite the fact that I was breaking down in tears daily I felt internally happy and positive, if I hadn’t had my healthy state of mind then that not so great week would have turned into an absolutely terrible week pretty quickly. It’s actually pretty funny that I’m choosing to write this post now as this article here has just come out and it echoes a lot of my thoughts and sentiments.

I used to be quite a lazy person, I hated going to the gym, loved eating a Chinese takeaway instead of physically shopping/preparing a healthy meal and I didn’t mine if my floordrobe stayed there until someone else dealt with it, then around a year and a half ago I started to change little aspects of my life. Firstly I drastically altered my diet and gave up gluten and sugar (on top of dairy) which completely changed my energy levels (as well as calmed my turbulent IBS and acne issues), I then started to become allergic to levels of clutter – I hated any mess. Where I would once hoard product packaging if it was aesthetically pleasing, I now have to physically stop myself from throwing away perfectly good items because I can’t handle the clutter. De cluttering my life helped massively with my general happiness and it’s funny that I’ve only truly realised that at the age of 26 as when I was 10 my headmistress would continually berate me for my messy desk and say that “a messy desk is a messy mind, you won’t be able to learn”. My third and final change was exercise, I started not just resigning myself to exercise but thriving on it.

Exercise for me has become more and more important and it has nothing to do with wanting abs or to lose weight and everything to do with the mental clarification and wellbeing it gives me whilst I take the time for myself to forget about any and every issue and not even think about the emails which pile up daily or any invoices that I have to chase – it’s total escapism and I have become addicted to switching off and focussing on my body.

Last week through my “meh” week I made a point of jumping out of bed the second I woke up and making my bed immediately, making your bed first thing in the morning means that the very first thing you do in the morning is a productive activity and it sets the brain off on the right path. I then shower immediately and do all my skincare before starting any emails or work. I’ve noticed that if I feel fresh and ready then I am able to tackle the mountain in my gmail inbox with a clearer mind. Spending quality time with my family is also at the top of my list for staying positive, when I prioritise seeing my parents and siblings or having a quiet dinner at home with my husband instead of going to yet another product launch or event I feel more relaxed and am able to reset my mind a little.

If you are in a dark place and feel like positivity is a million miles away – do not worry – I’ve been there, even when my life seemingly had no problems at all, in some ways that’s even worse as you know there’s something wrong with you – your light will come back and your happiness will return. Start off with the little things like going to bed early and making your bed every morning even though you want to wallow in it and then move on to exercising a little more or maybe even walking more, eating healthier (or simply cutting down on sugar and alcohol), cut out things that cause you pain – whether that be a friend who always drains you or for me some internet sites that I’ve had to physically ban myself from in order not to dwell and obsess and then focus on things that bring you joy – for me this outfit I wore brought me so much happiness, I dressed like a life size macaroon and went to the Dali exhibit at the Royal Academy and felt immensely happy, and then you can regain your positive frame of mind little by little. I’d love to hear your thoughts on maintaining a positive frame of mind!

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Comments

  1. Jessica
    November 21, 2017 / 4:59 pm

    great post! and you look beautiful in the picture

  2. Lisa Autumn
    November 21, 2017 / 5:33 pm

    Ah I love these kind of personal and motivating posts Tijan.. well done!

    xx Lisa | lisaautumn.com

  3. November 24, 2017 / 1:24 pm

    I really enjoyed this post Tijan! Spending time with my family and friends is also essential for me. X

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