90 Days to More Joy: Day Seven

DAY SEVEN:

Hello and welcome back!

We will spend the next six days visiting and revisiting the qualities that you have identified for which you admire most in others.

Today:

*Write the qualities down on an index card or post-it note and keep them closely with you - on your computer, on your mirror, in your wallet or purse...

Make sure that wherever you place them, you can clearly see them often, throughout the day.

**Consider when in your life you have had the opportunity to really let these qualities 'shine' in your life? Have you ever allowed them to shine at all? Remember to write your insights and thoughts in your journal.

We will go back to your journal often during this 90 day journey.

Again, remember.... these qualities are within you - the reason why you are most drawn to them in others is because you are recognizing yourself in them - it is akin to remembering a long, lost friend.

***Look at yourself in the mirror today and say aloud one thing that you like/love about yourself. Be sure to do this in earnest - with purpose.

See you again tomorrow!

... thank you.

90 Days to More Joy: Day Six

DAY SIX:

Welcome back!

Today, we are going to start a week-long process of really, really being with, sitting with, contemplating, and beginning to actually experience the qualities that we identified last week as being most important to us - to you.

This is very crucial work - what you value is actually your guiding compass in life - at least it can be, of we allow ourselves to become fully aware of our values.

Having an intimate understanding of our values can bring great fulfillment in life - it makes choices far easier and joy more available.

So, we don't want to rush through this vital part of our journey together, as all of the other work that comes after will be building upon it.

*Review the qualities that you most value in others
**Review how 'alive' you find these qualities to be within you right now
***Take time to see how these values are 'alive' in others - when you think of these qualities being very prevalent in other people, how do they show up? Really, deeply imagine how these qualities play out in scenarios...

****We will do this every day for our 90 days together. Say aloud to yourself in the mirror something that you like/love about yourself. 

See you back here tomorrow :-)

90 Days to More Joy: DAY FIVE

DAY FIVE

Today, we are going to spend some more time on the qualities that you most admire. 

*Rank the qualities that you identified yesterday - the ones that you most admire in others and ranked in yourself - based on how important they are to you. Again, use the ranking of 1-10 (1 being the lowest and 10 the highest).

For example:

Say that you have identified the following, as qualities for which you hold the most admiration based on the past few days of exercises: admire courage, integrity, assertiveness, ingenuity, cleverness, and commitment to health.

Regardless of how you ranked them yesterday in terms of how 'alive' each quality is in you today, rate them for how important they are to you. Essentially, how much you value them.

Courage: 8
Integrity: 10
Assertiveness: 10
Ingenuity: 5
Cleverness: 5
Commitment to Health: 4

**Next, on a clean sheet of paper, list them in order of importance.

Based on the example above:

Qualities I Value in Order of Importance to Me
Integrity
Assertiveness
Courage
Ingenuity
Cleverness
Commitment to health

***Just notice what you have learned about yourself - about what you value most in terms of qualities.

****As each day before, say aloud to yourself in the mirror one quality that you most like/love about yourself.

Thank you and see you back here tomorrow!

90 Days to More Joy: DAY FOUR

DAY FOUR:

Welcome back!

Today, let's go a little deeper around the concept of who you most admire - the work that you did yesterday.

Again, the people that you admire are reflections of who you truly are at your core. You may not even be aware of this fact. And/or, you may think that I am crazy to suggest it because it seems too impossible for you to believe.

I ask that you suspend any disbelief that you may be having and go with me on this...

*Begin to think if there is anyone in your 'real life' that you know whom you admire - today, go beyond a movie or book, etc.

Pay close attention to their qualities that are most impressive to you. Write them down. 

Before moving on to the next exercise, make sure that you have at least two characters/individuals (combing yesterday's and today's).

**Now, look for themes. What do you they have in common? What qualities are the same or similar? Write these themes down.

***Next, on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the highest), for each quality rank how much you feel that this quality is 'alive' in you?

If the number is high, great! If it is not, no worries whatsoever. This is just a time to 'notice' and 'not fix'. All is OK.  And we will come back to this ranking later.

****Just as in the three previous days, look in the mirror today and say aloud to yourself what it is that you like/love about yourself in the moment. If there is nothing new that shows up, no worries, go with what you have noted before.

Thank you and see you tomorrow!

90 Days to More Joy: DAY THREE

DAY THREE:

Today, we are going to shift away from childhood pleasures for a moment and look in another direction...

*What character(s) do you most admire in in a movie, a book, a play... Think of at least one character and consider what it is that you like most about them... and why. 

Write about this (these) characters in your journal and the qualities that you admire in them.

**Now, take a moment and consider if you have any of these qualities yourself? Really give this some thought. How may you and the character(s) be like one another... 

Whether you realize this or not, you have within you the very qualities that you most admire in others. What we are most drawn to in a positive way is simply a reflection of who we are at our core.

***Look in the mirror today and say aloud to yourself what it is that you like/love about yourself in the moment. This time, try to identify a new quality - give yourself time.

Thank  you for joining this journey - you are on your way to more joy!

See you tomorrow!

90 Days to More Joy: DAY ONE

90 Days to More Joy:  DAY ONE

Day One:
***Think back to your childhood... What did you most love to do as a child - the things that gave you the greatest amount of joy and pleasure?  No pressure. Just relax and see what comes to mind.

Draw and/or write your responses.

***Look at yourself in the mirror and say aloud one thing that you like about yourself - it can be a personality quality or a physical quality.

For example: "I like that I am kind." "I like that I am protective of others." "I like the color of my eyes." "I like that I am trying to like myself better."

You must find one thing that you like - if this is hard, do not judge yourself. It is very difficult for many. Take your time.

You are one step closer to feeling better about yourself, about your life. Be patient. We have only just taken out the chisel and begun to gently chip away at the stone to reveal your own unique greatness!

Thank you for joining us and see you again tomorrow!

90 Days to More Joy: DAY TWO

Discover the Greatness Within: 90 Days to More Joy!

DAY TWO:

Today...

*Take a few moments to consider your childhood  joys again... Review them... Do you see a theme at all? Did anything else come up for you? Try and put a focus on how you felt when you were enjoying your childhood pleasures... Ask "How did playing that game, being with that person, etc., make me feel?"

Write each of these feelings down...

As you go through this journey, try and be hyper-aware of any thoughts, revelations, that you may have each day around the work.

**On a scale of 1-10 how often do you experience the same feelings today, as an adult, that you felt when doing things you loved as a child? Mark the score down in your journal.

Do not try and 'fix anything' just yet and figure out how to increase this score ... We will get to that later. For now, just be with what you are noticing. That is enough.

***Just as you did yesterday, look at yourself in the mirror and say aloud something that you like/love about yourself... It is alright if it is the same quality as the one your chose yesterday.

Thanks for sharing this journey with us... See you again tomorrow :-)