Gift yourself 15 minutes

Here in the Netherlands and a lot of other countries the lockdown has been extended for a couple more weeks. A new virus mutation. The political situation is unstable in many places (America, here in the Netherlands the government resigned last week). So there is a lot of unrest, lots of restrictions that make every day life difficult.

In these uncertain and difficult times, creating small pockets of me time is even more crucial for your wellbeing!

Energy and joy
Depending on your personal situation those pockets of me time might look very different. But whether you live alone or have a family with small children, creating little pockets of me time in your day will help you find more energy and joy in these difficult times.

Myth
We often deny ourselves this gift, because we think we need something bigger, more substantial than can be done in 15 minutes. We feel we need at least I need at least an hour or a couple of hours each day to do this big thing to feel better. But this is a myth. A myth that keeps us from actually doing things that will fill our cup.

Big actions become the actions we never take
We don’t have to fill our cup with big actions that take a lot of time. A small drop everyday will fill your cup as well! Small drops fill your cup even better than trying to fill your cup with big actions. Because those big actions are too difficult or they just don’t fit your busy schedule. Those big actions become the actions we never take.

Don’t dismiss the power of 15 minutes of me-time
Finding a small pocket of 15 minutes in a day is much more doable. Gifting yourself 15 minutes each day for a week, will fill your cup slowly and steadily! Don’t dismiss the power of what a short gift of me-time can do for you!

Last week I gifted myself 15 minutes of reading a novel, each day. For me this is really relaxing. It transports me to another world, it feeds my imagination. This felt really loving and nurturing for myself. By gifting myself this every day, I felt less overwhelmed by all that had to be done during the day, the days felt less like just a long list of to do’s to get through. It brought more joy to my day! It lifted my spirits and my energy. I felt more present and patient with my husband and children. My whole day felt more relaxed when I looked back on the day at night. So this 15 minute gift for myself had a huge effect, and not only on myself!

Experiment
Don’t take my word for it. Experiment with it this week and see for yourself what it does for you!
🌱 What is something small you can do in 15 minutes that feels nurturing and loving for your body, mind or emotions?
No chores, no to do’s. Just something you long to do, that feels like a gift.

Increase it’s power by consciously marking the beginning and the end 
How to do this?
1. Start by acknowledging in your head: these 15 minutes are really for me! A gift to myself.
2. Do this loving and nurturing thing for yourself for 15 minutes
3. End: before you rush to do other things: Just take a few seconds and say to yourself in your head something like: I am glad/grateful I did this for me. I enjoyed this.

Some ideas 
If you live alone pockets of me time might be about nurturing connections in your life. Maybe it is sending voice messages to some friends. Maybe it is writing an old fashioned postcard to friends. Maybe it is having a friendly chat with a neighbour.

If you are at home with small kids you might need to make some arrangement first.
Maybe it is first gifting your kids 20 minutes of extra screen time, so you can take these 15 minutes for yourself (no chores!)

If you have a partner- gift each other 15 minutes each day. Ask your partner to take care of the kids while you have your 15 minutes (it might mean leaving the house and finding a quiet bench somewhere to have some alone time) and gift your partner 15 minutes in the day as well. Mutually gifting each other 15 minutes also nurtures your connection to each other and allows you to have just 15 minutes of me time!

🌱 Drop by drop the cup gets filled. Will you gift yourself 15 minutes today?