When you feel good, you bring your A-game

You can think about 2:32am as either the middle of the night or very early in the morning. Even if a sliver of the moon is still out, since I’m a morning person, well, good morning!

I just spent two full days with 30 amazing women (and another 10 inspiring speakers) in a leadership program where each participant was tasked with coming up with a project. It could be professional or personal or both. Maybe something you've been noodling around or has just been on the shelf for too long and it needs to get done. Yesterday, each woman had one minute to share with the group the why and what of her chosen project and give either a current status or what she expected to happen in the next few months.

Earlier in the day, one of the speakers went around the room and asked each woman what she’d like to change. It was rather an open-ended question and the result was astounding. As each person spoke, I was so inspired that I wrote each idea down.

In a room full of changemakers, a few themes emerged. These came up after one of the participants came up and said, "We should start some small groups and work to address these issues." So brilliant!

• Early childhood education and raising respectful kids
• Community building
• Changing social/economic status (like living wages for caregivers and support of those struggling)
• Empowering minds/empowering others

The speaker, Ann McKay Thompson, then threw out the idea, “Hey, you should write a book on how to make change," Ann added, “You know, you could do that.”

You know, you could do that. You know, I could do that. Really what is stopping any of us from doing that? What is stopping us from doing ANYTHING?

These were the thoughts that really resonated with me and I think, the reason I am up this morning before the sun even thinks of rising.

I do think big but sometimes, I think so big that I don’t know where to start. And when you don’t know where to start, you often just don’t. Well, that’s not completely true. I have started a million things. My issue is actually finishing them. I’d like to change that. I am going to change that.

When I turned 51 in June, I wrote the following post on Facebook.

When I reread what I wrote about focusing on a “Second Spring Self-Care” plan, it hits me that yes, when I feel good, I bring my A-game. While I am the director of the organization who put on the leadership program, I can still have a project. In fact, Ann said, "You should all have a project". So okay, this is it.

You see, when I bring my A-game, I bring my best ideas and insight to my day. And when I bring my best ideas and insight to my day, I help more people feel good about themselves and encouraged. And when more people feel good and encouraged, they, in turn, do good work and are kind to others.

And when more people create good work and kind to others, there is more prosperity and peace in our community. When there is more prosperity and peace in our community, people start to think bigger and care more for issues impacting things outside of just their life.

And when people think bigger and care for issues impacting more than just their own life, they create and lead a community of changemakers. And when there is a community of changemakers, well, that’s when real change happens. And there is a lot of big issues that need a changing.  It’s like when you give a mouse a cookie but the result is more kindness, compassion, respect and real support of our fellow humans.

But it all goes back to something Leah Braun wrote on the white board yesterday:

Think big but start small.

So that’s what I am going to do.

Think big (yay world peace) and start small (start with step 1 – “when I feel good, I bring my A game”). I think that’s what my post 51 birthday post idea is about – that “Second Spring Self-Care” plan or S3C.

When I think of moving past 50, I definitely do not think of myself as old in any way (but if you stand close to me, you might hear my right shoulder click loudly!).

It’s not an age thing, it’s more of an attitude.

When you Google “second spring”, you’ll find some info on menopause and while that will be part of my near future, that’s not what I am talking about either.  When I hear the word spring, I think of renewal, refresh, regenerate, new flowers, green grass and the warmth of a sunny day. Spring is when everything shouts, “Yay, check me out! I’m alive!” And while I think we should shout this every morning (yay, I ‘m alive!), spring is about a time of transformative growth which I think is a better definition of “second spring”.

I’m coming to realize the importance of self-care. Now, I am not saying that you shouldn’t care about other people, drop all responsibilities, stop paying your bills and no longer volunteer in your community. Of course not. We have a lot of things we still have to do. It’s just that to actually bring your A-game, you have to feel good ... so it starts with taking care of yourself and figuring out what "feeling good" actually means. It’s just that it doesn’t stop there. That is just the beginning. You then have to take action and, well, work it. What's the end game? Where is the finish line? Hmmm ... considering this is a more of a long game project, the finish line is at the end of this life. 

My S3C (!) plan is all about CREATING more days and situations where I can bring my A-game. For me, doing so takes rest, exercise, fresh air, space for creativity, supportive people, peace and financial well-being.

So, I’m unpacking my initial ideas on what this “plan” looks like and where it might take me. My hope is that I do feel great every day. And on those days, when I don’t feel great, I acknowledge the issue, the “why”, reflect and retool.

While this really is a personal plan, I'm going to ponder whether there is a bigger opportunity of a "Second Spring Self-Care" tribe out there that might want to come along.

Let’s get started!