This is a guest post by Naomi, from the blog Seven Cherubs.
One thing I have seen over my time as a mother is that women and mothers tend to place themselves last on the list when it comes to kindness. It is just what we do. There are so many demands for our time and attention that we devote our time to helping others instead of helping ourselves. This is a lovely, natural trait that as women we generally have. It is of value and important. But, what we tend to forget is that we need some kindness in our lives as well.
Being organised in our homes, allows us to have more free time to be kinder to ourselves. So often as women we try to do it all, be it all and have it all. We work so hard at getting everything just right in our lives that we push ourselves so hard that we end up falling in a heap. Being organised is very different from having everything perfect. Â In my home someone will always be messy, someone will always be grumpy and someone will always mess up the state of my house. There is never a moment when there is total order, my home is constantly changing and is there to be lived in. With seven children the closest we might get is when they are all asleep. Even then it would be pushing it!
When we let go of our own high expectations and the unrealistic expectations of others, we can find more time to do things for ourselves and increase our own personal happiness. Life with lower expectations can actually be more fun and so much more freeing. We can then start to live each day with less pressure upon ourselves and start to plan in activities that we actually want to do for ourselves.
Here are some of my tips for being a little kinder to yourself:
1. Give yourself permission to take some time out for yourself
2. Talk to your family to get their support
3. Plan a regular time out spot each week
4. Start small with regular, short time out moments
5. Do not compare yourself to others
6. Listen to your heart and trust your instincts
7. Write a list of activities you enjoy doing
8. Ask your friends what they enjoy doing
9. Dump the guilt and rest or sleep if you need to
10. Keep making yourself a priority and have fun!
To help you focus more on being kinder to yourself I have written an ebook, Pockets of Happiness where I share some of my secrets I use to feel a little happier during my day. I know that it can be hard to find time for yourself when you are super busy chasing after the kids, keeping up with housework and running a household. Planning time for you then becomes a challenge and in my ebook I have pages for you to fill in and ideas to help get your started on finding your own happiness.
About Guest
Naomi is a blogger, writer, chocolate lover, kitchen dancer, jewellery addict, happiness seeker, motherhood advocate and mother to seven cherubs. She blogs at www.sevencherubs.com and recently wrote her first ebook, Pockets of Happiness. You can also connect with her on facebook and twitter.
This post was written by a guest contributor. If you are interested in ‘being my guest’ please visit Be my Guest page for more details.