Just doing it

January 2011: In the name of New Year's Resolutions and being inspired, I had the idea to start this blog about wellness. So I did. And by started, I mean I set up the title, the design, the colours... fantastic! I then spent the next seven months intermittently hemming and hawing about what to write. Ah, the pressure of the first post. Should I start with a quote that would inconspicuously touch the life of my current followers (all one of them)? Or perhaps a recipe that would cleanse, energise AND nutrify you, all in one bowl of colourfully arranged vegetables? Better yet, perhaps a little personal anecdote about how hanging out in downward dog one morning suddenly brought me to self-realisation in a very Eat, Pray, Love-esque fashion (yes, the obvious connundrum here was that this certainly hasn't happened ever... yet...).

Then today I woke up and had an actual mini-moment of very logical realisation. My favourite piece of advice to give to others is 'just do it'. If you want to start eating more healthily, then just start. If you want to change your career, then figure out what you need to succeed at that idea, save your money, take your courses, and make the change. It is not that I religiously follow the teachings of primetime Nike commercials, or like to portray an attitude of flippant lack of care towards my friends by spouting off a cliched 3-word catch-phrase. I just believe that if you want to do something badly enough that you feel the need to talk about it, think about it and, sometimes, whine about it... then just get started, and do it.

Therefore, taking heed of the trickle of hypocrisy I was allowing to creep into my life, I just did it. Started it off. It may not be great, or even good, but it is here. The first post. And for some unknown reason, because this has been weighing on my shoulders for so long now, I feel like my creativity with this can now begin. All those tidbits of information I've been packing away in my wellness file, to later be doled out in an intelligent, motivating fashion through these pages, are now leaping up and down, excited to now have a chance to get out and be seen.

Before I get to those, however, I just want to go back to the idea of 'just do it'. You may say, 'but I can't! I don't have the < insert money/knowledge/time/connections reference here >!'. But this is where trust comes in. You need to trust that you actually do have the innate ability to gain access to those things - you have a brain, you have a heart, you have willpower, and yes, you have the courage. Take a little time, talk to someone you trust, weigh your options, then start. With baby steps. 'Just doing it' does not mean leaping into it, head-first, with no prior thought or consideration of consequences. Perhaps you even need to spend a month, or a year, reflecting or meditating on your decision. But, ultimately, it does mean taking action. And perhaps your plan does not go perfectly at first, but that is part of the beauty of this concept - the learning. Trust yourself, take a (well-planned) leap, and figure out what worked and what didn't. It's active self-improvement.

Some time this week, try it, even if it is for something small - tune in to your instincts and goals, and take that first step towards them. Talk to the potential romantic interest you see every day while buying your morning coffee. Open a savings account to collect funds for that Europe vacation you have always wanted to take. Spend five minutes researching your dream job, and make a list of the steps you will take to get it.

Make it happen for yourself. You deserve it.

Wishing you wellness,

N.