september is here: are you ready?

September often comes with a burst of new energy and busyness, kicking us into high gear, with a tinge of anxiety and a dab of discomfort.

I wonder, could it be an easier transition if we took the time to be grateful for the gifts of the summer? The quiet days, the warmth of the sun, the memories of vacation, the balmy outdoor dinners that stretch into the night…

When I was a child, the summers seems to stretch out for yeeearrrsss.

The anticipation of a new school year, and being reunited with friends you didn’t see over the summer months seemed miles away, and even as the days approached, it was always more excitement than it was anxiety.

When does that change?

Most people I have talked to over the past few days are busy preparing their kids (and themselves) for back to school. A challenging time for any new parent, or old parent, I can imagine. For the rest of us, the “start of a new school year” seems ingrained in us. It is the reimagining of a new start, new beginnings, new opportunities and certainly with that, new challenges.

Did you know that the feeling of anxiety is physiologically almost the same as the feeling of excitement.

It is all in the way you think about it.
You control how what you think about.
You control how you feel.
You control your reaction to things.

Here are 3 ways that may help you ease into September:

#1:  Re-label anxiety as excitement.

In a 2014 study, Harvard professor Alison Wood Brooks looked at different ways to cope with pre-performance anxiety. Whereas most people believed that the best method was to try to calm down, Wood Brooks found that people who “reappraised” their anxiety as excitement felt more, well, excited—and more importantly, performed better.

“The way we verbalize and think about our feelings helps to construct the way we actually feel.”

Worrying about something? Switch the flip and say, “I am so excited about x”.

Say it out loud to yourself in the mirror, and start changing the way your perceive nervousness through verbalization.

#2: Focus on the Positives

Instead of being consumed by all the “what if’s” that can go wrong, focus on positive outcomes and exciting opportunities. Start the day journalling 3 great things that can happen in your day, and wrap the day journalling and reflecting on 3-5 positive things that happened. This will help you to take notice of the dashes of goodness that happen everyday in the simpleness of life.

SHOP MY JOURNAL

#3. Relax

Take some you time. Carve out time in your schedule, like you would dinner or a meeting, for at least 10 minutes for yourself. Perhaps a quiet walk, a long shower, meditation… whatever it is for you, you need time to regroup, reframe and celebrate yourself so you can be all that you need to be for everyone around you.

I hope these simple tips help you easy into the week ahead with a bit more chill, and a lot more smiles.