The One Thing Missing From Your Self-Care Routine

The One Thing Missing From
Your Self-Care Routine

When I hear the term “self-care,” I think of a cozy blanket, a relaxing bubble bath, or sipping on a glass of wine. And, yes, all of these things can be a part of your self-care routine, but there’s more to it than that.

I watched a video this morning that made me realize something: the one thing missing from your self-care routine is tough love. (Keep reading to discover 3 easy ways you can show yourself some tough love today and to find the video that inspired this post.)

Yes, we are all guilty of being overly critical of ourselves, but do we really expect too much from ourselves? Sometimes.

Sometimes, I bet you are actually too easy on yourself. Sometimes, I bet you need to tell yourself, “I don’t care if you don’t feel like doing what you committed to doing. Get off your butt and do it.”

After all, isn’t that what we expect a good parent or teacher to do? To push someone beyond the limits of what they think they can do. To say, “I don’t want to hear your excuses.” To say, “I know you can do this. Trust me. You can!”

So why don’t we push ourselves in the same way? Not to the point of exhaustion. Not to the point of a nervous breakdown. But past the line that we think is our stopping point is.

Keep scrolling to discover 3 easy ways to show yourself some tough love today.

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3 Easy Ways to Show
Yourself Some Tough Love

When your alarm clock goes off — Get Up! You wouldn’t let your kids keep sleeping after theirs goes off, so why do you let yourself do it? Or, if you’re like me and you wake up an hour or so before your alarm goes off, don’t start trying to figure out if you can reset your alarm for a later time. Either get up, or enjoy your last hour of sleep.
When you feel like you’re done — Go One Step Further! Make one more phone call. Run one more minute. Do one last chore. We often let ourselves off the hook too soon. Maybe you are done, and that’s what you’ll find out by trying to jump over that one last hurdle. But, maybe you’ll find out you have more left to give than you thought. Again, isn’t that what you would encourage your kids to do?
Reward yourself — Get Your Work Done First! When you find yourself procrastinating, tell yourself, “I’ll work on this for a half hour. Then, I’ll do X (watch a show, read, call a friend).” Once you gain some momentum, that half hour might turn into one or two hours. And even if it doesn’t, you’ve worked and rewarded yourself for it. Sounds a bit similar to, “Do your homework before you watch TV,” doesn’t it?

How are you going to show yourself some tough love today? Commit to it by letting us know in the comments. I worked out, even though I got some bad stomach cramps not five minutes before I started. I told myself, “If the cramps get worse, I can stop then.” But, they didn’t, and I made it through the workout just fine!

Find out what happens when you don’t give yourself enough tough love: Confessions of a Safety-Holic (Now in Remission)

If you could use a little more faith in yourself so that you can show yourself some tough love, read: Have You Opened Your Heart to God?

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If you’re ready to Stop Settling & Start Living! check out our home page to learn more about what The Expectation Gaps has to offer.

And until next time . . . have a TOUGH day!