Six Strategies for Self-Renewal

To live a passionate life, you must attend to all of your needs, not just one or two. Energy in one area powers energy in another, and so on and so forth. Here are six strategies for self-renewal taken from the book, “Wicked Success Is Inside Every Woman” by Vickie Milazzo you can try this weekend.

Milazzo is also the author of the Wall Street Journal bestseller “Inside Every Woman: Using the 10 Strengths You Didn’t Know You Had to Get the Career and Life You Want Now.” She is recognized as a trusted mentor and dynamic role model by tens of thousands of women, a distinction that led to her national recognition as the Stevie Awards’ Mentor of the Year.

So, if you’re feeling down this weekend, or this past week has left your tired and run-down, then find your fresh start here and now.

Start Renewing Your Life

1. Set renewal goals. You are just as important as your career and family, so plan your self-renewal as you would a work project or family vacation. Milazzo includes in her renewal goals everything from maintaining a daily fitness regimen to destinations she’d like to travel to. Regularly assess and update your own renewal plan.
2. Start small and do one thing at a time. Enjoy five minutes of quiet, then ten. Add one vegetable a day, then eat two. Turn off the television for one hour, then two. Eliminate one fast-food trip a week, then eliminate two. Cut out one trip a day to the office candy bowl, then two, then three, and you’ll lose seven pounds a year. It takes 60 days to turn your lifestyle change into a habit. Get started.
3. Banish all excuses. Milazzo knows a woman who works 70 hours a week, and her excuse for not getting away for a weekend is that she’s too spent when the weekend comes. Yet, a relaxing weekend away is probably the perfect rejuvenation prescription for her! Self-renewal often takes a little time and effort, but a wicked career and success are nothing without a renewed spirit.
4. Accept wherever you are in your life now, and start there. Know that you can always start fresh. Wherever you are in life, there was “before” and there is “now.” Maybe you haven’t exercised in three years or thirty. Start now — and forget before.
5. Take a day off from discipline. French fries in place of one serving of broccoli won’t kill you, but unrelenting discipline will make you wish you were dead. Indulge yourself every once in awhile — and pass the ketchup!
6. Create female fusion. Have you ever gotten together with female friends, relatives, or colleagues and come away spinning with energy, motivation and ideas? That’s the power of female fusion. When women bond over a shared interest, task, or goal, they create sparks of insight and brilliance that they could never have generated alone. When you are connected to other women who complement, understand, and care about you, you will feel nurtured, empowered, inspired, and fired up! All facets of your vitality will feel supercharged.

Final thoughts

Let us know what revives you? Is it a quiet bath, a good curly cut or new shoes? Tell us about it!