Be Present Service Challenge–Week 1

This service challenge has been a labor of love and I’m happy I finally get to share it with you! (Not sure what this is all about? Start here.)

We’re kicking off the challenge with focusing on yourself! I know what you’re thinking, myself? Really? But I’m a big believer that we have to love and appreciate ourselves in order to do the same for others.

 

This week I want you to focus on loving yourself, and not feel guilty about it! Having a good mindset and not feeling overwhelmed with everything around you will help the following weeks run more smoothly, and do a lot for you as well.

You can download this week’s printable here.

You can focus on one or all three of the challenges. Do what’s best for you!

This week’s options are:

1. Make Your Bed -  This might sound simple, but our whole goal is to start our day off organized. Because when we’re organized, everything in life seems to run smoother, am I right? Here is a great article sharing how making your bed each day can improve your life. The number of benefits surprised me. I’ve been working on this for the past month and can say not only does it make me feel more put together, it has helped me keep my whole house more clean. If you’re anything like my mom, (I don’t think I’ve ever seen her bed unmade) then go ahead and pick something else that you want to work on. But if you’re more like me, go ahead and make your bed first thing in the morning. Feeling organized and put together goes a long way in the self care area, I hope you’ll give it a try.

2. Express Gratitude – When I speak, I usually always touch on this. I’ve come to learn the power in expressing gratitude. Did you know that gratitude takes practice just like any other skill? It’s been proven that expressing gratitude has a direct effect on depression which lessens anxiety. It also increases determination, attention, enthusiasm, and energy. Here’s a great article sharing some benefits of practicing gratitude.

So grab a journal or a piece of paper and list one or more things you are grateful for. I remember starting my gratitude journal shortly after Preslee died, and that first day I felt like I didn’t have anything to be grateful for. I sat on my bed with my pen in hand and had to really dig deep. That day I eventually wrote down one thing, “I’m thankful for food in the refrigerator.” That’s it, and it was a start. It took some time, but expressing gratitude changed the way I viewed my relationship with my Heavenly Father. I realized He was still blessing me, even though I no longer had my daughter next to me. Though it’s a simple thing, gratitude is a learned practice, so we have to practice it to be good at it. Give it a try, I promise it will change your way of thinking. 

3. Treat Yo Self – Who doesn’t love a little me time? I know I do! A lot of us work hard at being a good mom or the best in our career, and it’s easy to get caught up in tasks and forget about ourselves, and not in a good way. So let’s think about ourselves this week. This is a fantastic read why self care is so important.

So plan an outing with some friends, (Target run anyone?) some alone time, or push yourself to try something new. Whatever it is, take a little break from your priorities and have a little fun this week. You deserve it, I promise.

I hope this helps you have a wonderful week! Let us know how it goes by dropping in on Instagram. If you tag Presentlee and use the hashtag #livepresentlee, you’ll be entered to win some fun prizes that I’ll be giving out each week until the challenge is complete.

See you next week, with Week 2 info.