There are many sides
Self-improvement is a huge industry. That is not necessarily a bad thing unless it lacks value to you. When deciding what to update on your personal scale, are there more choices on the inside or outside? Sideways is a great alternative. When you think about it, the other choices lack dimension. If you start on one, something rears its ugly head somewhere else and throws off the experiment. Slinking around crab style tends to be so unexpected that it ends up helping the entire human. Let me provide an example. A new standard for this year for me was to keep track of the books I read. Reading for pleasure is a gift because of the reading for work that must occur most days. It seems like reading should just be itself but the stuff that pays me doesn’t give me as much enjoyment. Weird. Tracking my habit involves a little handwriting. Yes, old school list making. This allows me to examine my handwriting and judging it on improvement. That is a sideways win. For a new year exercise, I switched up my usual coffee drink order. This would be difficult for many of us and I have been surprisingly happy with the espresso concoction I am now addicted to. This definitely went sideways. Coffee drinks are expensive to keep up with when you start adding visits on odd days just to order the new one. So, I invested in an espresso machine for home so that I wouldn’t make up reasons to go and buy them every time I left the house. Yes, it was an investment, but it will pay for itself, and I have learned how to work it. I still order my usual at the coffee shop when passing but now it is a social visit. So don’t feel like self-improvement is required. Self-enjoyment is.
You are Extraordinary!
Week 23: Both sides move you
Just the slightest shift can make a difference. If you want to make a teeny tiny step to the side this week, do it. Don’t tell anyone either. Keep it as a secret and smile at yourself for being so bold. You don’t need anyone to agree with your life choices. That’s a weird lesson to learn. The only one to give you permission for that is you. Try and enjoy this exercise. Life should be a little silly sometimes.
