Article 26: HEALTHY CONTENT FOR YOUR EYES AND YOUR MIND

As you scroll through your social media feeds, you stumble across some large, BOLD words that stop you in your tracks, that read

"THIS IS FOR YOU!"

The next picture is of some more words that explain how you might be feeling at this present moment: You might be tired, you might be stressed, you might have some anxiety...After all, the holidays are near and you have so many things to get done by the end of this year! So, naturally those words stick out to you- THIS IS FOR YOU!

But, is it?

Over the years of much research, in many areas of focus, I have discovered that although a lot of blog posts, social media posts, articles, and self-help books scream a lot of surface-based truth, they do just that. "Scrape the surface." You see, by scraping the surface, most (not all) of these quick "how-to's" present us with content that we already know, highlighting on feelings that are common for many, given the season we are in. For example, during the Pandemic, the conversation was on stress, anxiety, and depression. And, as TRUE as this was (and for many, still is), people gravitated to those words and put them to use. This means that, while scrolling through social media, the self-help isle in the book store, we were presented with many books that spoke about, stress, anxiety, and depression. They caught our attention. They allowed us all to...well... "feel."

And, "feeling" is okay! Afterall, if we can find information that we can relate to, content that can help us through situations, that is wonderful! BUT, not everything is always going to be the right, fit!

This means that, although you scroll and stumble across those bold words that read THIS IS FOR YOU, doesn't mean that what you read will be YOUR fix, YOUR cure, or YOUR self-help process. You see, we are all so very unique, but we have very similar life experiences. How I process life, might be completely different than how you process life. Why? Well, it's from our experiences. How we perceive life, through our own lense. And, what a lot of these social posts, self-help books, and motivational blogs do for many, is scrape the surface of a topic that is relatable for others (including yourself), while providing you with that ah-ha moment and some food for thought. And, what comes next is this-

This morning I read a post that was so relatable to me, I stopped while sipping my coffee, stopped my healthy morning process, and focused my attention on reading this entire article under a photo that caught my attention. What worked for her, is assumed to work for everyone else out there who has experienced a similar situation. What I realized was, that although there was some easy to read, relatable content that provided a quick solution, it gave me motivation for a few minutes, until I scrolled to the next social media post.

And before I knew it, I had already forgotten about that post. But, for many of you, maybe you are serious about change, about fixing a problem, or about mastering a goal! The problem is, is that we are all so different. There is no- one way for all. This means that, if you are struggling with anxiety, that self-help book might not be the right answer for you, if you want to master a goal by next month, that blog post might not be your answer. What I have witnessed in my professional life while assisting athletes, coaches, and other sport professionals, is that people tend to apply the quick method that they stumbled across (from a blog or self-help book), while having no real understanding, of where to start! They plug away at the process for a couple of weeks, to realize, nothing is changing, so, they give up- What I encourage you to do, is this.

Recognize that many people (possibly including yourself) want the "quick fix." This means that people want things to change, now! Working hard at something for too long can decrease your motivation. Afterall, you might not have several months to work on just, one thing! But, reality is, nothing in life comes easy. That means that if you want something to change, and it hasn't changed over night, there is a process, there is an order that you might need to consider, and this process/order means that it will take time.

So, I want you to ask yourself this:

• How badly do you want it?

• How badly do you want to change?

• How badly do you want to get rid of your anxiety, stress, or depression?

• How important is this to you?

• How much time will you allow yourself to work at changing?

• Will you take the necessary steps to reach your goal?

• If you fall off the path, how/will you get yourself back on track?

All of these questions are extremely important to your, process!

When you answer these questions with truth, you will then curate a plan of action that will assist YOU, something that is tailored for only YOU, that will help YOU receive the results YOU work hard for.

So, I leave you with this, while scrolling through your social media feed, as you walk down the self-help isle in the book store, or read your next blog post, I want you to find your daily motivation, but find only, one! Loading your to-do plate (mentally), can cause you to not achieve success. If you come across something that you can relate to, ask yourself the questions I listed above, and find that one thing you NEED to work on. Next, find your method. This means that you need to do your homework. Do you research. Don't just take anyone's advise. Just because it worked for them, does not mean it will be the same outcome, for you. And, just because they have thousands of "likes" does not mean it is proven science, backed by a professional, nor does it mean that it will work, for you!

We all have such unique perspectives in life. We each work differently. We all need motivation! But, we all need our own guidance. This means that it is okay if not everything you read, will be your change. Change takes a lot of self-discipline (this is for another blog post). We can always find relatable content out there, but the process might be different from one person, to the next.

So, to retrace-

Don't fall off of your healthy process because you stumble across a relatable article or post. You have worked hard to keep a healthy mindset! If you find something that gravitates you, that influences you to change, ask yourself the questions I listed above and then proceed by doing your homework! Understand that change is not mastered overnight, however, change can start, immediately, when you are ready!

Cheryl McCormick, M.S.S.