YOU are Absolutely Worth it!

How have you found this month of Blog Posts?  As exciting as it is to create your dream life, make big girl decisions about what you want it to look like, edit in and out all of the things that make it possible to begin to live the life, occasionally I find someone who struggles with the exercises.  If you are that someone, this post is for you.

Today, I'm going to address the WHY concerning all of this.  Why is it so important to go through these exercises and spend the time building our lives?  Well first, let me ask you this question.  If you have a beautiful daughter or other young female in your life, or even if she's someone you work with. Wouldn't you advise this young lady to do everything she can possibly do to take care of herself, plan her dreams, and create the best life she can create?  Of course the answer to this is yes.  We want the best for others, don't we?

I want to challenge you with this thought:  Why not you?  Why the hell not you??  Don't you deserve to live your best life?  I believe you do.  I believe we all do.  This is what the past few blog posts have been about.  Dreaming, desiring, making plans, and creating the life you have only dreamed of.

We MUST respect this one, precious life we have been given.  Part of that respect is being grateful for what we have and making the most out of what we have been given.  We also must realize this one fact:  We cannot expect others to respect and value us, if we do not respect and value ourselves.
We cannot expect anyone to recognize our value if we don't even see it in ourselves.

So how do we begin to see our own value?  By nurturing our dreams and our desires.  By recognizing the value in those desires and doing all we can to bring our dreams into reality.  Any guilt or shame from past decisions MUST be put behind us so that we can move on and recognize our worth NOW. In the PRESENT.  The past means nothing other than the lessons we can learn from it.  Once we realize that, we are freed up to focus on today.  Right now.

Once we choose to fall in love with our lives, opportunities will show up for us.  We invite good energy into our world and everything opens up from there.  We must begin to focus on what we LOVE about ourselves and add MORE of what we love every single day of our lives.  This is how we create happiness in our lives regardless of what is happening around us.

You, my love ARE ABSOLUTELY worth focusing on.  You are important and you have a great deal to offer those around you, whether you see it right now, or not.  So go ahead.  Dream.  Dream more. Plan.  Edit in.  Edit out.  Make those little shifts and edits every day until you are living right in the middle of the life of your dreams.

When you begin to live a life that you are madly in love with, you will be irresistible to everyone around you.  Get ready for a huge amount of appreciation!  You deserve it!

With Carefully Curated Love,

Donna

PS!   If you'd like these messages delivered right to your inbox,  please enter your email address over on the  right!   And if you have questions or would like to learn how we can work together, feel free to contact me any time at CuratedDonna@gmail.com

Learning to Say NO!

Hi Power-Babe!  

Wow, that's a powerful quote, right?  Are you ready to learn to say NO?  Are you ready do learn why you absolutely need to develop this skill?  This is one of my favorite subjects, so let's get into it!

As a smart, capable, adult woman, you will often be the one who is asked to add tasks to your already full schedule.  Whether you're asked to sell cookies, join a group, volunteer at a bake sale, serve dinner at church, volunteer for a charity, you, the capable, hardworking woman, will always be asked.  

And who can blame them?  You're the one who is accomplishing things!  You're the one who can get things done!  There is a saying, "If you want to get something done, always ask a busy person to do it!"  Busy people are almost always able to add "just one more thing" to their schedules.  They are used to being busy and one more thing is just one more thing!  But is YOUR "one more thing?"

What I'm going to suggest is that you manage your time so carefully, so ruthlessly, that you are able to fit everything YOU need to accomplish into your life.  Here's why.  If you don't manage your time, believe me, somebody else will.  If you aren't diligent about managing what is important to you, you'll find that things just seem to be added to your days.  And if you don't learn how to say NO, in a way that people hear the word NO, you'll find yourself asking, "How the heck did I get into this???" There are people out there who are very good at asking us to get involved in their goals.  And some of those are extremely worthy goals - but are they YOUR goals?  

When you get clear on what is important to you and what you need to accomplish to live your life the way YOU have planned it, it will be much easier for you to manage what you allow and do not allow in.  You'll get very clear on whether something fits in to your season.  

So let me ask you this:  What is important to you?  Your family, your day job, your side job, your quiet time with your partner, your quiet time alone, your friends, your workout time - all of these priorities, whatever they are for YOU, need to come first as you plan your schedule.  And if you want each of these areas of your life to be successful and complete, you must give them the time they require.  This also includes your downtime.  If you don't allow yourself time to regroup, recover and restore, you'll find your energy level plummeting!  Don't let that happen!  

Here is where we might get a little bit uncomfortable.  You must always ask yourself if the task you're being asked to participate in will bring you closer to your ideal life or pull you farther away from it by taking up too much of your time.  I'm not suggesting you get mean!  Just remember that you are living YOUR life and designing your life must be your top priority.  The guilt you may feel when saying "NO" to someone is something you must work to get past.  Just apologize and let the individual know that you just can't fit it in at this moment.  "Catch me next time!"  

So I leave you with this.  Yes, feel free to add tasks that contribute to your life and your well being when you can.  And be honest enough with yourself and your peers to say no when you cannot comfortably fit them in.  You owe this to yourself.  We are all given one life, and it is truly your responsibility to make choices for yourself and your family that reflect the life you have chosen.  

Practice this now:  "NO!"

With carefully curated love and admiration, 

Donna

Ready for a Little Instant Gratification?

I love instant gratification, and I bet you do too!   We all love it when we get super fast results!  Whether it is food,  skin care,  weight loss (yeah right), the perfect haircut or color, the perfect shade of lipstick!  All of it makes us extremely happy, and the faster it happens, the better!   Well that is going to be the theme for our journey in October.  

A while ago I wrote a short piece called "Five steps that will take you from pitiful to powerful." This was a very popular article with my followers, so I've decided to elaborate on this concept for September.  With Fall and the Holidays fast approaching,  now is the perfect time to incorporate some empowerment into your world!  Just imagine how enjoyable the holidays will be when you can incorporate a new sense of confidence along into the general fun that the holidays can bring!  

DISCLAIMER:  Yes, I am aware that there are many people who find the holidays difficult and unhappy, so why not try something different this year.  Let's approach the season from a place of confidence and empowerment.  This way we can positively influence the people around us who do not enjoy the holidays.  My hope is that maybe this year, the season will be a bit better than past seasons because of you!  That is my wish for you and for anyone who doesn't enjoy this time of year.  

Let's give it a go!

Pretty much every person in the world has had times in their lives when they have struggled with their emotions and how they are showing up every day for others,  and much more importantly, for themselves.  If you feel this way now,  you are not alone.  We have all have emotions and we have felt this way at one time or another. 

Well I'm here to tell you loud and clear:  We are NOT stuck in that place or in that mode.   We all have the ability to change the way we operate and to mold our lives into exactly what we desire.  Yes, you already have the power within you  to do exactly that.

It is up to all of us to make the choice to examine our lives and DECIDE who we want to become. That is correct.  It is a DECISION that  you can make.  As I said,  you are not STUCK in a place or in a situation.  There are changes you can make in your surroundings and in your attitude that will get you moving and feeling more powerful.  And fast!  I will be sharing with you a different action step that you can take each week.  You'll have the week to practice that step, make notes and then next week move on with the next step from a more powerful place.  Baby steps, my friend!

STEP ONE:

KNOW WHERE YOU ARE.  

Can you honestly say that you know where you are in regards to your PERSONAL POWER?  The first step in any forward moving process is to figure out, know and accept where you are.  Like any goal, you can't move forward, if you don't know where you are.  

This week, I'm going to ask you to do an examination of your life.   Make a few notes about where you would like to create some power and some confidence in your world.  And it's easy!  Take a few minutes at the end of each day this week and ask yourself a couple of questions:

When have I been at my best?  Not just today, but any time you remember feeling that way.

When have I felt I could have done a bit better in my performance.?  Was it at work, with my boss, with coworkers, with family,  the waiter,  strangers?  Was it when I was or was not being taken seriously,  respected,  adored?

How was I showing up at that time?   

Looking back, how did I see myself?   Was I frazzled,  cranky,  messy, late, negative,  angry?  

These are the types of questions that you must answer honestly in order to move forward.  A powerful woman is very aware of her surroundings and how she is interacting with those around her.  Are you showing up in a powerful,  on-purpose way?  Yes?  No?  I'm not asking you to fix things during lesson one.  Just make some notes about how you're feeling and we'll address those things next week!  

Then, once you accept where you are,  you will begin to recognize where changes need to be made, and you will be well on your way to empowerment.  Remember, clarity is power,  and getting clear on a few places that need some work will empower you to clean it all up and move forward!

And then BOOM!  Instant gratification!

I can't wait until next week!!

With carefully curated love,

Donna

A Little Edit In, A Little Edit Out!

Welcome to another post from The Carefully Curated Life!  I want to thank you and tell you that I'm SO excited that you're reading this!  As this blog progresses, I'll be covering all sorts of lifestyle topics from attitudes to desires to living well to handbags and lipstick!  This is going to be great fun. If there is a specific topic you'd like me to write about, please leave me a comment below or email me directly at curateddonna@gmail.com and I'll get right on it!

In the meantime, let's get back to our little series on living the life you dream of!  Last week we were looking for things we could add to our current daily lives that would give us the feeling of living our best lives.  Did that go well for you?  If not, keep looking for things you can add to your life.  Even very small things can give you the feeling that you are living a great life!

For our purposes, we're going to call the process of adding, "Editing In."  The more you can find to edit into your current life from the perfect life that you have notes on, the more you'll attract more of that perfect life.  After all, when we think about what we want our lives to look like, and what we truly desire, what we are searching for is the FEELING we'll have once we have "made it."  For example, I may have a desire to lose weight and be thin and look great in my clothes.  But what it all boils down to is that I want to FEEL thin.  I want to FEEL healthy.  I want to FEEL like I look like a million bucks.  I want the feeling of looking great naked!  Don't you?  Anything can be covered up, but I want to feel like a million bucks at all times.  Clothed or not!  (Don't tell my mum!)

So knowing how I want to FEEL, I must ask myself this:  "What would it take to feel that way right this minute?"  Well weight doesn't just show up one day and it won't all go away in one day either. So perhaps I can take a little more time when I get dressed in the morning, so I look my best.  Perhaps I can take a bit more time putting on my makeup.  What I definitely need to do is find an outfit that looks STUNNING on me RIGHT NOW, THE SIZE I AM TODAY.  Because I want to feel good. And there is no reason that I shouldn't be able to feel good right now.  Why wait until...?

The idea of living in the most beautiful house in the world makes me super excited - and relaxed at the same time.  So what can I edit into my current life that will create that feeling of super excitement and relaxation?  I'll tell you right now, I can edit in the good China and the Crystal glasses that are getting dusty in the cabinet!  Why not use them?  Am I saving them for the afterlife?  I'm going to edit OUT the Red Solo Cups and edit in the good stuff!

There is absolutely nothing wrong with using your good China every day.  There is absolutely nothing wrong with using my Baccarat Crystal to drink my orange juice in the morning.  Also, I put one of the champagne flutes in my bathroom, where it stands proudly, holding my toothbrush!  And I FEEL elegant, even drinking OJ and brushing my teeth!  And not to be repetitive, but the more elegance I FEEL, the more elegance I attract, and I want as much of that as I can find!

So now, let's talk for a moment about EDITING OUT.  When you look around your house, your life, even your car, what do you need to get rid of?  When I first began this process and looked in my lingerie drawer - which at the time I was calling my underwear drawer - I saw lots of items that no longer fit, or had been washed beyond their lifespan, were stretched out, T-shirts that were stained from my self-tanner.  Of course I could have continued wearing them, but how would that make me feel?  Not so elegant, my friend.  In fact, they made me feel the opposite of elegant.  So out they went.  I kept the nicer pieces and either donated or threw away the things that no longer represented who I wanted to become.

I looked in my junk drawer.  Wow.  What a bunch of CRAP!  I did go through it and I found a few quarters and pennies to put into my change container (which happens to be an vintage Gucci makeup bag) and everything else?  Edited OUT.  That freed up another drawer for organizing my kitchen!

I looked under my kitchen sink at my cleaning products.  Holy Poison Control!  I edited the hell out of that crap and replaced it - gradually - with products that were more environmentally friendly, which made me FEEL responsible.

Remember this, my love.   Everything you edit into your life to bring on the feelings of bliss and happiness and contentment is a step in a beautiful direction.  Everything you can edit out of your life, opens up room for more beauty and joy to enter your world.  The more bliss, happiness, contentment, beauty and joy you bring into your world, the more you truly ARE living your perfect life.

So look around and shake things up a bit.  Leave me a comment below and share how you'll be editing in and editing out!

With carefully curated love,

Donna

PS!   If you'd like these messages delivered right to your inbox,  please enter your email address over on the right!   And if you have questions or would like to learn how we can work together, feel free to contact me any time at CuratedDonna@gmail.com

Would you like to live your perfect life?

Hello Gorgeous!

Is it next week already?   Time is just flying by us, isn't it?   Just like Mum said, the older we get,  the faster time goes by!

If you are at all like me, you don't want to waste a second of it!  And right this minute is the perfect time to begin to live the life you want.  Regardless of where you are, now is the time.  And we begin right here, at your perfect day... Now!  Go get your notes from last weeks blog post.  The one where you began describing your perfect life.  

The first thing you're going to do is read through it one more time.  This time,  read it out loud,  as if all of it is already in place for you and you are living it right now.   As you read through each point,  write down how it makes you feel to live that life.  Yes, it takes a bit of imagination to really feel it,  but try to REALLY feel it.

 

Now here's the super fun part!  As you move through what you've written out as your perfect day,  ask yourself this question:

WHAT CAN I DO RIGHT NOW,  TODAY,  TO CREATE PARTS OF THIS PERFECT LIFE?

For example, if in your perfect day you woke up in the morning surrounded by beautiful classical music,  you need to find yourself a classical music CD or radio station to wake up to.   Easy!

If in your perfect day you enjoyed the morning in crisp white pajamas and a delicious cup of coffee,  go get yourself a new set of white pajamas and keep some of your favorite coffee in your house!   Then do it tomorrow morning!  (This was one of my perfect day items!  Guess what I sleep in? Crisp, white pajamas!  Guess what I have every morning?  My favorite coffee in a pretty mug!)

If in your perfect day you surround yourself with beautiful fresh flowers,  pick some up today!   (I get mine at the local grocery store!  Not too expensive there, and just as gorgeous as my local flower shop!)

These are just three small examples of what you can do to begin living the life of your dreams.   You actually can create the life you want to live!   You may not be able to get it all in one day,  but you can make a start.   You can add a little in now and a little more in tomorrow,  next week,  payday, whatever works for you!

If your perfect day involves long, luxurious walks outside,  take a walk outside at lunchtime! That is an easy step you can take towards your dream life starting today!  Just give it a little thought.

Remember that everything in life is energy.   Our bodies,  loves,  hates,  tastes,  wants, attitudes and  feelings, all of the things we do and the choices we make.   All of it is energy.   When we surround ourselves with good,  positive, luxurious, curated energy, we attract exactly that back to us.  
This is why we MUST begin to live our perfect lives right now!  Time is passing quickly.   Why not edit out the not so great, and edit in the fabulous - and attract more of the fabulous into our lives? 

(More on editing next week)

Please start living your perfect life today!   And leave me a comment below so I know how its going for you!

With carefully curated love,

Donna

PS!   If you'd like these messages delivered right to your inbox,  please enter your email address over on the  right!   And if you have questions or would like to learn how we can work together, feel free to contact me any time at CuratedDonna@gmail.com

Your Perfect Day!

Hello my beautiful friend!

Tell me, have you ever stopped to think about what your absolute perfect day would look like?  A day with no limits, no distractions, no time constraints, no financial issues, none of it.  Just the most perfect, most fabulous day you've ever lived.  

Describing this day is a fun exercise and can be extremely enlightening if you take some time and give it some thought.  I learned about this exercise from the beautiful and talented Master Life Coach, Tonya Leigh Rising, who founded the French Kiss Life.  It has been so useful for me that I schedule time to do it every six months or so.  It doesn't take very much time, but it does take focus and a little bit of quiet time.  Going through this process will give you some extremely valuable insight into what you truly desire in your life. 

Most of us are so busy scrambling and living our day to day lives - over and over and over - that we never take the time to define exactly what we want our lives to look like.   Let's stop that cycle right now, shall we?  We only get one life,  so doesn't it make sense to create what we want?  This is your mission for today.  

Let's do this!

First, find some time when you can be alone and be focused on the task at hand.  Allow yourself at least 30 minutes or so of uninterrupted time.   Prepare your beverage of choice,  find a pen you enjoy writing with and a journal or notebook.   Honestly, if you've been following me for any time now, you know that I recommend journaling every day.   If you journal like I do, you'll love this!  And even if you're not a fan of journaling, you'll get a great deal of satisfaction from this process.

Next, sit quietly for a few minutes and imagine your life in 5, 10, 15, even 20 years from now.  Think about your fabulous, successful future and go through the following questions.  Be sure to make some notes for yourself.

What do you love to do?
What are you really good at?  
What have you learned about life over the years? 
Where do you live? 
What do you do for a living?  
Do you work at all?  
Do you have children,  a spouse? 
Do you love being single?  
Do you volunteer for specific charities? 
Do you travel?
What do you NEVER want in your life?
What do you love to eat? 
What do you do during the day?  What does your home look like?  How is it decorated? 
What do your clothes look like? 
Do you have lots of friends? 
How do you spend your time?

When you begin to look at your future self and understand that you have the power to create the life of your dreams, you'll get very exited about getting started on this!!!   I know I did!

So please take the time to answer these questions and add more questions of your own.  Put the ideas that you come up with on paper.  Take this week to think about your answers.  

Next week,  we start building and creating!!!

I'm so excited for you!   AND your future!!

Love,
Donna

PS. If you'd like these posts delivered right to your inbox,  enter your email address on the right!   And please leave me a comment below!