Gratitude & Goal Setting

Have you heard of the book Girl, Wash Your Face by Rachel Hollis?

I haven't read the book, but I've been listening to the Rachel Hollis podcast lately, and although I have my issues with Rachel (more on that later, her brand is kind of anti-intellectual and it drives me crazy), she does share some really valuable tips and tricks for improving your life and your business.

One of the practices Rachel talks a lot about is her journaling, which she does every morning. She says it's one of the things that helps her align her goals with her daily actions. She records 3 things she's grateful for, 10 big goals she has, and 1 thing she's going to do that day to get closer to one of her goals.

Rachel Hollis actually sells these journals through her company. I thought about buying one, but then I realized that I could make my own journaling pages for FREE (and, I knew I could design a cuter version than the one she has.

This is what my page looks like:

One thing I like about Rachel's practice is that she encourages you to write your goals in past tense, as if you've already achieved them. So instead of writing, "I want to save $60,000 for a downpayment on a house," you write, "I saved $60,000 for a downpayment on a house." Sometimes I write the same ten goals every day, and sometimes I just write whatever goals are on my mind. It's been a great way to put myself in a positive mindset every morning. I really love it!

If you want a printable version of this Gratitude & Goal Setting page, you can download it here.

Thanks for reading!

♡♡♡

Rebecca

Self-Love Reflection: People Who Inspire Me

I’m sitting here on the couch feeling sad and bad, so I found this “30 Days of Self-Love” Journal Prompts that I decided to try. I really love writing and expressing myself so hopefully this will help me clear my brain and not feel so depressed.

There are a lot of people who inspire me. I’m fortunate to have wonderful people in my life (both at work and at home) who help me see the kinds of things I do and don’t want to become. Here are the two people who really inspire me the MOST:

Marylynn Haymore Pace (Grandmother)

My paternal grandmother inspires me not so much because of what she’s done (although she has done some incredible things like raise a family of 10 CHILDREN) but because of who she’s become. Grandmother has seemingly limitless energy. She loves her family more than anything in the whole world and she shows her love through food and gatherings and music. Grandmother is over-the-top in every single way. She takes one million pictures at family parties, writes every email in ALL CAPS (I’m not joking), and always wants to play at least one game of cards when we visit. She’s 85 right now, and although her body has slowed down significantly, her spirit is bigger and brighter than ever. When I think about people who have truly influenced my life, I think about Grandmother. Because of her, I have 76 first cousins who I consider to be some of my very best friends. Because of her, I have a strong testimony of God and Jesus Christ, and the restored gospel. Because of her, I have a very high standard for homemade guacamole. Because of her, I know what it looks like to live with joy in all seasons of life. Because of her, I see my potential as a mother and a grandmother and it fills me to the brim with happiness for my future. I love my Grandmother with all my heart and I feel obsessively grateful for her life and her love for our family.

Jacob Neil Peterson (Cob)

Cob is probably the best person I know. I used to think that was a cheesy thing to say because doesn’t everyone love their husband? But the older I get and the longer I’ve been married, I recognize that having a good husband is very rare. So when I say that Cob is probably the best person I know, I really mean it. I could list all of Cob's amazing qualities, but what really inspires me is his natural disposition to do good and be good. He is truly someone with a pure heart and clean hands. Someone asked me if I believe Cob when he gives me a compliment, even if it seems like he’s telling me what I want to hear. I told them it never occurred to me NOT to believe him, because he makes me feel like he sees the best in me. (I don’t know if that story makes sense, but I’m going to leave it for the sake of having some kind of example.) Another thing that inspires me about Cob is his work ethic. He has enormous capacity for work and focus and he can push himself to the limit mentally and physically without really blinking an eye. I don’t want to be totally braggadocios, but he’s been on the Dean’s List every semester since we’ve been married, which means he’s maintained SUPER high grades despite taking a honeymoon and other vacations, having a baby, working part-time, and a slew of other regular-life circumstances that could be used as excuse to slack off. Basically he is superman. On top of all of this, Cob loves me. He honestly and truly inspires me to love myself. He helps me see the things I’m doing well when I feel overwhelmed with the changes I need to make in my life. He is my better half and I feel so lucky that I get to be his partner forever.