A couple weeks ago I was in California at a conference with an incredible group of my holistic health colleagues.  One theme of the weekend was that too much support can hold us back from achieving our goals and stepping up to be who we are meant to be.  Your initial reaction to this might be surprise.  How can support be a bad thing?

It’s not.  Support isn’t bad.  In fact, it’s key to our success and happiness.  But support without stretching can hold us back.  It can lead to the feeling that what you’re already doing is good enough, and that feeling can lead to complacency.  As with many things in life, this is a matter of balance.  We need to balance our driven, perfectionist side with our accepting, better less-than-perfect than never side.

Support allows us to accept and be where we are.  Stretching keeps our eyes and intention on what’s next.  And the best brand of Stretching helps us move outside our comfort zone and dream bigger for ourselves than we ever would have without the push.

MY Current Stretching Exercise

I get a lot of support (and some stretching) from my family and friends.  They often suggest that I’m doing too much and they can’t believe how busy I am.  It’s great to hear that because I tend to lose sight of how much I take on.  But, I recently realized that all this support can sometimes bring me to a screeching halt as I repeat to myself what I’ve been told (I’m too busy.  I do sooo much.  I’m working a full-time job and owning a business and volunteering and…) and I use it as an excuse to take a big break from, well, everything (complacency).  Did I mention my nature is a bit extremist?

Despite the fact that, for me, support can sometimes lead to complacency, I know that the support I receive is powerful.  For an overachiever like me (yikes, I said it out loud), when you have tons of things you want to say “Yes!” to, it can feel nearly impossible to say “No, thank you, not right now”, and it’s support that helps you see why (and when) you have to say no sometimes.

So, I have great support and I know it’s important for my sanity, but I also know that I can use this support as an excuse to avoid the discomfort zone.  Okay then, what happens now?  Well, this is where Stretching comes in, and I am beyond lucky to have a community of holistic health colleagues who are challenging, stretching, and supporting me.  The latest challenge I have accepted is to create 30 Holistic Health Videos in 30 Days.  This is a big stretch for me because, until 3 days ago, I had never made a video.  It’s also a big time commitment and more than a little scary to put myself out there like that.  But I’m doing it.  I started on June 3rd and I’ve already posted 3 videos.  My intention is to post 1 video every day through July 3rd (and who knows, maybe I’ll keep it going).

I’d like to invite you to do three things:

1. Check out my daily video messages on Facebook or YouTube.  If you haven’t already “liked” Get Well Grounded – Holistic Health Coaching on Facebook, you should do that too.  And if you “subscribe” (it’s FREE) to the getwellgrounded YouTube channel, you’ll receive a message whenever I post a new video.
2. Send me a message with YOUR holistic health-related question(s).  You can ask me about anything (cooking, recipes, nutrition, yoga, meditation, mindfulness, goal setting, food labels, etc.) and I’ll answer your questions in one of my upcoming videos.
3. Allow yourself to be stretched by taking My Stretching Challenge for YOU.

My Stretching Challenge for YOU

You probably have at least 1 person in your life who offers you unconditional support.  That’s great!  I’d like to offer you the chance to stretch a little too.  Are you up for it?  We’ll start small and simple.

• Think of one area of your life where you’d like to make an upgrade (job, relationships, diet, exercise, etc.).  Got one?  Hint: It probably came to you right away and you probably wanted to dismiss it and pick something easier. Right?  Well, go back to that uncomfortable place (remember, you’ve got support) for a minute.  Now, what part of your life would you like to upgrade?  Write that down (Example: “I want to upgrade my exercise.”).
• Now ask yourself what your goal in that area of your life is.  Do you have a clear goal?  Great.  Write that down (Example: “I would like to exercise 3 times/week.”).
• Now ask yourself this question: Is my goal enough?  Can you stretch it a little further?  You don’t want to stretch so far and so fast that you won’t follow through, but you do want to make sure you’re actually stretching.  If you decide to, draw one line through your original goal and write in the new and stretchy goal underneath it (Example: “I would like to exercise 4 times/week.”).
• Now that you have a clear and stretchy goal, identify your initial step towards that goal.  Got it?  Write that down underneath your goal (Example: “Step 1 – I will take a 30-minute walk 2 times this week.”).
• Alright, that’s great, but I bet you can see what’s coming… Read your first step out loud.  Now ask yourself this question: “Can I take a bigger, stretchier step?”  If you can, then draw a line through your original first step and write in your new and stretchier first step underneath it (Example: “Step 1 – I will walk at least 30 minutes, 3 times this week.”).
• Wonderful.  Doesn’t it feel good to stretch?  Keep your written goal and your 1st action step someplace where you’ll see them daily.  And, of course, take action immediately (today or tomorrow).  Unless today is Monday, “I’ll start on Monday” is one of the biggest impediments to your success.

You can use this exercise again and again to keep stretching yourself on old goals or to begin stretching yourself with new ones.  And if you like what you’re reading and want some personalized support + stretching from me, then take the first step and schedule your 1-on-1 Strategy Session today!

eat well.  live well.  be well.  stretch well.