Proactive Action

Proactive Action & Proactive Positive Actions

Sometimes what you need is a cut-off switch from your present way of life. Taking up a hobby can be a tremendous way of leaving all of your problems behind you. I know this may sound a bit cliche saying take up a hobby or new interest, you may be thinking, what good is that going to do me?

What you need often though is just some ‘me’ time. Time just for yourself. A distraction from your current negative thinking traits. There are hundreds of activities that you could take up, whatever grabs your interest. Do you have something that you have been yearning to do for many years and either by life circumstances or simple procrastination, you keep perpetually putting off until a more ideal time?

Don’t put it off any longer! It’s important that you create some time to relax doing something that YOU enjoy doing. It might be taking up fishing, or photography, writing, researching local history, any one of a number of activities, even going out for a brisk walk every day for ten minutes can do wonders for refreshing the soul. A couple of activities I took up were fishing and gardening. Fishing for me gave me that ultimate peace and quiet that I was seeking away from my very busy mind. Sitting on a rock at the bottom of the cliffs, with the ocean stretched out in front of me, watching my float for a few hours, mesmerized my mind into a state of much quietness and in time, I came to really appreciate this hobby and sought escape from myself often, fishing more and more often whenever I felt low or depressed.

Similarly, gardening did exactly the same, the physical activity out in nature of digging the soil, learning about garden design and planting techniques, brought at the end of the day tiredness and a great feeling of satisfaction for the work I had put in.

For some though, these kind of activities may be off limits due to location. But the point is, is that there are a huge number of activities that you could take up and not all of them need to be associated with a form of strenuous exercise.

You might take up yoga or tai-chi, both very relaxing activities and extraordinarily refreshing for the soul.  You let go of your negative emotions and bring your life as well as your mental faculties back into balance.

It might be worth stating your intention to other family members if you need to. Tell them straight up that you need some time to yourself, not from the point of alienating them, just that you need an hour each day for you to be able to connect with yourself.  Don’t be afraid to make the point, that during this time, they need to respect your decision and refrain from disturbing you unless it’s an emergency.

I cannot over-emphasize how important it is for you to have some alone time. A time for you to become more at one with yourself. Consider it a gift, part of a self made contract with yourself, that you deserve some time to be on your own without being disturbed.

Of course, if you are feeling down in the dumps and isolating yourself because of it, you might want to think about taking up an activity which involves interaction with others. Perhaps you could volunteer an hour or two here and there to help out a local community group, where your personal time and possible expertise might be appreciated by other individuals going through hardship.

Giving of yourself to others like this can do wonders for your sense of self worth and self esteem and can also reassure you that you are not the only person going through problems. In doing this you can give empathy to other people and have them also reciprocating their appreciation for your life circumstances, the problems that you personally are going through too.

It’s about taking action.

Making a contract with yourself.

Telling yourself that you deserve better. Giving yourself the time that you need to feel more positive. And it all starts by recognition of your own needs and giving yourself permission to take that time out for yourself.

Related posts:

1. Five Simple Relaxation Tips
2. Putting Your Positive Action into Overdrive
3. How to Make Your Dreams a Reality