I don’t know about you, but have you noticed how easy it is to fall asleep? You may think I’m talking about literal sleep. I’m actually referring to being complacent, getting to a status quo point. To feel like you are falling asleep in life. 

In today’s blog, I am challenging you to STAY AWAKE!

In complete transparency, this blog was inspired by two things: a conversation with a friend and my own “routine” that had been emerging. In the conversation with my friend, she shared that she felt like she had been falling asleep. She was caught up in the same old routine and pattern and it was easier to just stay there than do something else. Even though she was lacking fulfillment, she felt like she was in a deep coma and couldn’t get herself out. For me, I noticed a pattern: I would get home from work, have dinner and then flop on the couch to watch mindless television for a couple hours. Please understand that I don’t watch much television at all, so to be sitting there not even paying attention most of the time, I knew that I had fallen asleep.

Why do we fall asleep in the first place?

My vote is that we have lost touch with our purpose and passion. I also believe that sometimes we are burned out and falling asleep becomes the means to somehow rest and regroup. Our bodies simply say, enough.

How do we stay awake? I’m glad you asked, I came up with a few tips to reconnect with being awake and staying awake:

A-AWARENESS. This is the first key. To be aware of how we are showing up in the world makes all the difference. If we aren’t showing up with passion, perseverance and authenticity, we may be asleep.

W-WAKE UP! Smell the coffee! Take a quick dip or shower in cold water! Ok—seriously, the wake up is about activating the senses and looking at our current lens.

A-ALIVE. This may sound a little crazy, but are you feeling alive? When you take a step, do you notice your body and thoughts? Are you on automatic pilot or are you seeking opportunities to be active, engaged and fulfilling your purpose? It’s time to LIVE!

K-KICKSTART. Do you need something to kickstart your life? It all begins with a choice. Do you want to stay sleeping or are you ready to wake up? Each choice and each step helps. What is a good kickstart for you? For me, it’s drinking 8 ounces of water when I wake up and then going for a 3-mile walk with my dog. It’s a daily kickstart. If I get into a funk, I usually go to a coffee shop and journal about something that matters to me. This usually redirects me to waking up again (the caffeine helps a little too!)

E-EMBRACE YOUR EXPERIENCES. Life is like an EKG machine. There will be ups and downs. If we focus on the downs, we may be in danger of falling asleep. Waking up helps us realize that we can take all our experiences and integrate them into daily living. It’s so powerful. I also find it useful to jot down the experiences that help me wake up the most. Sometimes the most helpful experiences were the challenging ones, because they’ve given me even more purpose to stay awake.

I’d love to hear about the things that support you in staying awake. Let’s learn from each other!

Keep SHINING in Your Brilliance!