How A Wee Sticky Note Can Upgrade Your Life

April 7, 2022

We all have them.

Those little sticky notes plastered all over the place.

On the dash of your car. On the refrigerator. On the stack of papers that beg for our attention. On your keys. On the mirror in the bathroom.

If you are from a different generation or a more techy person than I, you may have replaced those little sticky notes with a digital notepad on your phone.

In either form, they are both reminders to us of what needs to be accomplished in our days. Both long-term and short-term to-do items that beckon us to be completed.

Some people get satisfaction in the crossing off of items. Line after line of tasks with a cross through them can be a satisfying stroke of one’s ego of how many things we are getting done.

Some people just have so many things swirling around that they need to document their required tasks or they would forget what they needed to do each day.

Needless to say, the sticky note is well immersed in our society. Almost 50 billion post-it notes are made every year! It is projected that the revenue for these notes will be over 200 million dollars in the next 3 years. They are even more fashionable now. What was originally only yellow is now available in over 20 different colours.

Not bad for an item that was created in error back in the 1960s!

I have a question for you:

Do you have a to-do list for your life? A basic list of things that you can do every day to help facilitate your epic life? That sticky note that you could see consistently every day to remind you of the really important things to do regularly?

It's an idea worth considering!

Here are my 4 short suggestions for you to consider for your permanent life sticky:

1. Practice kindness.

This should be a no-brainer yet we have all seen someone berating the waitress or the retail person on the other side of the counter. One thing that I have come to realize is that everyone is going through something. Even if they appear to have the world by the tail. It is a safe assumption to know that something challenging churns beneath the surface. With that in mind, be nice to people. Your small act of kindness or gentle word can be a game-changer for someone that day. You just may never know it.

I believe kindness spreads. Can you imagine if the person you were kind to turns around and is that sort of kind to the next person? The world would be a much different place. It is a truly pay-it-forward type of idea that has infinite possibilities.

2. Let go of what you can’t control.

News Flash! That is pretty much everything.

If you think about how many things you try to control in a day, you would have quite a list. No wonder you are exhausted.

Letting go of being the CEO of the Universe will lower your stress level which in turn makes you healthier and happier. It also frees up your precious time to manifest the life of your dreams.

I personally am a work in progress with all this. My life became instantly better when I gave up my title of being the CEO of the Universe a few years ago. It does try to wiggle itself back into my curriculum vitae but I keep deleting it. The managing mindset is something that I have to continue to be aware of in my habits. I am grateful to have people in my life that call me out on it. Trying to control isn't a malicious act for me. Growing up in an environment where you are constantly mitigating the actions of others has given me survival habits that I no longer need and which don't serve me well. Hence my awareness of the importance of letting go of control.

You may have your own reasons that you want to be the CEO of everything. I will tell you straight-out, the position doesn't pay well. You don't want it.

There is that fine balance of just going with the flow but also taking necessary baby steps to move forward. I get that. Letting go of what you can't control will help you do this.

Trust me.

3. Listen to your heart.

Shhhh. Can you hear that? Probably not. It's your beautiful heart.

We are often so busy that we don't take time with her. It can be weeks or months or years or even an entire lifetime without giving her the attention she requires.

Your heart speaks so much more quietly than what comes from our brains. You really have to pay attention to the softness. In the hustle and bustle of the world, many don’t take the time to listen in their go-go world. The heart often does not get the same time of day as the brain. Why is that?

Just being rather than doing all the time can help you hear her. Sitting with her in contemplation will help her feel safe enough to speak up. It may take a number of times before she trusts you enough to share what she has in her.

Give her the time.

Give your heart the microphone. She speaks magic.

4. Daily self-care.

Self-care can be considered a buzzword for looking after your own needs. How often do we look after the needs of others before our own needs? I would tend to think that we are all guilty of this to some degree.

What would your personal care need list look like?

A daily walk?

A bubble bath?

Playing guitar?

Reading?

Reaching out to a friend to share your thoughts?

Doing nothing for the afternoon?

Staring up to the cosmos?

Maybe it looks different every day.

Just find that something that puts you in the zone of you and only you.

Every day.

Your health depends on it. Your life joy depends on it.

As Audre Lorde said, “self-care is not self-indulgence, it is self-preservation.”

Make Your Own Life Sticky Note!

Those four things seem simple, don't they? Feel free to use these if you want. Maybe you can think of other items to put on your personal Life Sticky Note.

Four seems like a manageable number to strive for on a daily basis. You don't want to make it feel like a full-time job or anything like that! The list will become second nature to you in a very short period of time, I know it.

The satisfaction of putting a tick beside those items will be gratifying and fulfilling. You will find more peace in your life journey.

Give it a go and let me know how it goes!