Five things we have NO time for in 2023
Society is changing. Conversations are shifting, topics that were once taboo are now openly discussed, people want to know themselves more deeply, and live fuller lives. As I look at social media and society as a whole, sometimes I feel really hopeful about the way energy is shifting and changing, and sometimes I feel angry and hopeless. There is still so much change to be done. Here are five things I think we all must embrace in order to continue shifting our world in the right direction - five things we have been trained are important but that we must work on leaving behind this year.
Five things we have absolutely no time for in 2023:
Being on trend — I’ve never really understood the need to be on trend. In fact, my stubborn spiritual Scorpio side can take it to the other extreme and say - if it’s popular I want nothing to do with it. But that’s unnecessary and misses the point. The point is it doesn’t matter what other people do or don’t like - it only matters what feels good for you. Part of listening to our intuition is listening to how something feels. How do you feel when you do a certain activity, wear a certain type of clothing, listen to a certain type of music? If it feels good for you, it is meant for you. And if you’re feeling good, chances are you will exude that energy outwards as well. If we make our own decisions on what we like instead of only allowing ourselves to be “influenced,” we may learn a lot about our true interests and opinions. It doesn’t matter if it’s the most “basic” or the most niche thing - if you love it, own it.
Pretending not to care — I care about things! A lot! And that makes me happy. I love the things I care about. I love to be excited and passionate about the topics I care about. I love when something makes me feel alive and lit up. We need more of this energy in the world. I’m discerning about what I care about and the topics and items I don’t care about, I don’t let myself get swept up in. But I am choosing to express and truly feel the passion I have for the things I love. It is okay to be exuberant about what you care about, even if someone else doesn’t care about it at all. Own what you love and be passionate about it.
Letting differing opinions cause separation — I recently heard a quote that was something along the lines of “have strong views loosely held.” I really resonate with this. We all have our thoughts and opinions based off of our life experiences and personalities. But, we have to be open to the possibility that we may be wrong and that our minds can change. We have to be willing to hear others’ point of view with openness. We have to allow others to have differing opinions without immediately making them “other” or bad. The world already has too much separation. Whenever I don’t understand someone else’s point of view, I remind myself that there is a reason that they think this way - they may be thinking about my opinion and wondering the same thing. If you look beneath the surface, you may find that despite differing opinions, you have more in common than you may think.
Talking about people’s appearances — I’ve got no time for it. None. I’m so fed up with how society is centred around this conversation. There are too many other things going on in life for us to waste time criticising and obsessing over appearances, both others and our own. Keeping our minds fixated on appearances keeps us distracted from what truly matters. It takes up time that could be spent present, pursuing our passions, living our lives. It keeps us blind to what is really going on in the world and steals our peace and confidence. When you start to pay attention to it, you may realise how much time, energy and money is spent on making sure we feel badly about ourselves. It has become engrained in us that we need a new product, a new diet, a new exercise routine to fix us, that we should care about what that celebrity looks like or compliment someone’s weight loss. Choosing to say no and opt out of this conversation is empowering and it’s also extremely challenging. It takes conscious work and effort to do so in a world that is always trying to suck you in, but I hope this year we bring more awareness to this conversation.
Saying no when you want to say yes and yes when you want to say no — Whether it’s fear, people pleasing, or trying to fit in with the crowd… we’ve all done it. We have all quieted our true thoughts and needs and turned our back on our intuitions. I refuse to do it anymore! If it is not a full body yes, it’s a no - this goes for small and big decisions. Yes, sometimes you have to make sacrifices, but try being honest about your real feelings regardless of what the outcome will be. It’s ok to tell someone no, even if you think you’ll disappoint them. It’s ok to say yes to something even if no one else is doing so. And remember, you are not responsible for how other people respond to your actions. Be honest with yourself and show up for your truth.
