7 Indispensable Tips to Help You Get Your Shit Together.
Okay I know the headline sounds a bit over the top. Well, it is your mess we are talking about here and you need to get it together to be able to subjugate and conquer your goals even amidst an ongoing pandemic that seems dim and irreversible.
Here are a few tips that can help you get your mess in a box permanently. Some would work for you if followed diligently while others might take a bit of determination and luck for you to pull through.
But irrespective of all the tips outlined below. Understand that you are perfect even in your imperfection. Believe in yourself and shine bright like a diamond.
So here we go…
Seven vital tips to keep you in check.
Tip #1: Dress your bed every morning.
This never gets old.
Learn to dress your bed every morning after waking up from sleep. There are lots of bed dressing hacks on the internet. Take some time to learn a few tricks.
Often times, we are always in a hurry to go out early in the morning that we forget to dress our beds. I know this is not our first concern but would definitely make our lives easier if followed diligently.
In the beginning, it might feel like a chore but after a while, you would get used to it and build momentum. This will make you more attractive to your peers and give you a sense of responsibility.
Above and beyond, you will feel much better when you go out and return to your bedroom knowing your bed is well dressed. Making it easy for you to settle down.
Tip #2: Discipline
Why Discipline?
Discipline has so many definitions in the English dictionary but the one that I am most fond of is defined as training to improve strength and self-control.
Why is this vital if you want to keep your shit together?
Well, I will tell you in a bit…
Discipline is related to self-control. You cannot just wake up one morning and say you want to change your life without having self-control in you.
It doesn’t work like that. You have to take personal steps on your journey in getting your shit together. You would fall along the way. Like so hard!
But that is okay because you will eventually get up better and stronger. Discipline comes in different forms and you would recognize it when you start making the effort to change and put your shit together.
Some ways I discipline myself include just standing up for hours on a public transport bus or train. I give my seat to the old lady or man who has no place to sit and I gladly stand till I reach my destination.
Another way I discipline myself is by fasting. I just started this recently. I take a day out of the week to fast and pray.
The first day was hell on earth. It felt absurd but I did it anyway. I was so hungry for food and the crazy part of doing this activity is that the day I picked out to fast was the day I was offered to wine and dine with friends and family the most.
The hidden truth here is that temptations would come when you are trying to change habits or keep your act together. You would be tempted to go back to your old ways. Resist by all means. If it is too much for you. Leave that environment for a while and return later.
What might work for me, might not actually work for you. So, I would list some ways you can discipline yourself to achieve more.
a. Help people in need without asking for a penny.
b. Do the chores. Wash those dirty dishes and don’t complain about it.
c. Learn to sit in a quiet place and meditate (min of 15minutes).
d. Read and finish a book within 7 days.
e. Mentor your junior ones.
f. Greet People.
g. Pray in the morning and evening every day.
h. Dress your bed every morning.
Yeah, I know.
Some of them look unreasonable but stick with them for a period and you would start seeing results.
Remember the aim is for you to keep your shit together and discipline acts a major role in your journey towards recovery.
Take it one step at a time and give yourself a lot of grace along the way because starting something new is never easy.
Tip #3: Learn to Say No.
Often times, we are misled by our friends or peers into doing the things we don’t want to do just because we can’t stamp our foot in and say the word “NO”.
Take for example. An old movie which I recently watched named “Ted”.
John Bennett could have said the word “NO” to his best friend Ted on so many occasions but Ted always manages to convince John while he should still hang out with him irrespective of the circumstance.
Supposing John Bennett said the word ‘no’ to his friend. This would have saved him from a lot of troubles and complications.
The point I am trying to make is that there should be a time when we clearly say no to things we don’t want to do when we don’t want to do those things.
Saying no to things that don’t matter to you anymore is not a form of weakness, as a matter of fact, it comes from a place of strength and should not be taken for granted.
Tip #4: Cold Turkey is A Must.
Do you want to stop living in shambles?
Yes!
Okay. Then take the cold turkey definition seriously.
What is Cold Turkey? This can be defined as the complete and abrupt withdrawal of all addictive drugs or anything else on which you have become dependent.
Take it from me. I was a drug addict for more than five years and it was cool at the beginning till it finally hit me that I was unproductive and still living with my parents at the age of 24 doing nothing.
I had this urge every time to smoke or drink every day. All my friends I had back then were all drug addicts. We had rendezvous on so many occasions. It was not easy quitting.
I literally cried to God for help most times.
And he finally helped me quit.
I had counsel from different sources…
I followed Preston Smiles on YouTube. A crazy amazing dude who inspired me to change my life. I also had help from pastors and teachers who guided me on this journey to recovery.
I followed Mel Robbins on Twitter. I hope to find a lady that is as amazing as she is. 😊
Do you see the pattern here?
I dumped all the toxic people in my life and decided to follow people in my life that can inspire me to be better and that is how I improved.
I stopped listening to music that made me think doing drugs is awesome.
I got clarity when I quit taking drugs and found out that things can actually get a bit better when one is sober and focused.
Take a verse in the bible from Timothy 1:3 (English Standard Version) which says:
“Therefore, an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach.”
Life can be hard sometimes but doing drugs is not the solution. Seek help and talk to your loved ones about what is going on in your life.
It is really annoying when you have no control over a drug you use. You can’t tell yourself that today you want to stop and actually do it because you are too deep in it. It really sucks.
Above all, pray to God to help you if you feel helpless and feel all hope is lost.
Tip #5: Hygiene and Sanitation.
There is a popular proverb which goes like this; “Cleanliness is next to Godliness”. This expresses the idea that those who are pure and wholesome are close to God.
This proverb was put forward in the 17th century and referred to both moral purity and personal hygiene.
Often times, people think this proverb comes from the bible.
Contrary to what people think, it does not come from the bible and stems from the writings of the great English Scientist and philosopher Sir Francis Bacon.
In Advancement of Learning, 1605, he wrote:
“Cleanness of body was ever esteemed to proceed from a due reverence to God, to society, and to ourselves.”
We owe it to ourselves to keep ourselves clean and our surroundings if want to achieve a state of productivity.
Personal hygiene and sanitation are habitually not taken seriously. We all want to make money that we forget to take care of ourselves.
Some of us go out without taking our baths or washing our mouths or hands. This is weird and has to do with the mindset of that individual.
The ability to take care of yourself shows that you are responsible and puts you in a state of orderliness and virtue. You make the best of decisions if you are in this state.
Tip #6: Exercise
I can’t overemphasize the need to exercise and keep in shape. This is good for your body, mind, and even soul.
Some people don’t like exercising which I can relate to a bit. They don’t want to feel any form of pain in their body, which is fair, knowing fully well that exercising can be really stressful and even painful when starting out.
But if you go online and do some research on people who took their workouts seriously and how it has helped them in their lives. You might be inspired and probably change your mind on how you perceive exercises.
Think about your health, ponder on the things you could have avoided if you just exercised two or three times a week. It is only fair to your body to take care of it knowing fully well you live inside of it.
I am not saying that you should stick to a diet or be a vegetarian. Just work out and keep fit. It will ease your mind and make you feel invincible.
Tip #7: Hold On
The last tip for getting your shit together is tagged “Hold on”.
Life could be tough sometimes.
We all go through things that shape us for good or for bad and that is okay because we are not perfect. We are not machines programmed to answer a difficult math problem.
Most times, we live life with no beliefs at all. We don’t believe that things can change for the better but it can.
There is so much good in this world and we tend to focus our energy on the bad ones that we forget the good ones that are available for us and are free.
So, my last tip is instructing you to hold on.
Be hopeful and hold on to anything you hold dear.
Hold on to your loved ones because they will always be there for you.
Cleave on to life because, with it, there is always a beam of hope.
It is not all about complaining every time but about maintaining.
Hold on and never ever feel like a loser or failure.
We are all we got.
Believe in yourself.
Believe that you can do this.
That you can actually get your shit together.
Stay safe and test negative.
I presume that you have read everything above. If you have, I want to say congratulations to you. This is your first step to the road of recovery.
The next step is to take a deliberate approach to make changes to your life. Start taking small steps till you reach the end of your journey.
And always remember that you are loved and cherished by your loved ones and God has made you in His own image and likeness. You have the power and will to change everything you don’t like.
Note of Thanks
I want to thank everyone on the medium platform for inspiring me to start writing.
I am a newbie here on medium but I have been reading a lot of great articles on this platform from great writers like Gustavo Razetti, Henneke, Amy Brill, Shannon Ashley, Ayodeji Awosika, Thomas Oppong and others.
Thank you, guys, for inspiring me to write.
I hope to reach your standards someday.
