Environment is everything
Photography by Danielle Ann Rose @bydanielleannrose
Your environment is everything
If a flower isn’t growing in its environment, that doesn’t make it any less beautiful and it doesn’t limit it’s potential to flourish either. You would just notice what’s happening and choose to change its soil, water it and find some sunshine because you understand what changes need to be made in order for it to thrive
The same goes for us humans, when we aren’t feeling great mentally, emotionally, or physically, usually it comes down to our environment
If you’re feeling unmotivated and uninspired by life, it’s time to look around and get curious. Are you surrounded by the right people? What content do you consume online? What music or podcasts are you listening to? Does your job fulfil you? What are you thinking about? These are the questions you get to ask yourself in order to create the optimal environment for your growth. When you change your surroundings, you too can begin to thrive, just like a flower
The world you see around you is a reflection of what’s going on inside your heart, body and mind, so if you’re not happy with where you’re at in life right now, start by looking inward, shifting your thoughts and lifting your energy
Get to know yourself better, especially the parts you don’t like very much. When you dismiss and disconnect from aspects of yourself, you limit your ability to fully love and express yourself, but, if you want to expand yourself, your experience of life and the world around you, it’s imperative that you get to know and accept all parts of yourself
Bringing your insecurities to the surface and looking at them in the light takes away their power, whereas suppressing and hiding them away cultivates shame and guilt, strengthening their hold over you, and causing even more discomfort. Only once you acknowledge your inner wounds, deep emotions and greatest insecurities can you take back your power, heal them and grow as a human being. Journalling or speaking about them out loud to another person can give you some perspective and alleviate the build-up of pressure they create inside the mind, these things are only as powerful as we allow them to be
The world you are experiencing and interacting with is the product of your internal thoughts and beliefs. It is not separate from you and you are not separate from it, it is an extension of you and your energy. So, where is your energy flowing? Are you being mindful of your thoughts and the voices you are allowing into your space? You create what you want internally before it manifests into your reality, you are in control and you get to choose what happens next
I speak a lot about energy and how that manifests our reality in my blog posts “You are energy,” “Appreciation and manifestation” and “Manifestation for beginners,” so if you’re interested in hearing more about this topic I recommend reading those next for a more detailed explanation and understanding
“You are the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with”
- Jim Rohn
The people we surround ourselves with, heavily impact our behaviour, attitude, and results in life. That’s why when we spend a fair amount of time with someone we pick up their traits, mannerisms, language, habits etc
What we do, say, and think sets the tone for our daily life and if we are around people who encourage ineffective habits then chances are we will get stuck living an unfulfilling life where we never achieve the goals we set for ourselves because we are being convinced to settle for less. If the people around you are constantly complaining about their circumstances but never taking any responsibility or action to change them, you could quickly fall into the same pattern of behaviour, languaging and mindset of “woe is me”
The same goes for people who encourage effective habits in us, we may end up achieving more than we ever dreamed we could because we had people backing us to strive for more. If the people around you are constantly coming up with new and exciting ideas, having creative thoughts and inspiring conversations, chances are you’re going to develop the same mindset and find yourself feeling motivated and passionate about life as well
Surround yourself with people you admire and look up to because ultimately they’re the people whose, traits, mannerisms, language, and habits you will evidently adopt. Spend time with people whose values you want to share, people whose successes inspire you, and people whose morals you want to live by because they will be the people you become the average of. Actively choose friends who lift you up and believe in you, friends who can see your vision and encourage you to achieve it, friends who are deeply nurturing and nourishing to your life, friends who appreciate your abilities and potential, friends who never let you doubt yourself
The people you attract into your external experience are a mirror of your internal experience, so if you’re wanting to attract better quality connections, start by working on yourself and creating a better quality connection with yourself first
Become your own best friend. Cultivate so much self-love, self-awareness and self-understanding that no matter what life throws at you, you will always be able to persevere because you know you have your own back and are able to learn and grow from all experiences without letting them take over your life completely
You have everything you need within you, every ounce of strength, every spark of motivation, every possible answer, and every bit of love, you have it all within you already. All you’ve got to do is realise that and give yourself the environment you deserve so that you can grow, expand and thrive in the most rewarding and nourishing way possible
Our home environment is such an important aspect of our lives and yet so many people don’t take the time to actually cultivate a warm, homely atmosphere for themselves. When we aren’t feeling 100% the first thing we disregard is the cleanliness of our homes and start putting off chores for another time, which is completely valid and something I absolutely understand and relate to but it’s in those moments that a clean environment can actually benefit us the most because the physical mess around us adds to the clutter in our minds, making it even more difficult to navigate our mental state
Putting intention into the way you decorate and design your home can help you to feel safe and express yourself where you spend most of your time. It always helps me to clean up my personal space when I’m trying to process lots of thoughts and emotions because it allows me to focus on something else while creating more physical and mental space at the same time
Another important aspect of our environment is what we are listening to and whose voices and opinions we are being exposed to, this relates to the conversations we’re having, the social media accounts we’re following, the music and podcasts we’re listening to and the shows we’re watching, all of it is being absorbed into both our conscious and subconscious minds
Choose uplifting podcasts or music that allows you to express yourself without keeping you too stuck in a specific emotion. Make sure to mix it up and get a variety of genres playing so that if a certain song does allow you to express an emotion like sadness, you can break the pattern and shift your energy when needed. I’m a big fan of songs that evoke emotion but sometimes it can be too much, so I make sure to switch it up when necessary. Jay Shetty’s podcast On Purpose is my personal favourite, I love the way he explains things and expresses himself. I also love the conversations he has with his guests so I highly recommend that one, if you’re needing something new and encouraging to listen to
Everything is connected, each little moment impacts the next, gaining momentum, and ultimately forming your entire life. So, I encourage you to be more intentional about your environment and make those little moments count
It doesn’t matter if someone has been your friend for a long time, if you’ve lived somewhere your whole life or if that’s just how it’s “always been.” You get to choose what’s right for you, you get to decide what’s working and what’s not, and you can always, always, always choose something different
