Author: beinggoode

I'm a writer working in corporate responsibility in Los Angeles. Trying to figure out how to use my limited resources to make the most impact to the issues that matter to me, how to be the smartest giver possible.

Weekly Check-In

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This week I dove into research and was reminded of how much self-care is really needed. All the news and emotions and divisions can be toxic in too high doses. So it’s important to take time away from screens and doing things you love.

Volunteering

  • 4 hours Crisis Text Line

Charitable Giving

  • $0  – Good things are coming!

Personal Kindness

  • This week I had an awkward meeting. The other two people were very clearly nervous and unsure about what to say or how to act. The easiest response is to feed off of their energy and that leaves everyone feeling uneasy. So I did my best to smile, be positive, and let them know with my vibe that it’s okay to be uneasy. I wanted them to know it’s okay not to know what to say, I won’t judge. I hope my vibe helped ease the situation. At the very least I didn’t take on thier unease.

Self Care

  • Knitting! I’ve been craving quiet time just knitting away and I’ve been making that time. I have a project to finish and just bought some new yarn for more projects. I also got together with some knitting friends and even though it was just an hour it was so nice.
  • Cleaning, one of my new year’s resolutions is to have a consistently cleaner house. Get rid of the clutter, not leave the folded laundry on the couch, try to keep up with the dog fur, that kind of thing. I’m not a dirty person but I find myself in a cleaning frenzy when other people are coming over. I want to clean for me not just for others.

How’d you do this week?

Beat Bad Days

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Keeping a bad movement from turning into a bad day seems impossible sometimes but it can make all the difference. How many of you have had a bad morning, someone cut you off in traffic, you got a hole in your pants, you got a parking ticket, the store you needed to go to was closed, you have a headache, or maybe two or three things like that happened? All of us have felt this way and normally we tell our friends and family we’re having a bad day. It takes a few bad moments and writes the rest of the day off as awful before it even gets a chance.

I’m going to share with you what happened to me last week and how I fought off the bad day. It was pouring down rain and I had to walk through puddles and arrived to work with wet feet and jeans, strike 1. I had a meeting that I was excited about and just enough time to get coffee. I waited in line at the coffee shop for 15-20, very annoying, strike 2. Moments after I got my coffee I discovered that the lid wasn’t on correctly and burned my hand pretty badly, it not only hurt but it threatened to make me late and I didn’t get my morning coffee, strike 3. Bad day right?! Not so fast. I went to the meeting I was excited about, went to the nurse for some first aid, and then talked to a friend; three counter-strikes. I told myself over and over all day that I wasn’t having a bad day just because a few bad things happened. I refused to give into it, that easy temptation to just give up on the day.

So what happened the rest of the day that I might have missed if I’d written the day off? I had a fun conversation with my Sister-in-Law, a friend shared some wonderful news with me, and I won the lottery ($12)! Now I guess these things could have happened anyway but I think that being open to and ready for them made a difference. Bad days don’t need your help or encouragement.

 

 

I’m still working on choosing my first organizations for the Purple State Challenge. #PurpleStateChallenge Stay tuned and please let me know if you have suggestions for organizations to feature.

Weekly Check-In

On By beinggoodeIn WeeklyLeave a comment

Volunteering

  • 4 hours Crisis Text Line

Charitable Giving

  • $0  – Still doing some research

Personal Kindness

  • I don’t know if this is exactly a personal kindness but this week someone said that they were inspired by me because I run/walk great distances happily. They were visiting a theme park and walking all over the place and thought to themselves, if she can do it I can do it, and it made thier walk feel better. When they told me about it I smiled from ear to ear.

Self Care

  • Most of my self care lately has been resting to recover from injuries. I’ll get back to doing some of the fun things I love… after a few more naps.

How’d you do this week?

Purple State Challenge

On By beinggoodeIn Purple State ChallengeLeave a comment

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These past months in American have been rough.

We are divided, hurt, and angry. What has struck me the most is how divided we are, what an unemphatic state we are in. So as I sat down and thought about what I could do, I came up with the Purple State Challenge. I’ve decided to reach out and pop some of these bubbles we keep hearing about and hopefully I can blur the lines a little bit between the red and blue states.

There are 52 states (plus a district and territory) and there are 52 weeks in a year. In this challenge I will find, write about, and donate to 52 local organizations across America. The goal is to find an organization helping with a local issue, let people know that I care about their issues, and try to help. I want to acknowledge why people are hurt and angry, I want to listen. It’s going to take a lot of research, hopefully you can help, but I think it’s going to be an incredibly rewarding journey. I already know and support wonderful local to me and national organizations but it’s time to pop my California bubble and see how I can help everywhere.

I hope you’ll join me. I need input from you! Tell me what means the most to you locally. Tell me about the superhero organizations that I know are out there. Comment and follow along. I’ll be starting a monthly newsletter to track my process through the Purple State Challenge.

2016 Yearly Check-In

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I know it’s been a hard year with all the bad news in the news. We lost Bowie and Prince; Brexit, the US Election, and the endless coverage of both were very draining. But I hope if you take a moment to look at your own life you’ll see all the good news that 2016 brought.

Volunteering

275275 Hours – Most of these hours were spent on Crisis Text Line helping people cope with all the bad news in the news. But I also got to experience my first Invictus Games, I volunteered hours giving blood and platelets, I made blankets and scarves, and a few hours here and there doing whatever I could. I can’t believe I spent an average of 45 minutes a day volunteering.

 

 

Charitable Giving

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  • I’d have to go back and add up all the small donations I made this year. It wasn’t much because of the financial struggles in my life but when I gave I gave with all my heart.

 

 

 

 

Personal Kindness

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  • This year I really noticed as I sat down to write the nice things I’d done for others the first things that would always pop into my mind were the nice things others had done for me. It just showed me how these easy nice things you can sneak into your week make a huge difference in people’s lives.

 

 

Self Care

  • handI ran a marathon! And I have trained for another one in the beginning of January. The challenges of running long distances and committing to myself has been endlessly rewarding. It makes me feel like I can do anything.
  • I traveled. This year marked my first volunteering vacation and also my first time back in Europe in a decade. And I followed the Dalai Lama instructions to “Once a year, go somewhere you’ve never been before,” with a trip to Austin.
  • I took time to be calm and quiet and pamper myself when needed.

 

How’d you do this year? Are you ready for 2017?

I have big plans for 2017 that I will be announcing here on January 16th. I’m excited for the new opportunities and the new lessons that the new year will bring. Thank you for reading. Happy New Year!

Weekly Check-In

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I’m feeling very joyful and ready for a calm and happy holiday weekend. I had some big wins in my personal kindness this week and I’m still feeling the joy of those.

Volunteering

  • 4 hours Crisis Text Line

Charitable Giving

  • $0

Personal Kindness

  • A friend of mine who has been looking for work for a few months recently found and started a new job. I decided to send her some flowers as a congratulations. We’re not super close and it’s expensive to send flowers but the joy it brought the both of us is far greater than any excuses I can come up with. Send flowers to someone if you can, it’s amazing.
  • I was getting coffee one morning this week and the line moved up and somehow I got in front of the gentleman who was in front of me in line. I tried to get him to take his place in line back but he wouldn’t. He was happier than most people are after thier morning coffee. So when I got to the front I ordered and when the cashier said “anything else” I just said “and whatever he’s having”. It was such a nice split second decision. It is also exactly what I mean by throw kindness around like snowballs. Could that money have gone to a charity or someone who needs it more? Maybe. But it was an easy way to be kind and feel joy this season so I did it.

Self Care

  • I’ve been checking things off my to-do list since work is calmer and quieter than normal.
  • I’ve also been putting some time in journaling and prepping my 2017 planner. Reflecting back and looking forward. Tis the season.
  • I just took my puppy dog to get a bath. It’s a treat for her that’s really a treat for me. They trim her paws and nails so that they are cuter than I can stand and she smells so nice.

How’d you do this week?

Throw Kindness like Snowballs

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I’m going to go against my own advice a little bit and say it’s okay this time of year to not be as thoughtful. I’ll explain.

Around the holidays the donation jars, bins, and trucks seem to multiple infinitely. From Santa ringing a bell in front of the stores to giant bins at the grocery store to trucks lined up at a local parking lot to collections in your office. There are hundreds of people working to make it easier to give this time of year. So give! Put some change in a jar, buy an extra toy or canned good. It doesn’t have to be much.

This is the time of year to get in the spirit and I think an important way to that is to let go of the stress and contemplation and just be in the moment. It will be January soon and we can go back to thinking through every donation carefully. But for now I encourage you to shift your mindfulness into the moment. Hold doors, buy someone hot chocolate or bake cookies, sing, hug, and just spread joy. There’s a saying “Throw kindness around like confetti,” this time of year I say throw kindness around like snowballs!*

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*I do have an asterisk to this post. If you’re feeling sadness, depression, or just stressed and down – take time for yourself! Self-care is still important or is more important during the holidays. If you need to reach out, please find help.

Weekly Check-In

On By beinggoodeIn WeeklyLeave a comment

As the holidays approach I’m feeling less and less on top of it. Things are slipping through the cracks a little bit but what I’m making sure isn’t missed are the really important things. Primary, the joy of the season.

Volunteering

  • 4 hours Crisis Text Line

Charitable Giving

  • ~$1 I put some change in the Ronald McDonald house bucket when I got coffee twice this week
  • $1 in a local homeless program bucket

Personal Kindness

  • I gave someone directions. I was in the middle of a run, completely in my own mind, in my zone. But stopping to give someone who seemed very lost directions only added a minute or two to that mile and it was helpful to that person.
  • I bought someone’s dinner. It wasn’t much and wasn’t necessary but it was nice and it felt good doing it.

Self Care

  • I’ve been focusing hard on training for the marathon that’s quickly creeping up. Keeping exercise and diet commitments is a wonderful way to take care of yourself.
  • I had a meet up with another Crisis Text Line volunteer. It’s great to see my comrades in person.

How’d you do this week?

Weekly Check-In

On By beinggoodeIn WeeklyLeave a comment

Some excitement at work distracted me from being productive. I think it’s good excitement but we’ll see how it plays out. Lots of changes to come.

Volunteering

  • 4 hours Crisis Text Line.

Charitable Giving

  • $35 to Planned Parenthood via a contest to win Hamilton tickets. *Fingers crossed*

Personal Kindness

  • I got a sweet and very personal Facebook message this week. Just saying something nice to someone you love can mean so much. Take a second to say something nice to someone. Send a quick message, pick up the phone, send a card.

Self Care

  • With my new job I have better health insurance so I’m systematically going to all the doctors!
  • December 5th is Repeal Day. I added this celebration to my holidays a few years ago when there was a local party. The party is discontinued but I’ve kept the tradition. We went out on a Monday night to get holiday drinks and celebrate the right to alcohol.

How’d you do this week?