Let’s give it another try: 2018, the year of self care. After years of putting other people’s interest before your own, it’s time to turn things around. At least, that’s how we feel at Qlick.

Imagine what life would be like if you’d really love yourself? What if you would accept yourself without any criticism on how you look, your actions, your clothes, your bankaccount, your job, … Imagine being totally okay with yourself. Well, that’s what we, as Qlick, aim for in 2018!

To make things easier, we’d like to help you on your way. So here they are … our 10 tips:

1 Stop making up excuses

Are you also an expert at making up excuses? Is it your habit to downsize yourself, to assume that you’d better stick to the life you lead now and not to follow your dreams? If so, there’s no point for you reading this tip. However, if you really want to take better care of yourself, stand up for yourself and chase your dreams, then this might be the most important one of our ten tips. Every time you have an excuse ready, ask yourself the following question: ‘Am I really not able to do this?’ You’ll find that most of the time, you are perfectly capable of doing whatever it was you were considering, and that the real bottleneck appears to be fear or sheer lack of will!

2 Send your perfectionism to the moon, you no longer need it

When will ‘good’ be good enough for you? When will you really be satisfied? Very often we are our harshest critics and we get entangled in a web of perfectionism. But let’s be honest: that one perfect moment, how much is that really worth in the totality of our life? Does it make us happier? (Except perhaps for a small instant shot?). Does it really bring us closer to our goals? I don’t think so… It will certainly not improve our selfcare, on the contrary. Perfectionism only puts our inner critic in the front row and that’s not where we want to have him.

3 Go with the flow

Put yourself on the wave of life and you’ll notice how much more relaxed you will look at things. So many people swim against the current these days. No wonder they feel exhausted! When you really trust what lies ahead of you, you’ll live more in the flow and you’ll be able to enjoy living in the now and to live with increased intensity.

4 Saying ‘No’ is OK

How often do you find yourself thinking: ’I don’t want this’ while saying ‘Sure, no problem!’. And even putting on a big smile at the same time…

If you really want to incorporate self care in 2018, you will have to take care of yourself first! It’s a cliché, but a real truism: ‘Saying No to someone else often is saying Yes to yourself’. So, as mentioned before: no more finding excuses and start saying ‘No’ more often!

5 Toxic people … yuck

No one has ever become successful by surrounding himself with gossipers and negative people. Such people just drain your energy, it’s like they control you and on top of that, you’ll turn into a very suspicious person yourself!

Skim through your list of contacts and evaluate whom of your acquaintances, realives or friends is showing this type of behaviour. Evidently, it can be necessary to keep in touch with some of them – business, for one, can be a reason – and should that be the case, prepare yourself to keep a distance and to no let these people into your heart and brain. This way there will be more room for inspiring, positive people who will support you to make your dreams come true!

6 Give yourself more compliments

No more false modesty this year! Whenever you do something well, give yourself a pat on the back. The more you compliment yourself, the less dependent you’ll become on external acknowledgement. This will set you free. It will strenghten and empower you.

Now pat yourself on the back for reading this blog 🙂 What a nice way to start 2018!

7 Stop short term thinking

Dare to dream, dare to look beyond tomorrow, next week or next year. What do you want other people to say about you when you’re gone? Start implementing this as of today! I can’t imagine you’d fancy something like ‘He always worked so hard, it killed him.’ Or: ‘She was always there for others, but forgot to take care of herself.’ Honestly?

8 Treat yourself

Make a bucketlist. It doesn’t need to show extra ordinary things. Small treats can also be very fulfilling! When was the last time you did something to please yourself? Or took some me-time in the middle of the day, just because you felt like it? Attention: chances are you’re making up several excuses right now. See tip 2.

9 Take care of your body, you only have one!

Less sugar, less alcohol, more exercise,… January is typically the month of good intentions. To be honest, that’s not a bad idea after the excess that December brought: high calory meals and snacks, a nice glass of wine (or two or …), Christmas cakes and puddings and …

January provides us with the renewal we need. Self care starts here. Soon you’ll discover that excercise, healthy meals and less alcohol, are revitalizing boosters. And a reason to compliment yourself! See tip 6.

10 Believe in yourself

There’s no one like you! You are unique and that makes you strong, powerful and original. Having thoughts like this will enforce you to finally do what you’ve been wanting to do for so long. This life comes without a general rehearsal. This is your premiere! You don’t get to redo it. So if you aim for a standing ovation at the end, make sure you’ll do everything to make your dreams come true.

Go for it! 2018 will be your year!

Need more tips? Be your own leader and Retreat in Thailand