At YOMU we love connecting with wise, inspiring women so when we came across Kate Porter, we knew we had to introduce you to her.

Kate, a true cheerleader of women, has shared her wisdom with us and starts with that all too tricky question, “Who do you see when you look in the mirror?” which is something I know can feel hard to answer, honestly.

Over to you, Kate.

“Who do you see when you look in the mirror?

Does she seem like a stranger?

Have you lost sight of woman you really are, and feel like you are stagnating in midlife limbo?

Our Second Spring is a pivotal time in our lives, and it is easy to become overwhelmed by the changes taking place both to ourselves and our lives. You can feel like you have lost your power, and lost sight of the direction you want to go.

But you are not alone, and you don’t need fixing. You are not a broken plate that needs sticking back together into a slightly misshaped version of the “old” you.

It’s time to supercharge your self-love, and turn how you feel about you from “Meh!” to “Mwah!”

Your midlife isn’t a time for blame and shame. Your past has happened – and your future is waiting for you to live it your way. You’ve followed life’s signposts, and it’s time to create new ones so that you can embrace your second chapter on your terms.

Are you ready to unleash the new you? The real you that has been trapped languishing in the midlife fog? The true you that you have held back with self-imposed limits and doubts? It’s time to leave the old you in the past where she belongs.

Take some vital Me Time, grab a pen and notepad, and follow my three steps to supercharge your self-love. By the end of this article, you will have started rediscovering how fabulous you are, unleashing your hidden gems, and celebrating perfectly imperfect you.

Your Second Spring is your time to shine, and to start making your second chapter count. And self-love lies at the heart of this. Self-love isn’t narcissistic or big-headed – being selfish is vital. Loving yourself in a big-hearted way benefits you, and everyone else around you too. If you don’t love yourself first you will get lost feeling unfulfilled and insignificant. If you devote all your energy to pleasing others for fear of rejection and live by others’ “shoulds” it will lead to your inner critic shouting “can’ts” and the resulting self-doubt and lack of self-worth.

But all that is about to change – and so are you!

Supercharging your self-love is about the four As: acknowledge; accept; appreciate and adore. And these three “Me in 3” exercises will help you embrace them.

Before you start, on a scale of 1-10, how do you feel about yourself today? With 1 being “Meh!” and 10 being fabulously “Mwah!”. Remember that number.

For your first “Me in 3”, take a long look at yourself in the mirror. What do you see? Not laughter lines, or that hair on your chin that wasn’t there yesterday. Look deep into your eyes – to the real you. Now, write down three things that you love about yourself right now. Not “I am a”, which are labels and don’t define you. Choose three things that reflect your values, what you really love about you at your core. You can also use these to create daily affirmations so they become your reality: your brain will take them as instructions and start making them happen!

Next, think of three things that you are proud of achieving. Times when you felt amazing. Close your eyes and capture that feeling now. Then write down these three things, and use them to start your Fabulous Jar, which you can fill with other “I am proud of” messages to dip into when you need an instant boost.

Finally, think of three things that you would love to do for yourself, but have put on the backburner. These can be the simplest things, as long as they will make you feel energised. Now write them down to start your new Ta-Dah list, and make a date with yourself. When could you do them? What can you put in place today to help you achieve them?

Now ask yourself again, on a scale of 1-10 how do you feel about you? Try making these “Me in 3s” part of your regular self-care routine, and celebrate you!

Kate 

Kate Porter is the fabulous Founder of Second Spring Life Coaching® and she is the go to when it comes to nurturing extraordinary Gen X women to take back their power via VIP 1:1 coaching and her all-in-one coaching program The Midlife Metamorphosis Method®.  Based in Bucks but mainly working online, Kate guides and cheerleads dynamic women to escape stagnating in midlife limbo so that they can start living their second chapter their way! Combining  insights from her midlife rebirth with coaching expertise, Kate helps her clients rewrite their midlife story by creating new signposts, smashing stereotypes and shunning self-doubt and judgement to turn the stranger in the mirror into their best friend.

Contact Kate at kate@secondspringlifecoaching.com or visit her website www.secondspringlifecoaching.com