Twee Troubles // The Mean Reds Pt 2

Pic - Screengrab from Breakfast at Tiffany's


Hey sweets,


Carrying on from Part 1 of 'Twee Troubles // Overcoming The Mean Reds' - we're bring the second installment of tips of getting out of a funk and chasing away The Mean Reds...

Photo: Tim Walker

6. Get out in Nature - Again, when you're working every day and running a blog and business at home in the evenings, it is so easy to forget this little inner light restoring activity - we live just a minutes walk away from lovely rolling fields and little woodland areas, we have 2 beautiful lakes full of wildlife just a stones throw in the other direction yet so rarely do we go outside and enjoy it. We've planned some time to get out and have a little picnic (how sad that it must be scheduled! but it's the biggest 'happy habit' we have to work on fitting in) and see if we can work more walks and rambles out in Mother Nature into our lives!


7. Set goals - While we believe it's important to live in the here and now, it's also good to know where you're headed, what you're aiming for, where all this hard work is taking you. It's especially important to remember these in times of stress and difficulty as we know we're working so hard and commit so much time because we love She Dressed in Black and we want to continue to watch it grow. It's good to have little goals too, some that we have set ourselves so far this year is to be more impulsive (purchasing The Vogue Festival tickets was very spontaneous for us!) and putting ourselves out there a little more - Einstein's quote 'The definition of insanity is doing the same things over and over again and expecting different results' - sometimes if you want to move forward you have to start thinking and doing things differently!


8. Stay Focused - similarly to above, when you lose focus it is so easy to feel lost in yourself, and that's when the mean red's like to get their claws into you! Keep your goals written down and carry them with you as a quick reminder. Switch off distractions (tempting as it is to settle down in front of trash tv in the evening, we know that we work best when the telly is off, we've got some good tunes in the background and we're not being sidetracked by the latest scandal on Gossip Girl!), regularly write to do lists and work out your priorities so you don't get bogged down by the unimportant things.





9. Believe in yourself - self belief is everything, and every time you let doubts about yourself creep in, you knock yourself back and make yourself vulnerable to the mean reds. This lovely saying sums it all up 'She believed she could. So she did.' - Need this print in Twee Towers as a constant reminder!


10. Nurture your Inner child - "Hello in there little one, and what would you like to do today?" - sometimes in the grips of those mean red's we're behaving like a petulant child, inwardly throwing the mother of all tantrums - did you know that toddlers generally throw tantrums out of frustration with their lack of ability to effectively communicate their needs or express their emotions? Sound familiar grumpy grown ups? Sometimes your inner child needs to be heard and sometimes your inner child needs to be indulged. It's good to let your playful side loose and relive your childhood days, run around, be silly, go on the swings, listen to naff pop music (or groove after dinner with our After Dinner Dance Parties) put too many sprinkles on your icecream... It's also good to remember that unlike a child you can effectively communicate your needs and express your emotions - so don't keep all that mean red ammunition bottled up - let it go!

Hope you've enjoyed this mini series - living by these 10 simple guidelines have made us feel one million times happier, less stressed and most importantly in control! We'd love to hear if you have any other tips for chasing the worse-than-blues away!

Much love,
R&L xx