Confession: I’ve been beating myself up about it for weeks.

While traveling in Costa Rica with my man and our friends Liz and Dave I found myself waking up in the wee hours worrying about money. I felt my anxiety sucking me away from the tropical adventures at hand. It didn’t feel good.

Recently I was being interviewed about my philosophies about nutrition and health, and I heard this come out of my mouth:

My number one piece of advice to women is to put down the flail when it comes to food and exercise.

As soon as I uttered those words, I knew that they apply to EVERYTHING, not just food and exercise. And yet beating ourselves up is like a national past time.

If you’re an achievement-driven girl like me (and so many women I know) who tends toward self-flagellation when things aren’t going as she’d like, I have a remedy.

1. Remind that little inner drill sergeant of yours that beating yourself up is a waste of time. 

I like being productive nearly as much as I like feeling loved. Seriously. So when I realize that I’m being super hard on myself, especially about something I’ve already done that I can’t do anything about anymore, I remind myself of one simple thing:

There’s nothing productive about beating yourself up. It’s wasted time. (Tweet it.)

Instead, I redirect as quickly as possible to actions that move me closer to the way I’d like things to be or feel. I look for the lesson in the mistake and see where I can implement it in the HERE and NOW. The energy I save when I put down the flail can be used toward producing things that help the world. And that’s where I’d like to be focusing most of the time. Wouldn’t you?

2. Surrender Dorothy.

Two days ago, while in one of my a panty-twisted money tizzys, I decided I needed a little Goddess love. So I pulled out my favorite Doreen Virtue Goddess Guidance Cards. (She also has an app for the iPhone where you can pick Goddesses on the go. Oh my Goddess it’s amazing!)

I thought about my financial angst. I thought about how much of a loser I feel like that I don’t always make perfect money decisions. I thought about what a fraud I feel like when I make mistakes in an area that I teach about. (News flash that likely won’t shock you: I’m not perfect.)

I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and pulled two cards out of the deck. I got:

Mother Mary: Expect a miracle and Kuan Yin: Compassion.

Long. Deep. Loving. Breath.

“Put down the flail,” these Goddesses said together.

I immediately remembered how much better I am with my money than I was ten years ago. I reminded myself that I’m not the only person on the planet who’s not perfect. I assured myself that everything was going to be okay.

I spoke to myself as Mother Mary and Kuan Yin would. It felt damn good.

3. Tap it out. Yep, tap it right out.

One of the most immediate ways I’ve found to feel better is the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT), also known as tapping. It’s a brilliant, free, quick method that involves tapping on a series of points on your body to feel better. It works every time I try it.

My friends Jess and Nick Ortner, the dynamic brother/sister duo, have a free Tapping World Summit going on that starts on Monday. They’re bringing together some of the world’s leading experts in emotional, spiritual, and physical well-being to teach you how to release pain and suffering in your life. For free. Cheryl Richardson, Kris Carr, Dr. Mark Hyman, Jack Canfield, and Bob Proctor are all going to be a part of it, to name a few.

Monday’s free sessions are on Tapping and Finances: How to Create an Abundant and Fulfilling Financial Future Through Tapping and Ending the Self-Sabotaging Behaviors That Block Success. I’ll be tuning in for sure.

To join the free Tapping World Summit, click HERE. 

Here’s the thing, no matter how far along our path we get, we’re still going to make mistakes. I teach financial well-being and yet before the holidays I made some spending decisions I wish I hadn’t that made my money life a little uncomfortable for a few months. Weight-loss coaches sometimes binge. Life coaches’ lives sometimes get messy. Spiritual teachers sometimes have complete and total meltdowns.

We’re all human. We all make mistakes. We’re all going to keep making mistakes.

So please, for the love of God and Goddess, and for the love of YOU:

Put down the flail.

Save your energy for feeling good and helping other people feel good. You can’t go wrong with that as your compass.

P.S. If you want to learn how to feel good more often, quickly, and easily, sign up for The World Tapping Summit. It’s free. I’ll see you there.

Seriously, though, I think my mom is my biggest fan and I’m pretty sure I’m hers.

Our relationship isn’t perfect, but as far as mothers and daughters go I think we’ve got it pretty good. She’s paved the way for my sister and me, not to mention millions of other women, to be more free. Not only do I have my mom to thank for giving me life,  I also have her to thank for putting me on the path to financial freedom early on when she first handed me Robert Kiyosaki’s book Rich Dad, Poor Dad(If you haven’t done so already, buy this book and read it. Life. Changer.) So if it weren’t for her in more ways than one, The Freedom Tour wouldn’t ever have existed.

Here’s my favorite thing to do with my mom: LAUGH! Laugh so hard that we can’t breathe. Laugh so hard that we pee our pants. Laugh so hard that our faces hurt. Laugh so hard that we fall down.

Watch the video below if you want to laugh your face off with us. If you don’t giggle like crazy at the story we tell together I think you should double check to see if you have a pulse. Tune in to this very special episode of Glimpse TV to find out:

• how to take an incredible picture with a real smile every time,
• what my mom means when she says she was “born funny”,
• how to break the mother-daughter chain of pain,
• how family members keep one another stuck and how to get yourself unstuck,
• the scientific reason why we are so desperate to please our mothers,
• and, of course, hysterical laughter!

For more of my mom, aka Dr. Christiane Northrup:

www.drnorthrup.com

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Twitter

Her books: Women’s Bodies, Women’s Wisdom; Mother-Daughter Wisdom, and The Wisdom of Menopause (newly updated and revised!)

Spread the love and tweet about this episode of Glimpse TV:

I think as we get older we get funnier.~@coachoncall to @drchrisnorthrup via @katenorthrup #glimpsetv http://bit.ly/sbsGB2

If it’s worth taking seriously, it’s worth making fun of. @drchrisnorthrup to @katenorthrup #glimpsetv http://bit.ly/sbsGB2

@DrChrisNorthrup’s fail-proof tip for looking good in every picture you take: #glimpsetv w/ @katenorthrup http://bit.ly/sbsGB2

Scientific reason we want 2 please our mothers + what 2 do about it: #glimpsetv w/ @DrChrisNorthrup and @katenorthrup http://bit.ly/sbsGB2

Something happened to me this year and I got unscared. ~@DrChrisNorthrup to @katenorthrup #glimpsetv http://bit.ly/sbsGB2

Fear is excitement w/o the breath. ~Robert Heller via @katenorthrup to @DrChrisNorthrup #glimpsetv http://bit.ly/sbsGB2

What in your life are you taking seriously that you might try making fun of after hearing from my mom? When do you feel most free? Other thoughts and comments welcome. Leave them below!

Cheryl basically put life coaching on the map and is a world-renowned speaker, author, and coach. My favorite of her books is The Art of Extreme Self-Care (pay special attention to the chapters “You’re So Sensitive” and “Let Me Disappoint You”.) Louise Hay is one of the pioneers of the personal growth industry, making waves with her first book You Can Heal Your Life, and going on to found a publishing company, Hay House, which is the top inspirational and self-help publishing house in the world. You can imagine what incredible wisdom ended up in You Can Create an Exceptional Life with this dynamic duo co-authoring it.

Go get your copy of the book and then tune in for my chat with Cheryl where you’ll learn about the triathlon of self-care, what’s difficult for Cheryl that she’s learned to accept about herself, how to give yourself the freedom to not have it together, the best source of wisdom that most people don’t take the time for, the surprising place where Cheryl got her best speaking training early in her career, and more. Plus, stay tuned until the end for a special duet between Cheryl and me that you won’t want to miss!

For more Cheryl visit www.cherylrichardson.com and connect with her on Facebook and Twitter.