Week 21 – The Power of the Bookends: Letting Go and Starting Fresh
Letting go sounded simple when I wrote about it last week. It felt like the right habit to focus on,and it was. But let me tell you… this week it tested me.
The universe has a cheeky way of doing that, doesn’t it? Say something out loud and suddenly it’s like the world goes, “Oh really? Let’s see.”
There were things I wanted to get done, plans, goals, projects I’d mapped out, but the week didn’t go to plan. And you know what happens when you’ve made promises to yourself or others? There’s a flow on effect. It impacts your team, your clients, your family. It’s not just about tasks, it’s about integrity, expectations, pressure, and energy.
What came up loud and clear this week was that I need to look at my boundaries and how I’m spending my time. What are the time vampires stealing my energy? Social media? Streaming platforms? Conversations that linger too long without purpose?
After selling my café, I swore I wouldn’t go back to a life that was driven by stress. But here I am, working full time in a demanding role, launching my coaching business, training for Kilimanjaro, showing up for my family, and trying to squeeze it all in. I love it, but I also need to call myself out when the pressure piles up.
And that’s where this week’s letting go became so real.
At first, I felt frustrated. Frustrated that I wasn’t getting through my to do list. Frustrated at the ripple effects. Frustrated at myself. But something shifted. I caught myself. I reminded myself: Frustration is a choice. I can let this go.
So I did.
Not perfectly. Not without emotion. But I did it consciously.
I slowed down. I breathed. I told myself, this isn’t worth the energy I’m giving it. And when I reacted, I noticed, and I chose differently next time. The practice of letting go is exactly that: a practice.
And this is where this weeks habit comes into it. They say how you start your day sets the tone, and how you end it determines how deeply you’ll rest and recover. Over the past few weeks, I’ve been diving into habits that shift energy, mindset, and self awareness. And this week, something’s landed deeply for me: the story I tell myself in the first and last 15 minutes of my day matters more than I realised.
Every morning, our brain gently lifts out of deep sleep and into a more suggestible state. We pass through theta and alpha brainwaves, the frequencies where the subconscious mind is most open, like fertile soil, waiting for seeds to be planted. In this window, before the coffee, before the phone scroll, before the to-do list kicks in, what we tell ourselves becomes the foundation of our vibration for the day.
Am I waking up with a story of stress, dread, or overwhelm?
Or am I creating a morning story of possibility, presence, and peace?
For years, I didn’t even think about it. My first thoughts were often “Ugh, what do I have to get done today?” or “who is going to call in sick today” I would leap out of bed into stress, checking messages, reacting before I even had a chance to breathe. And I’d carry that frantic vibration into my whole day without realising I had a choice.
But now, I’m rewriting that script.
I’ve been experimenting with my mornings. No phone. No noise. Just breath, intention, and awareness. Even just a few minutes of quiet stillness, gentle affirmations, or gratitude changes everything. Instead of waking into chaos, I rise into alignment. I say to myself, “Today I get to choose peace.” Sometimes I just sit with my hand on my heart and say: Let’s make today a brilliant one.
And then there’s the other end of the day , the last 15 minutes before sleep.
This is the part no one talks about.
What are we telling ourselves as we fall asleep?
Are we replaying conversations? Stressing about what we didn’t do? Rehearsing tomorrow’s chaos before our head even hits the pillow?
I noticed something powerful lately. If I go to bed in a spiral of “I should have done more,” or carry the tension of the day, I don’t sleep well. My body is in stress mode. But when I take those last 15 minutes and give myself a softer landing, something changes. A short reflection. A moment of journaling. Or even just repeating to myself, “I am good to sleep, I have done enough for today.” That energy carries me into deep, healing sleep, and I wake up clearer, more grounded, more me.
This habit is about presence.
It’s about noticing the stories we’re unconsciously repeating, and rewriting them with intention.
Because those first and last moments of the day? They aren’t throwaways.
They’re sacred. They shape our energy, our thoughts, our nervous system, and our ability to lead ourselves forward.
This week, I’m doubling down on this habit.
In the first 15 minutes upon waking, I choose calm. I choose light. I choose a powerful story.
And in the last 15 minutes before sleep, I close the day with grace. I soften. I surrender. I honour the journey.
So I’ll ask you what I’m asking myself every day this week:
What story are you waking into? And what story are you falling asleep to?
You get to write both.
