Do you have 5 minutes?
On Thursday, May 23rd, I lost one of my closest friends to cancer. Lauren and I met on the bus going to a peer mediator training in Junior High. We went on to be Yearbook Editors together in high school. 5-6 years later, she began a career as a life coach and launched a “Negative Self-Talk” group, which I excitedly join as one of her first clients. Learning how to navigate negative self talk was EXACTLY what I needed to get me through grad school :) Over the next decade plus, Lauren was my mentor and one of my closest confidants.
To watch Lauren struggle with cancer over the past five months was gut-wrenching. By the time she was diagnosed, she was already Stage 4. By some miracle she got into a clinical trial, but soon after, our hearts all broke as the immunotherapy did more harm to her body than good. She was put in hospice — age 36. Lauren, my beautiful, vibrant friend. Full of dreams, kindness, and some of the most profound wisdom I’ve ever heard. She was strong beyond measure, and she smiled and remained kind and generous even as she suffered through unimaginable pain.
Lauren dedicated her life to making the world a better place — her business: “Vitality” was committed to teaching people to love themselves and others. Her tagline was: Change your mindset. Change your life. Change the world.
I have hundreds of pages filled with notes from my conversations with Lauren. So many lessons, I could write a book. I might.
In her honor, I want to share one of the simplest yet most impactful pieces of wisdom she has shared with me over the years:
5 Minutes. That’s all you need to start changing your life. You want to exercise more? Start by just exercising 5 minutes a day. Seriously. That’s it. You want to change your career? Take 5 minutes to journal or visualize your ideal workday. You want to develop a journaling practice? Start with 5 minutes. You want to feel more confident? Take 5 minutes to say or write affirmations.
When you carve out time for yourself and your goals (bonus if you can do it first thing in the morning), you send the message to the Universe that you are important, that this THING you spend those 5 minutes on is important. That space in your day will create more space in your day, and little by little you’ll build a habit. You’ll find yourself taking inspired action. You’ll start to see shifts in the world around you.
You just have to find 5 minutes.
Hug your loved ones. Tell people you appreciate them. And, take care of yourself.
