One of my favorite things to do in life is to reflect on my past. Not necessary dwell on the what-could-have-beens or what-ifs but to constructively reflect on what I’ve learned. I find it so vital to look back every so often to count my blessings and my lessons. During my teenage years, I developed a tendency to take on more than I could chew. Be it with school or my work life, I was the kid who wanted to do it all. I would load myself up with so many tasks that I became physically ill from the stress and pressure to succeed in them. To this day, that hasn’t changed much. I have grown up in a culture (chapter 9, pg. 178, Consumer Culture) that values hard work, dedication, and success, thus, shaping me into the conscious consumer and person I am today. My family has taught me a lot of lessons from purchasing habits to personal development, and I found this challenge to show me just how much the culture I grew up in has influenced me.
So, here are some lessons I have taken from my consumer challenge of jogging twenty minutes a day.
My Grandma’s Advice Made Known:
This lesson truly made me smile. As a child, my Grandma would always tell me “Gina, don’t rush into things, take your time, slow down, and put your health first.” In the middle of jogging one day this finally clicked.
During the first few weeks of my challenge I found myself incredibly sore yet persevered on. This was a common theme throughout my challenge as I would push myself to get through my jogs even when my body felt broken. I realized that this was because I was so eager to just get my run in that I breezed through my stretches. My Grandma is right. She still tells me this to this day as I need the reminder that, yes, I do need to slow down and take my time with things. It finally hit me how many things I rush into, not wanting to dedicate the time to each task to make sure it’s done right. Too bad I realized this right now and not earlier on in my challe...