This Mother’s Day weekend give yourself something you can never take back. It’s a very rare commodity, but it won’t cost you a thing. Give yourself the gift of quiet solitude. You’ll only need an hour or two. Grab a journal and a pen and find a beautiful park bench. Leave everything and everybody else home.

Can you remember the last time you were alone with your thoughts?

We live in a fast-paced crazy world. You get through the day on autopilot, running from one thing to the next, never stopping to think, never asking, “Is this really what I want to be doing with my life?”

When all your time is spent reacting to life and other people’s demands, you never get to create the life you really want. If you are willing to spend some time being still and checking in with yourself, you can find ways to change that.

It doesn’t matter if it’s baby steps. Every step forward brings you closer to the life of your dreams. Making some changes will take a little courage, but aren’t your dreams worth that?

Find your quiet space and spend some time answering these questions:

What do you need to remove from your life?

You need to get rid of the things that aren’t working so you can create space for new things to come into your life. What are the people, places and things that are draining your energy? The first few things that come to mind are a good indicator of where you need to start.

Be creative here and don’t give up too quickly. If you can’t think of a way of completely removing these things from your life, figure out how can you limit the time you need to spend in those situations. (Getting really busy doing the things that make YOU happy is a good place to start.)

What do you need to add to your life?

What brings you joy? What activities do you do that make you feel so content and satisfied that you lose track of time? What things do you love to do but haven’t made time for in several weeks, months, years?

You only get one shot at this life. Fill it with the things that have purpose and meaning. Do something every day that makes your heart sing. It can be as simple as calling an old friend or buying yourself flowers. Just make sure it is on your calendar every day.

What have you been knowingly neglecting?

Whatever first comes to mind deserves to be listened to. Maybe you haven’t been exercising for weeks and your body feels cramped, sluggish and unhealthy. Maybe you’ve been putting off your yearly exam and it’s weighing on your mind. Or maybe it’s that friend you keep meaning to reach out to but never do.

Whatever you have been neglecting for any length of time needs to be scheduled this week. No more excuses. You waste far more time and energy worrying about it than it would actually take to just do it. The sense of accomplishment you get will spur you on to do the next right thing.

When can you find the time to do this again?

Spending time alone with your thoughts is not a luxury, it is a necessity if you want a life well-lived.

“To make the right choices in life, you have to get in touch with your soul. To do this, you need to experience solitude, which most people are afraid of because in the silence you hear the truth and know the solutions.” Deepak Chopra

Happy Mother’s Day!