Hanging around teens is really fun and I always learn something. That generation is more plugged -in, turned-on and tech-savvy than any generation before. And like all previous generations, they have a remarkable way of cutting new roads for others to follow.

I overheard one of them talking in the hall of the school. A pretty young girl asked another, “Hey, send me your playlist.”

My generation didn’t share playlist, we shared vinyl records with each other. It brought back wonderful memories. Then I thought, what exactly is a ‘playlist?’ WEBSTERS: ” In its most general form, an audio playlist is simply a list of songs, but sometimes a loop.” It made me think; what’s my playlist? What am I looping around in my head all day long? What’s my mental list of thoughts? Am I worrying about getting a long list of task complete, fretting over an upset with a loved one or spending time mentally listing all the mistakes? Do I beat myself up thinking thoughts that remind me of my short comings? We all have them but replaying them in a loop mentally over and over is self-deprecating.

When my playlist is negative and undermines my own happiness , I am of little use to myself or others. It’s important I keep steady emotionally to assist my family and myself. Being upset or jacked- up all the time is detrimental to situations, especially high stress ones. And, that kinds of out-of-control wackiness alienates others from us. Also, if my playlist is depressing, I have nothing to offer myself or loved ones.

“But Sue, shouldn’t I think about these things?” A trick my Mother taught me is to assign time to worry. Really, just tell yourself you are taking 15 minutes to worry about, or be upset about or be mad about whatever you must attend to then get the playlist back on track. It works and satisfies the ‘need to think about’ whatever.

So today, I making sure my playlist is pleasant and something to enjoy. If I slip up, and my loop becomes negative, I will simply say, ” Oh, I know better, I just forgot.” Then, I can adjust my playlist to positive and happy thoughts. It’s not selfish, it’s self care and we can’t care for a single soul unless we care for ourselves first. Like the young people who share their music playlist, I want my mental playlist to be valuable to myself and to others.

My hope is this will help you today.

Credit for this lovely photo goes to www.deskwallflowers4.me