“30 Days to Yelling Less” Project

341 days without yelling, 24 days of loving more to go!

****Today’s date is January 17th, 2013. Due to massive interest I will take names of additional people interested up until end of day Friday, January 18th. After that date please still email me and I will sign you up for the next go around if there is enough interest!****

Dear Orange Rhinos new and old,

I have a couple of big projects on my to-do list that I have been staring at for months. Months. The problem? I just can’t seem to get started. The projects feel daunting. I just don’t know what to do first so instead I do nothing, which makes me feel overwhelmed and well, I think you know how the cycle goes. It can be a tough cycle to break and sometimes I need my hubby, or mom or friend to break it for me. Sometimes, I just need help getting going and that almost always means I need help breaking the big scary projects down into smaller achievable tasks.

You know, an elephant once taught me on “Word World” that when you have a big word to spell, take things “Bit by Bit” and it all becomes easier. Oh what a wise elephant! I know I never would have gotten here to 341 days of not yelling if my family and friends hadn’t helped me break my Challenge down “Bit by Bit” in the early days. And I know that many of you want to start The Challenge but are intimidated by the enormity of it, by the stress of it, by the sheer commitment to it, by the 12 steps I shared (read here). But please, don’t let that hold you back.

Let me break down down this daunting task of learning not to yell for you. Let me help get you going on The Orange Rhino Challenge by walking you through the steps I followed bit-by-bit. Let me spread it out over 30 days and help you YELL LESS AND LOVE MORE.

Let me guide you through my “30 Days to Yelling Less and Loving More” project:

• It officially starts this WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 16, 2013. The 30^th day is Valentines’ Day!
• The GOALS are to (1) help you learn to yell LESS and (2) help you get enough success and self-awareness that when the 30 days are over you have the confidence to keep going
• To participate email me at theorangerhinochallenge@gmail.com by Tuesday night, January 15^th, 10:00 EST.
• Between now and then please share this with your friends…trust me, you need their support!
• Every morning (EST) I will email all participants thoughts, quotes, or goals for the day, for example, Day 1: Think about what moment made you realize you needed to stop yelling. Day 2: How interested are you in changing? When the going gets tough, will you quit? (Don’t worry, we won’t just jump into not yelling right away. We will SLOWLY prepare for the practicing of not yelling first. This is the part no one takes time to do; this is the biggest help I think I can be to you, helping you do the groundwork so less yelling is easier.)
• Every night I will post on my Facebook Page http://www.Facebook.com/TheOrangeRhino asking people to share what they learned or thought about that day. This is the key part – this is where we can all learn from each other and support each other. Most likely, this is where you will realize you are NOT ALONE.
• As this is the first time I have ever done this, we will adjust how I help you accordingly!

The simple part is how this will work. The hard part is well, the work; it’s challenging ourselves to change. It’s accepting that you might have to look deep at yourself, not your kids, to stop yelling. Or more eloquently put:

“When we are no longer able to change a situation – we are challenged to change ourselves.” ~ Viktor E. Frankl

Or as one of my favorite authors said:

“Things do not change; we change.“ ~ Henry David Thoreau

Change is hard. It can be scary and intimidating. And changing a bad habit can be an out right pain the a*s. But this change is worth it. The upside is enormous: a more peaceful life, less mama guilt, a stronger, more trusting and loving relationship with your kids, greater self awareness, a lighter heart, or the list goes on and on. But don’t let me tell you what I’ve gained, go gain it all for yourself and tell me about how you are YELLING LESS AND LOVING MORE on February 14^th, 2013.

YOU CAN DO THIS. You totally can do this. What are you waiting for? Email me!

Am I an expert who knows what the heck she is doing with this idea? NOPE. (Let me make sure I spelled that right. N.O.P.E.) But I am going to try my hardest to break learning not to yell into really easy, simple, steps. And I am going to keep all my fingers and toes crossed that it helps you.