For the past month, I have been waking up with dread every morning. Because I’m a grad student without any structure or schedule, I avoid the beginning the day for hours. Sometimes I end up leaving for lab around noon. Then I find myself skipping gym, staying up late working, and pulling all-nighters just to get the work done. The laundry doesn’t get done, the dishes start piling up, and all of a sudden, nothing is manageable and I’m having a very ugly summer.
Emma Chamberlain’s Hot Girl Summer podcast was exactly what I needed to hear this summer. Give it a listen here: my “hot girl summer” routine, explained.
In it, she christened this summer as a low-tech, traditional-entertainment summer, all wrapped up in an incredibly romantic hot-girl summer packaging. This summer, hot girls read books. They drink wine while solving jig saw puzzles. They spend time with their loved ones. They go swimming frequently, spending all day outdoors. They shop at the farmers market and eat seasonal produce. Hot girls delight in the beauty of their own lives. Hot girls do not rot in bed scrolling on their phones.
This mindset—her mindset—helped me wake up this morning. This morning, I opened my eyes filled with dread, as usual. But then I realized that today was full of possibilities. It was sunny. It was beautiful outside. My apartment is lovely. I could wash my hair and come out of the shower smelling amazing. I could put on a cute outfit and some makeup. I could make some yummy French toast with real maple syrup for breakfast, served up with a side of strong coffee. It could be a delightful day.
That perspective (gratitude, romanticism) helped me face the day and feel hopeful.
It’s my turn to be that hot bitch so on top of her shit that she can relax.
Beyond just a mindset shift, Emma Chamberlain discusses the discipline necessary to train your mind to enjoy a slower pace. She talks about how hard it was to enjoy reading when her mind was primed to scroll, and that it was a slow series of lifestyle changes (completely removing social media from her phone) that allowed her to retrain her mind.
She helped me picture a life without media addiction more clearly than I ever could. That’s the gift of a good influencer.
It will take a long time to make the right lifestyle changes, but I think I really want to do it this time. It’s my turn to be that hot bitch so on top of her shit that she can relax.
Discover more from TheStylary
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.