Spice It Up!

Food isn’t the only thing that’s more flavorful with some spice. You can give your life some flavor by spicing it up, too. What does that mean exactly? It means breaking away from the day-to-day same old, same old and venturing from the ordinary into the extraordinary.

“Instead of the boring routine, everyday ho-hum, this and that, you’re throwing in something unique and different. You’re throwing in flavor, something out of the ordinary,” says Heather Rahn, a licensed clinical counselor and founder and CEO of be! (formerly known as the Mind Spa).

Because breaking a routine can be easier said than done, Rahn and Tisa Powell, senior consultant for Pure Romance, offer four tips on how you can map out a path toward more zing in your life so that you can enjoy the fifth step of experiencing the results.

Step One: Forget About the Barriers
When you think about what could make you happy, there are always obstacles standing in your way: time, money, work, kids, the list goes on. But what if you could “wave a magic wand,” Rahn says. “What would it look like?” Imagine your “happy place,” a place that gives you excitement, something to look forward to.

“From a psychological standpoint, why look at the barriers?” Rahn says. “Take your focus away from them, and then you can jump over the barriers.” See what is or can be behind the walls that are standing between you and happiness. Only then will you be able to figure out a way to achieve that happiness.

Step Two: Think Outside the Cardboard Box
When you envision your life without barriers, use the imagination you had when you were a little kid. “Kids are really good about taking ordinary things and turning them into something else,” Rahn says. So tune into your inner child and look at your cardboard box of a life and turn it into something spicier. “Let yourself play,” Rahn says. “What could it be?” And don’t just rely on your own ideas, allow your partner to join in the creativity by contributing his perspective and desires.

Stay tuned to your inner child and remember the carefree life that childhood provided. Remember the day when the girls in your neighborhood used to come over to “play,” that’s it, just play. Recreate that with a night with the girls. “People forget how to have fun, and that’s really important,” Powell says. So instead of keeping up the ordinary emotional baggage dump with your girlfriends, throw a girls’ night that goes back to the days of makeovers and giggles, Rahn says.

Step Three: Let Spice Ease Stress
When be! surveyed 261 women, 44 percent said that their job/career stressed them out. Spicing up your cubicle (or planner) can help lead you to a more positive office atmosphere. The popularity of Rhonda Byrne’s The Secret isn’t for nothing, Rahn says. A positive representation of what your barrier-free life is like can create a more positive you and help you work toward that more positive life. Pick a picture or object that makes you say, “This is what I want. This is what I want to be,” Rahn says. This visual representation will serve as a reminder and motivator while it appears to be just another decoration or piece of flair.

Step Four: Remember the Little Things
It doesn’t have to take much to add some spice to your life. Crazy little stunts can do the trick. If you have always dreamed of being a celebrity, why not go out for a nice dinner and wear your sunglasses the whole time, Rahn says. “Human beings are the only animal out there that actually has an imagination as far as we know,” Rahn says. So use that imagination to think up some fun games you can play to add some funky fun to the ordinary. Go by a different name. Try to work a certain phrase into conversation as much as possible. And “If you see your kids giggle over something, join in! Let go!” Rahn says.

In relationships, like life in general, a little affection can go a long way. “Women can spice things up a little bit to end up spicing things up a lot,” Powell says. A cheap and easy blindfold can work wonders. With the interference of the sense of sight, all of the other senses are enhanced, which makes an intimate experience more sensual, literally. The blindfold experience creates anticipation, Powell says. You don’t know what the person is going to do next.

Step Five: Feel the Results
Spicing up your life can bring you closer to your loved ones. Whether you are inviting the girlfriends over to “play” or using a blind fold to add that extra umph to intimacy, “You need to reconnect without the chaos,” Powell says.

Besides closer relationships, adding some spice also can give you an overall feeling of happiness, satisfaction and excitement. Spice is fun. Fun is positive. Positivity contributes to happiness and satisfaction. As far as excitement goes, spicing up your life can give you something to look forward to, something to make you feel giddy. It’s fun to be spicy, and you’ll look forward to the next moment you stray from the mundane to put some jazz in your step, Powell says.

Adding spice little by little can change your perspective. “You start to see the good stuff in life,” Rahn says. You start to see the good stuff in yourself, Powell says. You feel more confident. “It does a world of good just to do something for yourself,” Powell says.

So as the leaves change from green to fiery red, yellow and orange, add some fire to your own life by spicing it up!

PHOTO CREDITS
Photo: Neysa Ruhl Photography
Location: The McAlpin
Model: Kahlila Alexander of Heyman Talent Agency

Makeup Artistry: Jocelyn Sparks, Zoë Custom Cosmetics