Rituals That Make Life Feel Rich | Ep. 95

In this episode of Muse & Mastery, Aliya explores the importance of rituals and routines in personal growth. She reflects on the transition into the Year of the Fire Horse, emphasizing the significance of self-care practices, or 'richuals', that nourish the soul. Aliya shares her morning and night routines, the role of commitment in maintaining self-care, and the importance of connection during the winter months. The episode encourages listeners to evaluate their own rituals and embrace practices that foster well-being and community.

Key Takeaways

• Rituals and routines are essential for personal growth.
• The Year of the Fire Horse symbolizes rapid change and opportunities.
• Self-care practices, or 'richuals', enrich our lives.
• Morning routines set the tone for a successful day.
• Nighttime rituals prepare us for restful sleep.
• Commitment to self-care is crucial for well-being.
• Connection with others is vital, especially in winter.
• Listening to our bodies helps guide our self-care practices.
• Evaluating and evolving our rituals can lead to positive change.

Rich girls have richuals. 

Related Episodes:

• Sensuality, Spirituality & Creativity ft. Lyvonne Briggs | Ep. 31
• Achieving Spiritual Balance & Success ft. Fabi Cordaro | Ep. 48
• Ancestral Wisdom, Ritual & Transformation with Amber Holmes, Founder of I.Soul Naturals | Ep. 68
• Daily Rituals to Honor Your Creativity | Ep. 74
• Human Design: Decoding Your Energy with Kemi Amin | Ep. 94

Theme Music:
She No Dull Beat by Nana Kwabena
Festivities in Belize by RAGE Productions

Transcript

Welcome And Ways To Connect

Aliya Cheyanne 0:35

Hey friend, welcome back to Muse and Mastery. Thank you so much for tuning in to today's episode. I'm so happy to have you here, and I'm so happy to be chatting with you one on one. Podcasting is such an intimate experience, especially in its original format of audio only. It's an opportunity for you and I to chat, to have someone on one time. It's very intimate for me to be up in your ears right now, and I appreciate you allowing me the opportunity to do that. And I love hearing from you just as much. And there are so many ways for me to hear from you. We can connect on social media. Follow Muse Mastery Pod on your favorite social media platforms to connect with me there. At any time, you can take a few seconds to leave a five-star rating and positive written review for the show to let me know your thoughts, how you're enjoying the conversations, how you're enjoying the topics, what more you'd love to hear from me and guests you'd love to see on the show. You can also leave me a voice note. I would love to hear from you in that way. And it's an opportunity for me to play your voice note on the podcast and respond to you directly. You can also send a text to the show. Texting the show is anonymous unless you tell me your name. I don't see your full number. I only see the last four digits of your number, but you can send me a message and I have the opportunity to respond to you on a future episode of the show. All of the ways to get in touch with me are always linked in the episode description. If you head on down to the show notes of this episode or any episode you tune into, you'll find the links to text the show, leave a voice note, and if you're listening on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, you have an opportunity to leave a five-star rating. You can leave comments on your favorite episodes on Spotify. You can write a review on Apple Podcast or wherever you're listening. And it goes a long way. And I really appreciate it, and I really appreciate you. Today's episode will be an audio-only experience. And I love episodes like this because it just gets back to the basics. I just get to yap. I don't have to edit as hard, and that is just the best. It's really what continues to make podcasting so fun for me. And today we're going to be yapping about rituals and routines. Today is also special because, as I mentioned on a previous episode, as someone who is chronically online and who loves learning from other cultures and other traditions, taking lessons here and there that I can apply to my own life, my own worldview, my own reality, it is officially the end of the year of the snake. It is the end of a nine-year cycle of just healing and transformation as we transition into the year of the fire horse. I don't know about you, but for me, especially in the last few months, especially going through winter, which naturally demands reflection and stillness and going inward from so many of us, this really has been a period of shedding old skin. Really trying to address old patterns and relationship dynamics and come out better, come out wiser, come out smarter, come out stronger, come out more empathetic, more in tune with myself and so much more. And symbolically, I deeply appreciate what the end of the year of the snake means and marks in so many of our lives, especially as we transition into the year of the fire horse, which is kicking off a 60-year cycle of lots of rapid change and intense energy and fresh opportunities and growth and a quicker pace of life and innovation and lots of action. So much to come. And I'm excited for what this means societally and globally as we look at what's happening in our own countries. Like many of us are listening from all over the world. I am in the United States as I look at what's happening in my country, as I look at what's happening abroad. I think humanity is coming to a reckoning in many ways in the physical world and also in the spiritual world. And change is inevitable, change will be difficult, change will be painful, change will require loss and suffering. But I also imagine change to be like a womb or like a portal. And I feel that on the other side of the void, on the other side of the darkness, on the other side of tumultuous action and bumpy beginnings, on the other side is light, and on the other side is love. We just have to fight tooth and nail and with fire to get there. And as daunting and as scary as these times are, those of us who are here now, who are still here, who will be here in the decades to come are more equipped than we know and understand and maybe even believe to not only survive these times, but to lead the change that we desire and to be the change that we demand and need in this era. And I remain grateful for that. And despite insurmountable and paralyzing and crippling fear at times, I remain hopeful and eager and encouraged and activated. And I hope you do too. And I hope you are too. On that note, bit of a heavier opening, but on today's episode, I really wanted to talk about rituals and routines. There's a phrase I saw years ago on social media. I don't remember whose account it was, where it came from, but it's always stuck with me. And it says rich girls have rituals. And instead of rituals being spelled in the traditional way, R-I-T-U-A-L-S, it's spelt rich yuls. And that phrase has always stuck with me. I think rich can symbolize many things. For many people, that speaks to monetary gain, money, wealth. Yes. And it also speaks to abundance. It also speaks to having a rich life or a life that feels rich. Rich to me feels like being able to have a slow morning and pour into myself the way that I need to to set myself up for success so that I have the best day possible. Rich to me is having the time and the spaciousness to spend time with my family and my friends and gather in community and do fun activities together. Rich to me is being able to lounge on the couch with my dog snuggled up next to me while watching a good show. Rich to me is being able to travel and see new parts of the world or even revisit some of my favorite places and favorite cities. Rich to me is not being concerned about where my next meal is going to come from because I'm blessed and grateful and fortunate and lucky enough to not have that concern every day. Having to make concessions and sacrifices on trips to the grocery store about what they can afford this time versus next time. Rich to me is hearing some of my friends think about and plan for their futures and be on a path to retire at an age where many people won't even be able to fathom that at that time. Rich to me is being able to give back to my community, my immediate family, and to pour love and gifts into my friends. Rich to me is being calm and feeling calm. I am a woman at the end of the day. I am on a hormonal cycle that mirrors the cycles and phases of the moon. My energy levels peak and dip at various points. My ability to be calm, or my ability to cry, or my ability to be worked up varies day by day. But rich to me means overall feeling calm and regulated and self-aware and able to manage my emotions in a way that maintain my dignity, my integrity, my self-respect, but also allow me to show up in all that I am, in my fullness, to honor my different phases, and to not live in a place or in a state of shame. Rich to me is truth and authenticity. So when I think about that phrase, rich girls have rituals, it reminds me to pour into myself and to pour into my community and to pour into my loved ones in a way that feels nourishing and filling and satisfying, in a way that feels rich, in a way that makes me feel rich. And I've done episodes in the past that have either deeply or briefly touched on the importance of rituals in various capacities. We talked about it a bit in sensuality, spirituality, and creativity, featuring the incredible Levon Briggs. We talked about it on achieving spiritual balance and success, featuring Fabi Cordero. We talked about it in depth on ancestral wisdom, ritual, and transformation with Amber Holmes, founder of ISoul Naturals. I talked about it on a solo episode that was brief, but very much aligned, called Daily Rituals to Honor Your Creativity. Part of honoring rituals and routines is really honoring your own energy. And we talked about that a bit in Human Design, decoding your energy with Kemi. I mean episode 94. But today I want to revisit that conversation. I want to talk about some of my current rituals and how my rituals have helped me to evolve and how they've adapted with me and grown over time. And why it's important for creatives and entrepreneurs to have a routine. For me, my best mornings happen when I wake up naturally and early enough when the world is still sleeping. I love to get up early and take up some space in my reading area where I journal, where I meditate, where I pray to center my mind, my energy, and my spiritual body for the day. As the sun starts to come up, I love to open the blinds around my apartment and open my curtains in the living room overlooking my balcony and the neighborhood. It's a ritual to open my curtains and allow the sunlight to flood in. I love to light a candle first thing in the morning to activate my senses, my sense of smell, and to just set a warm, cozy, scented and delicious vibe in my space. Some mornings more than others, I'm activated and encouraged to get in a strong, solid workout to get my heart rate up. But even if it's not an intense workout, just stretching, dancing, swaying my body, rocking first thing in the morning helps me to wake up, helps me to tap into my body, to notice what's going on, where, to feel any tension that might be existing anywhere, and to actively work on releasing that tension. When the weather's just right, it's not too hot, it's not bitterly freezing cold, and it's not super rainy. I love to go on a nice long walk with my dog Storm in the morning. It's great for her and it's great for me. And it's another way to get my body moving. Sometimes I listen to a podcast on the walk, other times I listen to music, other times I don't listen to anything. I just listen to the sounds of my neighborhood and I get lost in my thoughts on the walk. And then it feels great to come back in and get myself ready and together for the day and have a nourishing breakfast that sets me up for success to power through working hours until the next break, until the next walk, until the next activity. At night, I do my own version of a turndown service. Turn down service is something you can request at some hotels where they prepare the room for you for bed, basically. And I do my own version of that at home. I love going to bed to a tidy space so that I wake up to a tidy space. For me, that means making sure my kitchen is clean, my sink is clear, the dishwasher is packed and on and set for the night. Picking up my dog's toys, making sure those are put away, making sure any blankets I might have used to snuggle up on the couch with are set back in the right position, pillows fluffed, pushed back to the corners of the couch, unnecessary lights, TVs turned off, my bed is turned down and set up for me to jump right in and snuggle right under the covers. I have an opportunity to do my nighttime routine, my skincare, ideally under dimmer lighting instead of harsh overhead light, to really set the tone and the mood and the energy for preparing for bed. Part of that, too, in my bedroom, is cutting on my salt lamp for warm, dim lighting and turning on my sound machine with whatever sound I'm interested in for the night to help lull me to sleep. These current routines and rituals help to prepare me for the day and help to prepare me for rest. Without them, sometimes I'm a bit more flustered than I would have been, or more likely to be impatient and less regulated than I would have been had I taken the time to prepare myself for the day, to prepare myself for rest and for sleep. And my nighttime routine helps to set the tone for the night that I might have. Outside of other factors like maybe my cycle interrupting my sleep. For me personally, I sometimes deal with insomnia leading up to my period or on the first couple days of my period. But otherwise, I sleep pretty well throughout the rest of the month. So my nighttime routine helps me to prepare for a nice long night of sleep so that when I wake up in the morning, I'm feeling rested. My daytime and my nighttime routine help me to move through the day and get the rest that I need at night so that I'm feeling my best. When those routines are out of whack, I am out of whack. And that is not good for me or anybody else. So I do my best to maintain my rituals so that I can put my best foot forward. I also think something that has been extremely important for me is to approach my rituals in cycles versus having like extremely rigid structure. So while I think it's important to have discipline, yes, to have devotion and be devoted to myself and my consistency, I honor my cycles. I honor my energy levels when it comes to my rituals and routines. I said earlier that that phrase, rich girls have rituals, really stuck with me. And it's true. I have a recurring reminder in my phone every day, and it's titled Self-Care: Rich Girls Have Rituals. I have a list that says options to choose from. So while I might not do all of these subtasks every single day, I do what I feel called to do. I do what feels good to me that day. And that list includes meditating, journaling, praying, acupuncture, or sauna time, affirmations or EFT tapping, focused reading, getting in movement, either through walking, Pilates, Dance, HIT, once upon a time swimming, doing my skincare in the mornings and/or at night. That includes like everyday practical products, but sometimes maybe a face mask, maybe a cold roller, maybe gua sha, maybe dry brushing. And this reminder repeats daily. It's a daily reminder for me to myself to practice and prioritize my self-care and that rich girls have rituals. And reminders continue to help me in this season. There have been seasons in the past where I've tried tools like calendars and task lists. And sometimes those things work for me for particular things, like maybe appointments, but for everyday like habitual self-care practices, those haven't always worked for me. But I try to make sure that I'm seeing my self-care practices in a space that feels encouraging, that feels like an act of devotion to myself, and that subconsciously sets the tone for how I maintain my self-care. I also think it's important when it comes to our routines and our rituals to really listen to our intuition and what our bodies needs. Again, a 28-day cycle that mirrors the cycles and phases of the moon. Sometimes I'm feeling fuller and more of myself. Sometimes I'm not. Sometimes I have less energy. Sometimes I'm deep in my shadow working through things, and that takes a mental load. Sometimes I'm feeling stronger. Sometimes I require more rest. And really listening to my body and to my needs, the needs of my body and my intuition helps to guide my self-care practices from day to day, week to week, month to month. Something that's equally important are time blocks and focus days. I have days that I focus on particular creative tasks. I have time blocks where I focus and prioritize my self-care in the mornings and at night. That's everything. Everything from literally blocking time on my calendar when it's work related, or blocking time on my own personal calendar to remind myself that I've carved out this time to do something just for me, or setting that early morning window so that I can pour into myself for the day. I think it's a matter of finding what works best for you and your system and really committing to it. It comes up a lot in conversations about commitment. Not all commitment is romantic. Our most important level of commitment is the commitment and the devotion and the discipline and the ritual and the routine that we keep with and to ourselves. So if we're regularly and constantly breaking our own commitments to ourselves, how can we keep them to someone else? And that's something that I sit with regularly, ensuring that I remain a priority to myself, ensuring that as much as I pour into others around me, I am pouring just as much, if not more, into myself. As much as I set aside time to meet the needs and the demands of others and spend time with others, ensuring that I set aside just as much time, if not more, to spend time with myself, to care for myself. And as creatives and entrepreneurs out there, routine is required. It's so easy to slack and put things off when you are so focused on your craft, when you are so focused on your work, everything else goes to the wayside. But that's often what leads to burnout. That's often what leads to the start of a quiet whistle of your intuition to the loudest scream. Having rituals and routines in place are preventative measures. They help to circumvent inevitable declines in energy, in availability, in time, when other areas of our lives demand more of us. Being committed to self-care, to our rituals, to our routines, having the discipline to maintain them and the devotion to really pour into ourselves is so important. And it feels better, doesn't it? Think about it. When you're committed to your rituals and routines, and you really stick to it for a week or a couple of weeks or a month or a couple of months before you know it a year or two or three or four or five has gone by, how do you feel? Don't you feel proud? Don't you feel accomplished? Don't you feel like I did that shit? How does it show up in your life? Can you think about the ways you've seen a transformation in your own life in any area, whether physically, mentally, emotionally, financially, spiritually, when you've committed to a practice that really serves you, uplifts you, holds you, it feels so good. And that is the feeling and the energy that I'm working hard in this season to maintain. An energy that keeps me at the highest state of myself, the best state of myself, that honors my cycles and my seasons, but that keeps me honest, committed, and devoted to the rich girl I want to be. And so I really encourage you to take a look at your routines and your rituals. See where there might be areas of improvement. Really analyze what's working for you and what you want to continue to maintain. Think about how you might like to evolve or improve on your ritual. Pour into yourself in a way that feels good and watch your life change. I wasn't originally going to include this, but I will now. Something that I am adding to my winter routine and my winter ritual is connection. I have talked on this podcast in the past about how I am a girly who really does navigate the winter blues and seasonal depression between the lack of vitamin D, the staying indoors more, a season that calls for hibernation and reflection and truly sitting with oneself in a way that other seasons don't demand or require as hard. Winter is that season for me, and traditionally winters have been hard. But this past winter has been one of the most connected and beautiful winters I've had in such a long time. I have felt so fed and so connected to my friendships from adult sleepovers and get-togethers to attending events with friends to hosting my first ever Galantine's paint and sip the weekend before Valentine's Day. I just feel so full and so connected and so fed through my friendships. And it has been so beautiful. And I want my winters to be like this going forward. I don't want to feel like I have to isolate, do it all on my own, figure it out, be by myself in a way that I thought I've had to just be, or in a way that I've defaulted to be in the past. I want to lean into connection in the same way that I would in any other season. To show up and attend things, to invite friends over, to just have cozy hangout time, catch-ups, eat good food, play games, do activities like paint and sips or making candles. Like I just feel so full, so full and so fed and so grateful and so deeply loving of my friends and feeling loved by them. So going forward for my winter ritual is to keep that connection, that sense of community, that energy of community care going, to continue attending the events, to continue hosting the get-togethers at my place, to continue meeting up and spending quality time with my friends. That is a ritual that feeds all of us, particularly in times like these. And I'm so grateful. So, friend, what are your rituals? What are those routines that keep you nourished and sane and happy and full? I would love to hear from you in a review to the show, in a comment on Spotify, in a text or a voice note to the show. Let me know. Thank you so much for tuning in to another episode of Muse and Mastery. If this episode resonated with you, please be sure to tell a friend to tell a friend and to rate and review the show on Apple Podcasts. Like this episode on YouTube and subscribe to the YouTube channel, and leave your comments on YouTube and Spotify. Thank you for lending me your time, your energy, and your ears. And I appreciate you for being here. Have a great rest of your day or night, and I'll catch you on the next episode. Bye.