This post was originally written during a moment of overwhelm — this little word helped reset my mindset in a surprisingly powerful way.
So it’s 9:49am and I’m sitting in a camp chair in our tent down south. The baby just went down for a sleep.
Shit, I’m hungry, I thought. But she had the last banana for breakfast. There’s yoghurt and blueberries in the fridge — but that’s hers, came the next thought.
Then the two big containers of cheesy chicken pasta bake I made yesterday stared straight into my soul.
I can’t have that for breaky, I told myself.
And then I said, out loud: “Whatever.”
So here I am, eating cheesy pasta bake at 10am on a whatever-day-it-is morning in a tent — and surprisingly, it feels kind of great.
Where It Started
The whole “whatever” thing came up about a week ago. I was spiralling again — feeling down about not having a “job,” not earning income since having Kaia. I usually talk myself around, stay positive, but this time it was heavy.
I tried to explain it to Jacob. And he just said:
“Renee, this life is not meant to be stressful. You don’t need a job.”
But I couldn’t let it go — bills, savings, food, responsibilities. Old stories crept in: I’m not enough. I’m not doing enough.
That’s when he looked at me and said, lovingly but firmly:
“Whatever. I want you to say ‘whatever’ five times a day.”
Unwanted thought? Whatever.
Annoyed about something small? Whatever.
Worried you spent money you maybe shouldn’t have? Whatever.
I thought it was ridiculous — but damn, it stuck.
You’re obviously not going to whatever your big life decisions away. But the little things? The micro-stresses that quietly pile up until you’re running on empty? Those can absolutely be whatever-ed.
When something doesn’t go to plan, when an old thought pattern creeps in — I literally mumble “whatever” out loud now. It feels silly, so I smile. And just like that, I feel lighter.
The weight lifts, the moment passes, and the hard day feels a little easier.
Try It
If something pops up today and it’s not how you expected, hoped, or planned — try it:
Say “whatever.” Smile. Move on.
It’s not magic. But sometimes, it kind of is.
Life’s too short, time is finite. Don’t sweat the small stuff. Just say… whatever.
Til next time,
R
