insights – Page 3 – Rachel MacDonald

Let Go Of: Forcing It

16 September, 2011

I love the Taoist principle of Wu-wei.

By definition, Wu-wei is effortless action that simply flows through us because it’s right, appropriate to its time and place, and serving the purpose of greater harmony and balance. It’s not to be confused with giving up, laziness or passivity – rather Wu-wei is about accepting what is and taking action based on what can be done, rather than resisting the unchangeable stuff. Faith not force.

A Personal Lesson: Accepting, Letting Go, Moving On

We’ve had our wedding venue booked for about 10 months now. We only viewed two venues when we started the planning process and when we found (what we thought was) The One, we basically booked it on the spot with no hesitation, despite the fact it’s definitely right up there cost-wise. We didn’t care (probably because we hadn’t done the budget at that stage and didn’t really think of, oh, the 150 million other things that make up a wedding day!) The place was beautiful and we had our hearts set on the thought of our perfect wedding unfolding right there on those spectacular grounds.

The property “came with” a planner (not optional) who is an amazing person, but for whatever reason, hasn’t been able to give us the service we were promised – at a premium price – and essentially, 10 months later we haven’t progressed our plans to the point we’d like to because she’s been largely uncontactable.

Red flag alert.

And so we ummed.
And we ahhed – for several months.

We made excuses, brushed our concerns aside and we persisted… until we realised that those gut feelings weren’t going away and and as hooked as we were on this beautiful venue, our instincts were telling us we needed to surrender to the fact that things weren’t playing out how they should have been. We needed to let go.

Taking Action

This week, we decided that instead of barreling forward, head-first into the resistance and causing ourselves unnecessary stress, we’d go back to the drawing board. Yep, 8 months out from Our Big Day, we’ve decided to start from scratch and find a venue that feels right for us, which of course is more work initially as we retrace old ground but means that we’ll be a lot happier in the long run. We had to step outside the story a bit to evaluate it from all angles, but the message we were getting loud and clear was that if it didn’t feel right now, it certainly wouldn’t in the weeks before the wedding. Intuition never lies, after all.

I’m going to leave you hanging here and not divulge too many more details (!!), but I can tell you that in the space of 24 hours, several serendipitous things happened and we’re feeling super excited and mega-motivated about the new direction we’re going. The moment we allowed the possibility of change in, it was as if all the energy that had been taken up worrying instantly disappeared, unblocking the dazzling enthusiasm we needed to find a creative solution and forge ahead.

So, What Did We Learn?

Losing Control Can Be a Good Thing

Quite simply, you can’t force things that aren’t meant to be. Control is rooted in fear and I’ve noticed that when we cling to and control things, it’s because we’re afraid of what might happen if we don’t. Control means we’ve attached ourselves to a specific outcome—an outcome we’re sure is right for us, as if we always know best, which unsurprisingly, we don’t. When we step back and let things flow, they do. But better. Way better. Have you ever pushed and pushed and pushed with something, then hit that point where you find yourself saying “Ok, whatever will be, will be” and with a change in course, the result has far exceeded your expectations? I know I have – many times.

To Receive You Need to Release

Sometimes, we become so single-minded in our purpose or so stuck on something we think is The Right Thing For Us that we lose sight of the other doors that are open all around us. To receive, all you have to do is dream up your desired result, visualise it, bless it and believe that it will be yours. Release that thing you’re holding onto. Everything that feels missing is just waiting for a place to go, a space to occupy, a home to hold it. Open up and let it in. Above all else, have faith that what is for you won’t pass you by. The greatest gifts are the ones we least expect.

+ Have you ever let go of forcing something or changed paths in your career/ relationship/ life and it’s worked out for the best? I’d love to hear your story in the comments!

Image: This isn’t happiness

Slowing Down and Loving It: 15 Ways to Simply Be

8 September, 2011

“A pause is a suspension of activity, a time of temporary disengagement when we are no longer moving toward any goal… we stop asking, “What do I do next?”

When we pause, we don’t know what will happen next. But by disrupting our habitual behaviours, we open to the possibility of new and creative ways of responding to our wants and fears.” ~ Tara Brach

Following on from my post yesterday, I thought I’d talk a little bit about how to counteract a life of constant stimulation by learning to just ‘be.’

For the past few decades, the frentic pace of life has been increasing at a frightening pace. Gone are the days where we made plans on our home phones and left messages on answering machines or (shock horror) pieces of paper. There was no texting, no logging on to Facebook and Twitter at every opportunity, no apps or email access on our phones back then. We were freer and less ‘on.’ People were busy, but it was a different kind of busy. Fast-forward to now and we’re living the kind of reality where panic seizes us with its vice-like grip when we’re disconnected or inaccessible, and the notion of sitting quietly for an extended period of time without seeking external validation scares the absolute pants off us.

Put simply, we’re addicted. Addicted to overthinking, constant chatter and endless doing. And the exhausting part is that all this consumption has left us addicted to the adrenaline rush of pressure-driven results (which are, of course, expected to be achieved faster than ever). We think that the more we engage, the more we’ll get ahead – when more often than not, it works the other way around.

For me, when I sit close to my heart and really listen to what I need when I’m over-stimulated and trying to massacre my to-do list, there’s this booming voice that tells me in no uncertain terms that I need to create spaciousness. Make room, drag the junk out, dust around the edges.

So here’s how to do just that – 15 ways that you can set limits and bring balance back into your life by just ‘being.’

1. Sit still. Find a comfortable place, turn of your phone and close your eyes. Invite peace in by imagining your heartbeat slowing down, and things in your life moving slowly. Visualise yourself speaking slowly, walking with more deliberate steps, observing things going on around you. Really sink into your vision, and next time life gets a little too hectic, draw on that feeling of tranquility.

2. Get outside. Immerse yourself in nature. Lie under a tree, dip your toes in the water, take in sounds and smells. Contemplate this beautiful quote: “The mind I love must have wild places, a tangled orchard where dark damsons drop in the heavy grass, an overgrown little wood, the chance of a snake, a pool that nobody’s fathomed the depth of … and paths threaded with little flowers” ~ K. Mansfield

3. Spend time alone. Without distraction, we start to return to the parts of ourselves that are most familiar. Take some time out from other people’s moods, demands or agendas.

4. Create spaciousness: As I mentioned above, when I’m in the midst of what is essentially “frenzied” behaviour online (clicking from link to link, tabbing between pages, getting nothing done, losing myself in the messages I’m taking in rather than processing everything sloooowly), I crave spaciousness. I imagine a vaccuum coming and sucking out all the thoughts from my mind, giving me the ability to look at the big things – the things that matter – rather than get bogged down by the trivial stuff. Find a way to create spaciousness that works for you.

5. Meditate. I’m one of those people that used to think I sucked at meditation/ stilling my mind because I could never erase my thoughts, but once I accepted that trying to think of ‘nothing’ wasn’t really the objective (rather, it’s about slowing down to find moments of clarity) I started to enjoy it a lot more. If, like me, halfway through a meditation you start thinking about what’s for dinner that night, just acknowledge the thought and get back in the zone. I’m a visual person so I like to create a bit of a story in my mind which might work for you too – I imagine myself putting the negative stuff (balls of black stuff) into a box and tying it up with a ribbon, while imagining a light travelling from my head down, washing over me. Might be a bit woo-woo for some but it totally works for me, and I’m up for anything that makes me feel good!

6. Give yoga or pilates a go. Or any form of stretching. Don’t rush the stretches, or push your body too hard. Just ease into it gently, breathing and releasing any tensions.

7. Treat yourself to a massage, facial, sauna or spa treatment.

8. Go for a walk. No ipod, no phone, no watch. Just you and nature. Brilliant ideas are born on walks. Give them the opportunity to come alive.

9. Take a bath. Pure, unadulterated bliss. Fill it with bubbles, light a candle, play relaxing music softly in the background. Unfurl.

10. Stay in bed – all day and with a good book. Lose yourself in an inspiring story and nap at random intervals throughout the day. Restoration and rejuvenation.

11. Swim in the ocean. There’s something so incredibly cleansing about salt water. In summer, my favourite thing to do is go for a run or long walk in the morning, then jump in the ocean, just floating as the waves rise and fall. Best feeling ever!

12. Take mini-breaks throughout the day. Set your alarm to go off every 50 minutes and take a 10 minute break. Get up from your computer, walk around the office/ neighbourhood. I’m so guilty of spending hours on end in front of the computer without a break so definitely need to implement this one more often!

13. Switch off. Completely. Take one full day on the weekend where you don’t touch your phone/ computer/ iPad/ TV. Kick digital fatigue to the curb.

14. Play. Watch a child playing and let them show you how to really ‘let go.’ It always amazes me how free children are when they’re playing, and how fully engaged they are. They’re not hurtling down a slide at the park thinking about that email they forgot to reply to, or wondering how many Facebook friends they have. They’re present, silly, loose – not uptight and overwhelmed. Try playing for yourself – chase your dog around the park or chase your partner around the house (ha!). Let your hair down!

15. Take your lunch break. It’s called a lunch break because it’s meant to be just that – a break from work for lunch. Use that time to recharge your batteries. Lower your shoulders, breathe out and chill, baby, chill!

Most of us struggle with being still and think of it as something we only do when we’re on holidays away from the demands of our regular life. Make today the day that you tip the balance back in favour of a relaxed state of being. After all, rejuvenating shouldn’t just be a luxury we afford ourselves once a year, it’s a necessity for our happiness, bringing with it gifts of contentment, healing and a whole lot of shiny inspiration.

+ What do you do to slow down and simply be?

Images: 1. Inspired by this feeling 2. Late Afternoon

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Thought of the Day

2 August, 2011

Remember your big dream.
Zoom in. Closer.
Feel it.
Really feel it.
Lift it up, put it on over your head and wear it proudly.

Share your dream.
Whisper it softly or yell it from rooftops.
Usher your daring intentions out into the world.

Open up.
Peel back the layers.
Widen your eyes and open your heart to change.
Beckon in the new and the extraordinary with the promise of a tight embrace.
It’s all so close now, and you’re ready.
You are a miracle in motion.

R A D I A T E.

Image: Reasons to Breathe

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6 (More) Ways To Be Ridiculously Happy!

27 July, 2011

Welcome to Part Two of my posts on happiness: 6 (More) Ways to Be Ridiculously Happy! Part One is here.

Writing about happiness and living magically is my favourite thing to do and something I want to do more of, so thank you for leaving feedback yesterday and letting me know that you enjoy reading this kind of thing. There’s definitely lots more I want to share on this blog, so let’s launch straight in with a few more golden tips, shall we?

1. Visualise your dream life.

Grab a pen and a piece of paper and get scribbling. Jot down all your wildest, hugest dreams – let your mind go crazy with the possibilities! Think of the end result. Don’t attach to unimportant details, just wrap yourself up in the joy you feel when your most potent dreams are unleashed on the page in front of you. Create a killer vision board and review it daily. Repeat after me: “Miracles are happening every day. Everything I’ve ever wanted is on it’s way to me now. The hard work is done and I’m completely open to the spectacular beauty unfolding all around me. I AM BLESSED IN SO MANY WAYS.”

2. Have fun (and lots of it!)

Big, delicious, messy fun. Lift the veil of seriousness and get silly, why don’t ya?! Look at ways to incorporate a little more play into your life. Start a tickle war with someone, and try tell me you don’t feel a million times happier after you’ve squealed your head off. It’s impossible not to! Send a friend a funny email, grab a magazine and draw mustaches on everyone. Make up a silly song. Wear socks with cartoon characters on them. Walk like a lunatic around the house. Crank up a bit of R’n’B and crump in your underwear in front of the mirror. Pretend you’re in an old school aerobics video. Started consciously smiling. Smile in the car as you drive to work or on your morning walk. Smiling positively effects brain chemistry. Actually, do you know researchers have found that smiling is equal to the feel-good brain stimulation of 2000 chocolate bars? Did somebody say chocolate?!

3. Stop judging.

The main reason we judge is because we’re insecure. We want to make ourselves feel better by tearing someone else down or projecting our own fears/ issues/ inadequacies on them. We judge when we’re scared, when we feel intimidated or out of our depth. We judge when we see someone else having the courage to do something we wish we had the courage to do ourselves. Ouch. It’s a bitter pill to swallow, isn’t it? The good thing is, unhealthy habits can be broken. Take a vow to keep a close eye on your thoughts and push them in a positive direction. I love this from Mike Dooley: “If you could actually stand in someone else’s shoes to hear what they hear, see what they see, and feel what they feel, you would probably wonder what planet they live on, and be totally blown away by how different their reality is to yours. You’d also never, in a million years, be quick to judge again.” Remember how it feels to be judged and put an end to your judgemental behaviour today.

4. Healthy = happy!

Changing your diet and the way you treat your body has a profound and powerful effect on your overall happiness. Something shifts inside you when you commit to eating well, getting enough sleep, nourishing your spirit with meditation or relaxation and working up a sweat through exercise. Best. feeling. ever. Crank up your happiness by clearing the crap from your fridge, lacing up your sneakers, heading outdoors, and trawling virtual treasure troves for healthy recipes (Crazy Sexy Life, 101 Cookbooks and all the healthy foodie blogs under my Blogs to Bookmark tab are a great place to start). Abundant energy supplies and off-the-scale clarity can be yours SO easily. Clear the slate, and glow you good thing!

5. Recharge.

Motivation ebbs and flows in our lives. That’s a given. When your mojo really slumps and you feel overhwhelmed, your body is telling you to take a take a break. How many times have you pushed yourself to get something done to “get it out of your hair” and then felt disappointed or guilty about your output?

Earlier this year I was pushing myself pretty hard, trying to do everything and scattering my energy in a million different directions, and a few hormone tests revealed I had extremely low cortisol (stress hormone) levels, resulting from adrenal fatigue. Sound like you too? I’m trying (hard!) to listen to my body and take breaks when I need to rejuvenate (believe me, this is harder than it looks) and I’m making more of a conscious effort to remind myself that the world won’t stop spinning if I take a breather. The notion that ‘Breather = Boring’ is a fallacy. I’m definitely guility of believing in the past that without things to do, people to see and projects to complete, life would be… well, dull. I’m growing out of that belief now! Take the pressure off, relax, pamper yourself, jump in the car and head off on a road trip for the weekend with your nearest and dearest. A bit of R & R and a dose of self-forgiveness goes along way to boosting your happiness. Promise.

6. Honour your relationships.

Happy people spend more time working on and in their relationships. As a race, we humans feel happier when they’re in the company of other people. Strengthening our relationships and deepening our connections with others leaves us feeling gooood, so why shouldn’t we go out of our way to nurture those bonds more frequently? There’s this thing that happens for me whenever I don’t feel like doing something (let’s say, going out to dinner after a tiring week at work) – I always have the BEST time and come home with a full heart and a smile on my face. It’s such a nice reminder that everything else slips away when you’re spending quality time with good people.

Be generous with your loved ones. Think of generosity as a much bigger concept than buying your friend a nice birthday present or paying for a round of drinks on a night out. Generosity can mean inspiring someone when they’re feeling flat on life with an uplifting email or a thoughtful text, or doing something “just because” without expecting anything in return. It can mean really listening, offering to cook dinner for a friend who’s stressed about money or work or not coping with a new child or a sick family member. Generosity means thinking beyond the ‘self’ and genuinely putting someone else’s needs before your own. You’ll always feel happier for it.

+ So there you go! I’d love to know: what does ‘happiness’ mean to you?
+ What do you to keep happiness flowing steadily through your days? Talking about happiness quadruplifies (new word) it so tell me in the comments!
+ And finally, please feel free to ‘Share’ this post on Facebook if you think someone you know might benefit from it… the link to share is just below.

Images: 1. Elena Kalis 2. Reckless Means No Rules 3. 4. 101 Cookbooks 5. Beach Bungalow 8 6. Favim

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6 Ways to Be Ridiculously Happy Today!

26 July, 2011

I’ve broken this post into two parts – I’ll post Part Two tomorrow morning!

1. Make happiness a priority.

Happiness is a choice. It’s so easy to blame our unhappiness on external influences – our parents, job, friends, partner, fate, whatever – but this is the thing: happiness is an inside job. Whenever you find yourself in a situation that makes you feel bad/ fearful/ worried/ angry, remind yourself that happiness exists separate to, and regardless of what’s going on around us, and whether we choose to access that power or not is solely up to us. We’re all the architects of our own lives and emotions, and if happiness isn’t a top priority – something we consciously commit to on a daily basis – then other things will inevitably interfere with our efforts to feel joyful.

I love this description of positive thinking from David J. Schwartz’s The Magic of Thinking Big:

“Your mind is a thought factory. It’s a busy factory, producing countless thoughts in one day. Production in your thought factory is under the charge of two foremen, one of whom we’ll call Mr Triumph and the other Mr Defeat. Mr Triumph is in charge of manufacturing positive thoughts. He specialises in producing reasons why you can, why you’re qualified, why you will. The other foreman Mr Defeat, produces negative, deprecating thoughts. He is your expert in developing reasons why you can’t, why you’re weak, why you’re inadequate. His speciality is the “why-you-will-fail” chain of thoughts. Tell yourself “Today is a lousy day.” This signals Mr Defeat into action and he manufactures some facts to prove you are right… but tell yourself “Today is a fine day” and Mr Triumph is signaled forward to act. He tells you “This is a wonderful day. The weather is refreshing. It’s good to be alive.”

Once more for posterity: happiness is a choice, baby!

2. Bloom where you are planted.

This means living fully, wherever you are and with whatever you have. When you put specifics around being happy, telling yourself, “I’ll only be happy when I lose weight/ get a new job/ find the man of my dreams” you shut the door on the other ways you could be equally happy. The conditions will never be perfect for you to start self-actualising, because perfection is a moving target. The reason it always seems a little out of reach is because perfection doesn’t exist. Not as you imagine it, anyway. Sometimes we’re afraid to embrace the moment exactly as we are now, so we procrastinate, we trip ourselves up, we come up with a list of conditions that dictate that X, Y, Z must be fulfilled before we can proceed. Flip your perspective and really hone in on the end result you desire and stop worrying about the “how to get there’s.” Just set the intention and trust. Be present and unfold into the space you find yourself in right now.

3. Surround yourself with positivity.

Ever heard the term “Lie down with dogs and you’ll get up with fleas?” In my opinion, this doesn’t just apply to the company we keep. It applies to all the messages we’re regularly taking in – the books or trashy magazines we read, the celebrity gossip sites, the mind-numbing TV shows we watch. Reign it in, take control! I’m subscribed to a whole bunch of fantastic newsletters that sprinkle positivity in my inbox daily such as DailyOM and Notes from the Universe, and I also get my inspiration fix from sites like White Hot Truth, Think Simple Now, Ordinary Courage, Goddess Leonie (and plenty of others!) I refuse to read gossip websites and trashly weekly magazines because I really don’t need to know whether Beyonce’s ass has cellulite or who’s been Photoshopped to look obese/ anorexic. Not my bag. Fill your cup with positivity and drink in the good stuff daily.

4. Be grateful.

For your life and the people in it. Write a gratitude list in your journal or in the Notes app on your phone. Join us here on In Spaces Between every Wednesday and add your list in the comments under my Making Me Happy posts. Acknowledge the people who help you out, pay you a compliment or give you great advice by letting them know how truly thankful you are for their kindness. Compliments are awesome to give AND receive and the more we give thanks to others, the more goodness we attract into our own lives. It’s a beautiful little cycle. I’ve just written myself a reminder in my diary to up my compliment quota today and I highly recommend you do the same!

5. Stop seeking constant approval from others and stop comparing!

Because it makes them the master and you the slave. Worrying about what other people think is a losing battle and it holds us back from being our vibrant, passionate, imperfectly unique, totally awesome selves. Live the life you were always meant to live and be who you were always meant to be. Without excuses. Without playing small or dumbing down or diluting your opinion for fear that you might not be ‘liked.’

Often, one of the biggest impediments to discovering our own glorious gifts is our fascination with the gifts and talents of others. Turn your focus in, rather than out, and celebrate (and nurture and grow) all that you have to offer the world. Comparing yourself or competing with others invariably leads to jealousy – and all that jealousy is good for is shining a light on the parts of ourselves that we need to work on. Nip it in the bud before you get to that point by practicing self-love and remember that by focusing on everyone else’s journey, you’re diverting the focus from your own. Also, no-ones life is perfect so you never know if what you’re envying in others is actually “real” under the surface!

6. Make peace with yourself… and accept that it’s okay to fail.

You’ve made mistakes in the past and you’ll no doubt make them again in the future. And that’s a good thing. The biggest growth and the best lessons come from our greatest screw ups. Drop the shame, let yourself off the hook. Transform what hurts into what helps. For all the doors that are slammed in your face and all the no’s and the rejections, remember that there are opportunities that you can’t even comprehend waiting for you just up ahead! Worry is fuelled by all the scary details from past experiences and it can only thrive if you let it convince you that the same will happen in the present. Let go, move on, turn the page.

Bonus Bounty!

Wear your “good” perfume – everyday + dance in the rain + send yourself a love letter/ email/ text + fill your house/ workspace with plants and fresh flowers + cook yourself a gourmet three-course meal – on a Tuesday + drink in a sunrise, marvel at a sunset + accept compliments from others so you can see the truth about yourself + tell someone you appreciate them + spend the whole day lazing around with a good book + be okay with saying no + shut your eyes and imagine smiling faces and warm embraces + take your camera on an adventure and see where you end up!

+ Aaaaand, finally, check in tomorrow for more happiness-related inspiration!

Images: 1. Modern Parents Messy Kids 2. Gary Pepper Vintage 3. National Geographic 4. Lollophoto 5. My Modern Met 6. Daisy Lowe 7. sun-believable

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Allowing Yourself To Be Vulnerable

3 July, 2011

“To be whole, let yourself break.
To be straight, let yourself bend.
To be full, let yourself be empty.
To be new, let yourself wear out.
To have everything, give everything up.

Knowing others is a kind of knowledge;
knowing yourself is wisdom.
Conquering others requires strength;
conquering yourself is true power.
To realise that you have enough is true wealth.
Pushing ahead may succeed,
but staying put brings endurance.
Die without perishing, and find the eternal.

To know that you do not know is strength.
Not knowing that you do not know is a sickness.
The cure begins with the recognition of the sickness.

Knowing what is permanent: enlightenment.
Not knowing what is permanent: disaster.
Knowing what is permanent opens the mind.
Open mind, open heart.
Open heart, magnanimity.”

— Tao Te Ching

I’ve been thinking a bit about vulnerability and the concept of “wholeheartedness” since I watched researcher Brene Brown’s ridiculously inspiring speech on TED.com. I’ve embedded the video below and I know 20 minutes might sound like a long time, but I can’t recommend enough turning off the TV/ stepping away from the computer and treating yourself by watching this. When I say treating, I mean treating. First you’ll want to hug this funny, brilliant woman, then you’ll want to read everything she’s ever written. She’s that good. The world needs more people spreading a message likes hers, which basically states that in order for humans to connect, we must be vulnerable and allow our true selves to be seen.

For more Brene, you can start on her blog and if you’re as inspired as I was, she’s written a few books as well. The Gifts of Imperfection is on it’s way to my mailbox and I’m hanging to get into it, I love reading books by smart women who really try to get to the core of what life is all all about.

+ Just letting you know that as well as my “Life Reset” posts, I’ll be posting some other bits and pieces of content this week on In Spaces Between – all mixed in together in one delicious jumble of goodness! It’s going to be a fabulous week!

Image: via Pinterest

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From Where You Are To Where You Want To Be

23 June, 2011

Vision boards. Shimmering visual representations of who we want to be, what we want to have and how we want to feel. The desires of our hearts laid out in pretty pictures. The purpose of a vision board is to activate the law of attraction (regardless of your thoughts on The Secret, this stuff is pretty powerful) – that is, the idea that the things we give attention to, we attract into our lives. When using the law of attraction to proper effect, we utilise positive visualisation (the art of creating compelling and vivid pictures in our minds) to attract to us the resources, people and opportunities we need to achieve our goals. It motivates us, increases our awareness and gives our brains a specific vision of what we want.

Example vision board layout

Dreaming Big: How to Construct Your Own Vision Board

Step 1: Take a few minutes of quiet time to think about the words that sum up where you want to be. Your sweet spot. Tune in to your desires, try them on for size. What does truth/ freedom/ success/ happiness feel like? Scribble… breathlessly. Are you smiling yet? Get raw. Get messy. Unleash.

Step 2: Define the categories you want represented on your board and start collecting images. Think about areas of your life like Career, Finances, Love, Family/ Friends/ Relationships, Travel, Health/ Fitness/ Wellness, Happiness, Spirit and Creativity. Add your own classifications. Tear pages from magazines, trawl websites, Google Images, Flickr, Pinterest and Tumblr for inspiration. Being specific will help you visualise what you want, but don’t get discouraged if you can’t find a picture of the car you want in the exact colour or a picture of the town where you dream of resting your head in Italy. A map of Italy is enough.

Step 3: If you are proficient in Photoshop, create a new blank canvas (I always go for A3 size) and open your favourite images. Scan in any photos you’ve clipped from magazines (or leave space to stick them on at the end). If Photoshop isn’t your thing, grab a pair of scissors, some glue and a piece of A3 paper/ cardboard or a corkboard and get snip-crazy.

Step 4: Add the text for the headings (as above) and lay out the images underneath. If headings feel too restrictive, freestyle baby! Go nuts.

Step 5: Devise your list of soul-shaking affirmations. Speak as if it’s a done deal. Use an “It’s-happening-now-and-it’s-friggen-awesome” tone. Instead of “I want to write books that change lives,” you’d say “I’m changing people’s lives every day with my kick-ass range of bestselling books.” Examples of powerful affirmations are below for you to play with and customise. Rip words from magazines (let’s call them energising words) like “Fit, Fab and Fantastic!” “My Dream Home” “Total Success” “Double Your Energy” “Your Happiest Year Yet!” and so on. Women’s magazines in particular are full of catchy slogans so attack that discarded pile in the corner with vigour!

Awesome Affirmations:

“I am massively increasing my income every day”
“I am feeling fit and healthy at my perfect weight of xx”
“I am ecstatic driving my brand new black Mercedes”
“I attract empowering and positive people into my life” (this is one of mine)
“I am discovering my life’s purpose” (another one of mine)
“I move from the old to the new with joy and ease”
“Incredible ideas are flowing to me easily and continually”

Sweeteners

+ Make it visible. Put your board up somewhere you’ll see it often. As I mentioned previously, mine is stuck on the glass in our shower, facing in, so that I see it every morning and night. There’s no excuses for not visualising my goals regularly when they’re sitting front and centre while I beautify! I’ve also got another smaller copy of my board glued in my diary. Think about making a screen saver out of your board or leaving a copy in the glovebox of your car to read on the way to work. Stoke the fire.

+ Put yourself at the centre. Find a photo of you doing something you love, with a huge grin on your face, feeling carefree and full of joy. Stick this in the centre of your board – this represents the way you want to feel every day.

+ Dreamsetting and manifesting have the potential to bring up a bit of the ol’ resistance. You know, the “I’m not enough’s’ “I can’ts” “As if that will happen’s.” We all go through it. It’s what we do to push past it that counts. Remind yourself that limitations are created in our own minds.

+ Michaelangelo once said ” The greater danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it.” Wise words. Put one enormous goal (that scares you) on your board. Allow the possibility of attaining it to enter your head. Get drunk – delerious – on that possibility and start believing it. Push yourself out to the jagged edges of your comfort zone, and hang there for a bit, see what it feels like to be done with that toxic relationship, to be running the organic soap business you’ve dreamed of since childhood, to sell up everything and travel the world with just a bag on your back, to live in your mansion by the sea. Often we don’t believe we’re worthy of receiving what we dream of so we prevent it from flowing our way by playing it safe. GUILTY. AS. CHARGED. I once had a goal list I devised in January that was so damn safe I’d achieved everything on it by March. Not ideal. Looking back, I’d become so hooked on the “high-achiever high,” feeling smug as I crossed things off my to-do list, that I’d created a goal list that made me look good. To who? Myself. I’d started to feel guilty about not achieving some of the stretchy, big goals I’d set out for myself so I’d whipped them off the list to stop me feeling inadequate. These days however, I see the stuff that puts the fear in me as a personal challenge. Kapow.

+ Quit the self-sabotage (tired old defense mechanism, that it is), quell the rampant head-chatter, drop the need to create a buffer in case things don’t work out so you can say “Told you so, knew I wasn’t good enough.” You’re more than good enough. You knock it out of the park.

+ Don’t worry about artistic ability or making it perfect. Being artistic isn’t important; creating a board that resonates with you emotionally is.

Your turn: have you ever made a vision board? Do you think you’ll give it a go? Love to know what you think about this concept in the comments!

Images: 1. via Pinterest 2. Absolute Sunday

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