life reset – Page 2 – Rachel MacDonald

In Spaces Between Life Reset!

19 September, 2011

“I am here to seduce you into a love of life; to help you to become a little more poetic; to help you die to the mundane and to the ordinary so that the extraordinary explodes in your life.” ~ Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh

We’re not far into a new season (and where I live, that means Spring, glorious Spring!) and with the seeds of change comes the desire for newness. New opportunities, sparkling new energy, nourishing new thoughts and habits, and new daydreams to light a fire within us.

I’m a huge advocate of conducting life reviews at regular intervals throughout the year to take stock of where we’re at, where we want to be and most importantly, how we want to feel. These reviews often reveal to us the dreams and desires that sit in the corners of our souls gathering dust, and always help to bring to light the YOU inside that’s been pushed aside because of a demanding schedule, lack of time or lack of motivation.

Thinking back to January, the dawn of a new year, ripe with possibility, what was your big dream for 2011? Have you achieved it yet, or do you need a little push to get from here to there? Are there new goals you want to accomplish before the year is out? Yes yes and yes? Then listen up, because you’re going to LOVE the In Spaces Between Life Reset!

What we’ll be doing

Quite simply, taking emphatic action! This Life Reset is about holding a magnifying glass up to your life as it is right now and making subtle or big (scary) changes to your personal universe through the following:

1. Review

Grab a pen and a notepad and start writing. Think about the goals you set in January – do they still resonate with you? Is it time to release some of these goals, or refocus on the ones you haven’t yet achieved? Write down a list of three things you’d like to accomplish over the duration of the Life Reset. Three goals in three weeks is a totally achieveable so choose the ones that fit best – big or small. You might like to:

Increase your exercise
Cut out sugar
Take a break from alcohol
Take on a creative project like snapping a photo a day or scrawling your thoughts in a journal
Get up an hour earlier to soak in the sunrise and gift yourself with some healing time for ‘you’
Read more books
Keep a daily gratitude list
Meditate every night

It’s totally up to you – you’ll know what aligns best with your ‘big dreams’ so get loose and go wild with that juicy pen!

2. Rest

Give your body a break over the next 21 days. Slow down, retreat a little, shift your energy away from external influences and instead point it inwards. This is a time of reflection – on what you, right now, at this juncture of your life, love doing and feel nourished by. Give that stuff the room it needs to percolate its way to the top.

3. Rejoice

Why are we doing this reset? To feel freakin’ amazing, that’s why! Over the next three weeks, make a conscious effort to do the things that fill you with unbridled pleasure. If running is your thing, then run girlfriend, run! If baking cupcakes for co-workers brings you joy, whip out that apron, or if reading speaks to your spirit, get thee to the bookstore or library and pile those tomes up high.

I’m so excited to think how refreshed and revitalised I’m going to feel come Sunday 9 October!

What will my Life Reset entail? Read on below for my action lists, broken into the challenging stuff and the heart-opening, soul-supporting stuff.

The Challenging Stuff

1. Three week detox: Starting today, I’ll be following the Clean Program by holistic doctor Alejandro Junger (and I’ll be providing you with updates on my progress, because if you’re anywhere near as curious as I am, you’ll be dying to know what the program is like!)

The challenging bit: As far as meals go, I like to think I eat well and have a firm grasp on nutrition and what I need to function properly, but when it comes to my afternoon snack, I’ve got a dirty little sweet habit that trips me up – often – and I’m over it. Well and truly. I want to get to a place where I can either take the sweet stuff (mainly chocolate) or leave it. This is a big goal for me and I must admit that completely eliminating sweets for 21 days kind of terrifies me! In the best, most terrifically exciting way.

Fear is an incredible motivator, and is also a big shining beacon of light exposing the things we really need to shift or work on, so I’ll definitely be listening to that fear. I’m anticipating that the no sugar thing will bring up all my resistance and there will be moments of weakness where I’ll feel like throwing in the towel, but I’ve promised myself I’ll grit my teeth and work my way through the emotions. You heard it here first! Hey-yah!

2. Three day juice cleanse: In between my detox (from Wednesday to Friday this week) I’ll be doing an Urban Remedy juice and soup cleanse, which I’m super excited about and will be reviewing for you right here on the blog.

The challenging bit: Um, not eating solid food for three days… and not being able to reward myself with a big, satisfying meal after I finish the cleanse as I’ll be going right back to the Clean program. Glutton for punishment, say what?!

3. Writing: For In Spaces Between and in a journal for myself. I’m committing to ‘writing it out’ when thoughts pop up that need to be examined and processed, which will no doubt happen – detoxing isn’t just about cleansing the body, it’s about clearing toxic thoughts, old stories and beliefs that no longer serve us.

I also want to spend the time looking a little deeper into myself and the best way to make sense of my thought patterns is to get pen to paper. I want to peer inside my soul and release – release pressures, expectations (of myself and others), self-doubts, defeatist attitudes – basically any of the residual stuff that’s hanging around unwanted. My goal is to write one page a day of ‘my thoughts’ (not for public consumption!)

The challenging bit: finding the time for free writing and waging the battle in my head that will no doubt tell me that if I’m writing, I should be blogging. Which I know isn’t true (that’s just my ego talking) Free flowing creative practice is so important and should be viewed as a necessity not a luxury.

The Heart-opening, Soul-supporting Stuff

1. Five minutes of meditation every day – five minutes I can absolutely do and I know it will make a difference! I’m also going to list five things I’m grateful for at the end of each day before I drift off to sleep.

2. Daily exercise – I’ll be focusing on pilates and walking, with a few up-tempo sessions mixed in.

3. Disconnecting – I’m going to take some time off the computer when I feel I need to. Not sure when this will happen, I’ll just listen to my body and wait for the signal!

4. Connecting – with friends, family and my love. Quality time, deep conversations, hugs, kisses, appreciation.

“We are often tired and imbalanced not because we are doing too much, but because we are doing too little of what is most real and meaningful.” ~ Marianne Williamson

I want to finish by saying this…

The time is NOW! Let’s get real about living the life of our dreams right this very second! You have the time to do what you want to feel fulfilled, so peel back the layers to find what’s really burning inside you – those pearls of desire tied to a string around your soul. You have everything you need to make positive change, so don’t put off your happiness and your sense of fulfillment any longer. Reboot and rejuvenate! I’m 100 million % commited to increasing my energy through deliberate action, and I truly hope you’ll be joining me along the way!

+ So, how does all that sound to you? Let me know in the comments if you’ll be joining the tribe for the In Spaces Between Life Reset and what three things (could be more, could be less) you’re going to zero in on. I can’t wait to hear about what part/s of your life you plan on transforming!

Massive love to you all xx

Image: 1. Sf Girl by Bay 2. Little Things Studio on Etsy

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Life Reset Preparation: How I’m Getting Ready to Rock My Reset

18 September, 2011

The Life Reset is nearly here (and I’m super excited!) so I thought I’d share with you a few of the things I’m doing/ will be doing today to prepare!

Exercise + Eating Really Delicious Food

When you’re staring down the barrel of a three week detox, you can go one of two ways with your eating: you can either spend the day scoffing anything in sight (McDonalds! Chocolate! Ice-cream!) or you can gently ease your body into the detox by eating healthily, with a treat thrown in for good measure.

I’m going to go with the latter (as appealing as salty fries and Cadbury Dairy Milk may be!) because I ran 10kms this morning and I don’t feel like jamming my face with junk for the sake of it! I saw Jamie Oliver whip up the most amazing looking feast on his ’30 Minute Meals’ show last night so I plan on recreating his menu today, and have already started by having the dessert component for breakfast this morning (photo above). A.MAZING.

To make it yourself

Put low-fat yoghurt, half a packet of frozen mixed berries and some mint in a food processor and mix until blended. Then pop in a glass, place in the freezer for 30 mins and hey presto, you’ve got yourself a healthy and refreshing breakfast/ treat/ dessert that makes you go ‘mmm hmm’ ‘ohhhh yep!’ at regular intervals. Delightful. I highly recommend you try this one!

My treat

Because I’m all about cocktails at the moment, and obviously won’t be drinking for at least three weeks, my treat today is going to be a delicious summery cocktail, which I’m going to enjoy this afternoon, sitting on our balcony in the sun reading a good book! Can’t wait!

The image above is of the drinks we sampled yesterday that were OMG-good and contained Absolut Vanilla vodka, Rekorderlig strawberry-lime cider, mint, soda water and lime juice.

Today, however, I think I’ll go for ginger beer, lime, mint and vanilla vodka (these cocktails almost taste like an ice-cream spider!) and I’m going to savour every, last, lip-smackingly luscious sip.

*** Just as an aside, I discovered yesterday that the Absolut site has squillions of great cocktail recipes if you’re ever looking for any.

Cleaning Up and Getting Organised

I’m a cleaner. Not by trade, but by inclination. Ever since I was a child, I’ve loved having things in order and having my surrounds clean and tidy. My Mum (who’s a Virgo, which should explain things) is the same, so I guess that rubbed off on me growing up. There’s always been this great sense of reward around cleaning that I delight in – I used to love rearranging the furniture in my room growing up, or helping my parents out by doing a spring clean of the house. I’m not OCD about cleaning but do believe you always feel better after a good cleaning sesh, so this morning I got up and did a big stack of dishes, vacuumed, washed the sheets, cleaned the bathroom… and I’m feeling more balanced already!

Tonight I’m going to get organised for the week by… writing my big, shiny goals for the Life Reset, pulling together a list of food for the next couple of days (before I start a three day juice cleanse on Wednesday) and laying out my exercise and work clothes. Simple things that make a big difference!

Beauty Maintenance

I normally only apply fake tan on a Thursday or Friday night as a prelude to the weekend if I’m heading out and about, but with the onset of warmer weather and the knowledge that jackets will now be replaced with sleeveless tops and singlets, I thought I’d whip out the fake tan today (my preferred brands are Ella Bache Great Tan Without Sun and St Tropez). It’s going to be so nice going to work tomorrow all bronzed up – my makeup always looks so much better when I’ve tanned and of course, teeth glow bright and white when you have a bit of colour on your mug!

I also did a full body scrub, de-fuzzed, used my favourite Lush exfoliator on my face followed by a face mask, put a treatment in my hair and painted my nails this morning. Pampering and beautifying makes me feel soooo good; it’s nice to take care of ourselves and show a bit of love to these beautiful bodies that carry us through life, don’t you think?

+ What about you? What are the little things you plan on doing today to prepare for lift off tomorrow? Would love to hear about your plans in the comments below.

+ More news on the Life Reset tomorrow but for now, GET PUMPED lovelies, we’re about to take things to the next level!

Images: Food/ drink images by me; Kitchen; Bath

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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

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Life Reset Wrap Up

11 July, 2011

Morrrrrning!

My “Life Reset” week ‘officially’ ends today, but I’ve made a promise to myself that I’ll continue to make a conscious effort to fill my weeks up with positivity and things that make me feel good. I’m as Sagittarian as they come and living optimistically has always been my “thing” but it was so nice to set the intention and raise the bar this past week – and even though I wasn’t feeling fabulous with my flu (which is now gone, hooray!), I got a lot out of focusing my attention on the areas of my life that needed a bit o’ lovin.’

I mentioned in my About page for this website that the name In Spaces Between is “a reminder to take pause in the spaces between doing “stuff,” to consciously do the things that make us smile from the inside out. Creative stuff. Heart-opening stuff” and that’s just what I did this week! I have this feeling that my life is shifting quite a bit at the moment, and in the most enchanting way. I’ll explain that further once I delve into it a bit more myself, but I just feel the momentum is really increasing and that I’m steering my ship in the right direction. Which is radder than words.

This is what I’ve been doing for the past few days to get my heart-racing and feet tapping:

Exercise

Friday: I go to a group training sesh every Friday and we either do an hour of hill sprinting (plus some ab-killers!) or, like this Friday, we hit the beach and do a circuit with squats, abs, push ups, ladder runs, hurdles and so on. The weather has been super chilly here but ridiculously clear, and the mornings, while icy, have been just stunning. The workout definitely sparked me up for my last day of the working week (well, kinda… I do work weekends now with my new love, In Spaces Between!)

Saturday: Braved the cold again and hit the walking track with a beautiful friend of mine for a 1 hour 45 minute walk/ chat catch up. Best start to the weekend, loved it. I actually had pretty sore abs later that day, does anyone get that from “power walking” or is it just me? Must have been tensing them like a maniac!

Sunday: My man and I got up early and did a 6km “race pace” run which was fantastic. It made me realise how much I miss the feeling that comes after a good run; this time last year I’d just completed my first half marathon, so I’ve gone from running 17-20kms each Sunday to… err… feeling it after 6kms!

Monday: I must have been keen to get into today because I woke up at 5.05 am even though my alarm was set for 5:30am. Okay body, I’m hearing you! I trotted off to spin class at my gym and must say that I’m feeling pretty damn amazing. Just as an aside, my lucky/ favourite numbers are 11 and 7 and today’s date is 11.7.11 – how could it not be an awesome day?! Hello, Monday, what have you got in store for me, because I. AM. READY!

Eating

I discovered this recipe on an awesome blog I found via one of my fave writers, Sarah Wilson (thanks Sarah!) and we made a loose version of the raw tacos for dinner last night. We didn’t go totally raw, as we needed to use up some food we had in the fridge, but supplementing tortillas for the lettuce was DELICIOUS! Apart from that, I’m still on a strawberry kick and have been trying to eat lots of vegetables and unprocessed foods (well, except for Saturday night’s dinner at the football game I went to with Ramai which consisted of M & M’s and hot chips, which is definitely questionable. Eek!)

Quality Time

I really wanted to have some quality time with good friends and my amazing fiance this weekend. Beautiful friends spoiled us with dinner Friday night and I went out to breakfast yesterday with my fave girls. Ramai and I also had a spontaneous, last minute trip to the football on Saturday night and some good hanging out time over the weekend which was totally soul-warming. Love energy flowing like mad!

Words of Wisdom

These articles resonated with me like crazy:

1. Do you have high expectations of other people?

2. “Genius is the offspring of the in between.” Kinda what In Spaces Between is all about, right?! (PS: I so needed to read this one!)

+ Of course, the other big news this week was that we are in the Top 21 for The Lane’s Dream Wedding competition, so I hope you don’t mind me asking you to vote for us (pretty please!) I’ll give you the details later today and for those that are interested, you’ll also get a bit of an insight into our love story on The Lane’s blog. So exciting, we feel truly blessed to have even made it into the Top 21 considering there were thousands of entries from across Australia. To win would be an absolute dream come true!

+ And, finally, how did you go this week? Did you feel a little more “on track?” If life was a tad crazy and you weren’t able to squeeze in your mini-life transformation, that’s totally fine – but why not make this week the week that you give yourself the gift of clarity and get inspired to live more magically? Go out there and grab life with two hands, sunshine!

Images: 1. Lenubar 2.My New Roots 3. Cherry Blossom Girl via Flickr 4. Etsy

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Life Reset: Day Two

5 July, 2011

Hello, hi, hooray! It’s Day Two of “Life Reset” week and I’ve woken up with at least 11 times more bounce this morning, despite a super late night on the computer last night. How are you going? How would you rate your energy today? How about your head space? Love to hear all about it!

This is what I’ve been doing in the past day that’s ramped up the joy-o-meter:

No sugar

There should be a big, fat strike through that heart but it was too pretty to deface! Ok, so I’m ashamed to admit this, but this is a pretty big one for me. I know, I know, it’s only been a day but when I’m busy or working long hours, my first instinct is to reach for something sugary (at 3pm, of course) to get me through the afternoon/ evening. I’ve been doing this too much and it needs to stop. Yesterday I didn’t touch any sugar and I don’t plan on having any for the rest of the week. Hopefully this can continue on after this week as well, the intention has been put out there so I’ll keep you posted with how I go!

I had some strawberries yesterday afternoon and didn’t even think about having anything junky, but if cravings hit this week I’ll combat them with fresh fruit, some protein (awesome for keeping the sugar monster at bay), a few slices of cheese or some full fat yoghurt. Full fat is the key here, as it’s fills you up and doesn’t cause blood sugar spikes. I go for the plain greek-style yoghurt, as I find that when I have the no-fat versions, I don’t feel satisfied and end up reaching for more sweet food to fill the gap. Also, the artificial sweeteners do not sit well in my stomach. Ugh.

What about you? Are you a sweet-tooth like me? What snacks to you have at 3pm to kill the munchies? I’m always looking for tasty snack ideas… and that reminds me, I must make some more of those delicious protein balls to take to work.

Yoga and Pilates

Last night my fiance and I did yoga at home with our good friend Jillian Michaels and her Yoga Meltdown DVD. The DVD goes for about 25 minutes and she teaches yoga the way I like it – fast, fluid and challenging. Pilates was my first love out of the yoga and pilates disciplines, so I’ve always favoured it and change my mind about whether I love yoga or not constantly. Anyway, this DVD is great for just popping on at home when you need a stretch out and it felt soooo good to release some of the tightness I’ve been holding through my shoulders, back and hamstrings.

I went to pilates this morning (first time in ages) at my favourite studio Essence of Living, which is run by my friend Michelle who is a bundle of positive energy and a total inspiration. I’ve definitely lost a bit of flexibility through my hips (a result of sitting at the computer all day, no doubt!) but I loved, loved, loved the class and can’t wait to go back again on Thursday morning. Pilates has always provided the perfect balance of exercise and clarity for me – I feel really peaceful when I walk out the door, like I’ve opened myself up and allowed energy and breath to flow into cells that haven’t been expanded in quite some time. When I talk to my man about it, he compares my “pilates high” to the way he feels after surfing. It centres, calms and invigorates all at once. Total bliss bomb.

A love letter to the world

I read this Love Letter to the World on Kate Swoboda’s fantastic site Your Courageous Life and had to share it. Poignant message to contemplate for the day.

“Whatever we see in the world, that is us, too. Cultivate a willingness to compassionately drop down into the zero center of someone else’s imperfection, and you’ll see their pain, and piece of your own. We are not so very different. We are far more alike than we often believe. With courageous hearts, we can change the world. So here goes:

In the face of complaints, look that person in the eye and imagine what it might have been like to be raised to see only what is wrong.

In the face of selfishness, wonder what it might be like to walk the world with a feeling of lack, of depletion.

In the face of insults, consider where this person first learned that it’s okay to abuse others.

In the face of disconnection, think about what causes it, and ask if your response will widen the river between the two of you.

In the face of laziness, recognise the fear of living big dreams.

In the face of extremism or fundamentalism, see the clinging, as well as the terror-filled silence that would arise for that person if they risked letting go.

In the face of controlling behavior, understand the chaos that must have bred it.

In the face of “always needing to be right,” see how often this person was once made wrong.

In the face of arrogance or bravado, hold gently that still, small piece that says “I’m not enough.”

In the face of drama or attention-seeking, see the person who wishes so much to be seen.

In the face of accusation, imagine what it might be like to live life with suspicion.

In the face of judgement or comparisons, step into the opportunity the world has just provided you for practicing love and acceptance.

In the face of passive-aggressiveness, recognise the child that wasn’t taught a safe way to express their truth.

In the face of anger, see the pain of isolation from others.

Most importantly: In the face of ferocious hatred, believe in the possibility that there exists the potential for equally as big, intense, lovely and fiery ferocious love.”

+ Pretty awesome message on compassion and love, huh? Make a promise to yourself that today will be day you forgive, let go, give someone a second chance. Spread the love, baby!

+ And finally, I don’t have a photo but we had a yummy thai pumpkin soup for dinner, full of herb-y flavour. What did you eat? I need some healthy ideas for tonight’s dinner, can anyone help me out?!

Images: 1. We Heart It 2. unknown 3. The Neo-Traditionalist

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Life Reset: Day One

4 July, 2011

So far, sooooo good! How are you feeling? Here’s what I’ve been doing to shift gears…

Eating

I had a delicious dinner last night (Sunday) to prepare for the launch of my “life reset week” – baked salmon and salad with the freshest, yummiest rocket (from the Farmers Markets), raw broccoli, cherry tomatos, red onion and raw mushrooms. I marinated the salmon in tamari (the healthier sister of soy sauce!) and put a drop of sesame oil on it to bake as I didn’t have any olive oil and it went well with the tamari. The piece de resistance was my favourite Asian-style salad dressing, as per the below recipe. I get asked about this one a bit, highly recommend you give it a go!

+ 1 tsp white miso paste
+ 1 tsp organic honey
+ dash of tamari
+ mirin seasoning
+ rice wine vinegar

Exercise

Thank god I found my yellow leg warmers over the weekend because when I woke up at 5:30am this morning, there was no way I was going to aerobics without them. HA!

You know I love my early starts so after waking up a leeeeetle groggy from a night time cold and flu tablet, I donned my finest workout gear (yellow leotard/ legwarmers), teased up my permed mullet and took myself out for a 40 minute run along the beach. Thanks for the outfit inspiration Jazzy Jane, everyone really appreciated it. Haha!

I have to tell you, I felt amaaaaaazing when I got home – super invigorated and ALIVE! It was a gorgeous morning, and I took my camera to capture it for you all to see. Best start to the day! When I got home, I did a mini-exercise circuit (as below) followed by some stretching:

+ 50 sit ups
+ 30 jump squats
+ 20 lunges (each leg)
+ 20 push ups

Breakfast was a bowl of organic muesli with fresh strawberries and chopped up apple. YUM.

Positive Power!

My gorgeous friend Emma from Sweden sent me a link to the below by Robin Sharma. So many truths, and a whole lotta wisdom right there.

Do important work vs merely offering opinions.
Lift people up vs tear others down.
Use the words of leadership vs the language of victimhood.
Don’t worry about getting the credit for getting things done.
Become part of the solution rather than part of the problem.
Take your health to a level called superfit.
Commit to mastery of your craft instead of accepting mediocrity in your work.
Associate with people whose lives you want to be living.
Study for an hour a day. Double your learning and you’ll triple your success.
Run your own race. “No one can possibly achieve real and lasting success by being a conformist,” wrote billionaire J Paul Getty
Do something small yet scary every single day.
Lead Without a Title.
Focus on people’s strengths vs obsessing around their weaknesses.
Remember that potential unused turns into pain. So dedicate yourself to expressing your best.
Smile more.
Listen more.
Read the autobiography of Nelson Mandela.
Reflect on the words of Eleanor Roosevelt who said: “Great minds discuss ideas; Average minds discuss events; Small minds discuss people.”
Persist longer than the critics suggest you should.
Say ‘please’ and ‘thank you’.
Love your loved ones.
Do work that matters.

+ In a survey of 22,000 business people ranking top leadership gurus, Robin Sharma was #2, with Jack Welch. Sharma’s books have sold millions of copies in over 60 countries.Visit his blog for more inspired wisdom – I particularly love his “Random Insights on Exceptionalism.”

+ I’d love to hear how you’re going so far – I know we’re only halfway into Day One but sharing our experiences publicly keeps us accountable and on track. My dream is for In Spaces Between to become a little community of like-minded souls who chat excitedly about living a better life… so, with that in mind…

+ Did you get up early this morning? Have you set any goals for the week or made a commitment to treat your body better, to stop putting so much pressure on yourself, to doing something that makes you tremendouly happy? Share away in the comments!

Image: via Etsy

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Join Me: One Week Life Reset!

3 July, 2011

Hello lovelies!

I’ve just had an exciting thought and I don’t know if it’s my cold and flu tablets kicking in, but here goes – this week on In Spaces Between I’ll be doing a “Life Reset.”

Yep, for the next seven days, starting tomorrow, I’ll be committing 100% to kicking the remnants of this flu, and all that it’s brought with it (lethargy, a foggy, cluttered mind, a general feeling of meh) to the curb – and detailing it here. I’ve been lazing around at home today and since this thought popped into my mind, I feel like a fire has been lit under me and I’m suddenly bursting with enthusiasm to get back on track and start to feel like my usual self again! This flu has really knocked me around and it’s amazing how frustrating it can be when your normal routine and zest for life is compromised by a nasty bug. I like living a shiny, happy life so I’ve made the decision that as of right now, I’m breaking out of the funk!

When I say “life reset,” this is what I’m talking about:

1. Ramping up my exercise again (I normally exercise five to six days a week and have had two half-hearted attempts in the past two weeks – I need an endorphin rush, pronto!)
2. Eating super healthy, lush whole foods – no processed junk
3. Cutting out sugar
4. Depositing some solid sleep in my sleep bank – early to sleep, early to rise
5. Meditating and taking some quiet time out to be still with my thoughts – thinking I might give a “technology-free night” a go too!
6. Being grateful (I try and do this every day as is, but will definitely be doing a bumper edition of my ‘Making Me Happy’ post this Wednesday)
7. Helping others
8. Filling my mind with positive stuff
9. Doing something nice for myself
10. Immersing myself in a fun and creative mini-project

I feel a million times better already just thinking about it!

I’m imagining sparkling eyes, vitality, off-the-richter clarity and that beautiful feeling you get from treating your body like the diamond it is. One week is nothing in the grand scheme of things, but it’s all you need to change your perception, transform yourself, achieve a goal or just get back to your sweet spot. I’m so looking forward to this!

So, who’d like to join me? Are you interested in dedicating just one week to bringing a whole lot of magic back into your life? You can go as hard or as easy as you want – I certainly won’t be putting any pressure on myself (kinda defeats the purpose!) but I think firmly stating your intentions from the outset is the best way to devote to a little soul shake-up like this “Life Reset.”

I’ll let you all know how I’m going and what I’m doing throughout the week right here on In Spaces Between and might put some snippets up on the In Spaces Between Facebook page as well.

Dying to hear your thoughts in the comments. It would be incredible to have you join me so we can share the love over the week… and please pass this on to your friends too, the more the merrier!

Big hugs x

Image: 1. Trevor Hoehne 2. Etsy via Pinterest

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