The 3 Pillars: Rocket Fuel for Your Big Dream

The foundation of my coaching program is what I call the “3 Pillars” – self care, energy and joy. If you are cared for, full of energy and enjoying life, everything else is easier and falls more easily into place. Life flows more smoothly, creativity is easier to access, action is easier, inspiration flows through you. Everytime I have been struggling with life, either my self-care, energy or joy has been low. If I’m cared for, energised and enjoying life, bumps in the road don’t bother me as much.

Just in our normal lives, we need to be cared for, energised and enjoying life. When it comes to our Big Dreams, they demand even more from us – more energy, more time, more ‘stepping out of our comfort zone’, more growth, more connection, more life. (they also give a lot back, but that’s a different story) When you are following a Big Dream, that dream needs you to be in tip-top shape – physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually. If you’re not, it is harder to follow your path, and you will find yourself having to stop and refuel often.

Because I’ve had a virus in April, I had to practice Extreme Self-Care to get myself back to full fitness as quickly as possible (just going back to your normal routine as soon as you feel human again doesn’t work – I tried!). Extreme Self-Care simply means taking extremely good care of yourself – listening to your body and giving it what it needs; listening to your mind and giving it what it needs; listening to your heart and giving yourself the emotional care you need; listening to your soul and giving it what it needs to thrive. (For more about self-care, see my free ebook on the subject)

Energy is the second piece in the puzzle. Once you have your self-care sorted, you then need to energise yourself. Refuel, as it were. Without energy, how can you achieve your Big Dream? Without energy, how can you give your all to something that is outside your comfort zone? When you’ve got lots of energy (think Tigger!), you can bounce your way through and do everything you will need to do for your Big Dream. Many clients think this ’3 Pillars’ work is optional at first…until they notice the obvious link between lack of self-care, energy and joy and struggle in any area of life.

The last piece in the puzzle is JOY! Although it is the final piece, it is just as important as the other 2. And I have found over the years that clients will realise the importance of self-care and energy fairly quickly…but this joy piece takes more time to accept! Which does amuse me, because in my view, enjoying life is why we’re here! We’re having this life experience in order to experience the joys that can be found (even the joys in sorrow). Living a life filled with small joys is a beautiful experience. And for your Big Dream, it is Rocket Fuel! Imagine yourself as joyous – imagine how much you can get done in that energy of joy, imagine dancing through all the tasks you need to do to accomplish your Big Dream. Imagine being happy not because you’ve achieved your Dream, but just because you are enjoying life on the way to the next Big Dream…and the next!

The 3 together will make your life so much easier, and your Big Dream seem so much closer that you will wonder how you ever got anything done before! Once you have these strong foundations in place, you will find it easier to fly!

Your Homework

EVERY DAY ask yourself this:
How cared for am I feeling right now on a scale of 1-10, where one is ‘not at all’ and 10 is ‘cradled in the arms of love’. If it is less than a 7, your only task is to do something to make yourself feel more cared for – do something that nourishes you.

If it is a 7 or more, ask yourself this:
How energetic am I feeling right now on a scale of 1-10, where one is ‘no energy’ and 10 is ‘I feel like Tigger, bouncy, bouncy, bouncy!’ If it is less than a 7, your only task is to do something to raise your energy – do something fun, get out in nature, do something you love that raises your energy.

If it is a 7 or more, ask yourself this:
How much am I enjoying life right now a scale of 1-10, where one is ‘I’m not’ and 10 is ‘I am totally in love with my life’. If it is less than a 7, your only task is to do something fun, something you enjoy – this is your life. ENJOY it!

When all 3 are a 7 or above, then you will naturally get moving on your big dreams because you feel good, you have mental clarity, you are enjoying life, you have energy. Make feeling good a habit, and see yourself get more productive and efficient (as well as happier, healthier, more energetic!).

To push this even further – when you regularly get to a 7 in all areas, try for an 8 every day, then a 9 when that gets ‘easy’, then a perfect 10 when 9′s are ‘easy’.

I would love to hear how you get on with this challenge – simply reply to this e-mail to tell me about your thoughts, your experience, your self-care, your energy and your joy!

This article was taken from May’s Dreams to Reality newsletter – to sign up, click here.

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Podcast: Comparison and Your Big Dream

Comparing an apple and an orange leaves both apple and orange feeling somehow lacking. And when we compare ourselves to someone else, we seem to pick those people who are 8000 steps ahead of us, people who will really show up our inadequacies! When you see someone else you admire, look at what they are modelling for you – does it help you clarify your dream, does it inspire you to take action, does it help fuel your desire?

To listen to this week’s podcast, click here: Comparison and Your Big Dream
(or to download to your computer, right click on the link and ‘save link as’ or ‘save target as’)
Homework:
When someone else’s journey catches your attention, notice what it is that you are drawn to. Then allow those people to help your Big Dream move forward.

You can also subscribe to this podcast on itunes here.

May all your dreams become reality.

Love

Donna.x

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Ask Donna: Am I Too Old For My Big Dream?

I am 39 years old and will be 40 in August. Am I too old to go for my dream?
- Alexis

In short, NO! You’re not ‘too old’ unless you’re dead!!! Then it really is too late! Lots of people in their 80′s, 90′s and 100′s do new things and follow new dreams – look for videos about these people and get inspired! There is not a date by which you have to have to ‘do’ anything – you get to have fun and experiences and follow dreams for your WHOLE life! Woohoo!

Don’t let age (something you cannot control) stop you from going after your big dream. If you couldn’t think that thought ‘Am I too old?’, what might be different.

Try this website for inspiring stories about people who went after their Big Dreams despite being twice your age! http://darynkagan.com/index.html

Keep Dreaming!

Love

Donna.x

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Podcast: Inspiration and Your Big Dream

Where do you find your inspiration? Where do the ideas and bolts from the blue come from? To make your big dream a reality you need an outlet where inspiration can strike. Here are a few of the places that inspiration strikes me: morning pages (from The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron), meditation, walking the dog, falling asleep. You also need to capture these inspirations or they just get forgotten.

To listen to this week’s podcast, click here: Inspiration and Your Big Dream

Homework:
Part 1: Notice when inspiration strikes for you. What are you doing? What mood are you in? Where are you?
Part 2: Make sure you have a way to capture those ideas – keep a notepad by your bed.
Part 3: Look for ways to invite inspiration in – do more of the things that work for you, or try new things to find other ways to invite inspiration in.

You can also subscribe to this podcast on itunes here.

May all your dreams become reality.

Love

Donna.x

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March Daily Practice: Trust Yourself

One of my ‘Beach Cards’ says: “If you really loved, accepted, honoured and believed in yourself, what would change?” One of the ladies on my facebook page said ‘everything’, which led me to decide that the Daily Practice for March will be ‘Trust Yourself’. When you trust yourself, you are loving, accepting, honouring and believing in yourself. So this month’s Daily Practice is to trust in you.

Trust in the wisdom you have within. And to really dive deep into this wisdom and inner guidance, we’re going to look at what our body is telling us every day, what our mind is telling us every day, what our heart is telling us every day, what our soul is telling us every day. For example, as I sit here and write this, my body is telling me I need to move – to dance or walk or do 10 minutes of yoga or stretch. Or maybe all four! My mind is telling me that it is clear and focused…but that my body isn’t!

My heart is telling me that this practice is going to change someone’s life. Ooh, juicy – could it be your life this practice changes? And my soul is telling me that following the ‘random’ inspirations that come up is the right way for me to live…and when those inspirations lose their energy, I’ve gone to far into my head and got to far ahead of myself so I need to come back to this moment and the next step and follow the thread of inspiration.

Beautiful, huh? And just what I need to know in each moment – and the same will hold true for you. Your body, mind, heart and soul are always giving you messages – but most of us don’t listen! We give away our power to someone else, making them the expert on our lives…and then wonder why we feel so disconnected, trapped and fed up! So this month’s mission, should you choose to accept it, is to notice every day, at least once a day what your body, mind, heart and soul have to say to you that day.

Are you going to join me in trusting yourself? Make sure you are a ‘likey’ of the facebook page to get the daily reminders, plus some more thoughts and quotes about trusting yourself. And I will be sharing what my body, mind, heart and soul have to say every day in March there too. Hope you will join me!

Love

Donna.x

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Podcast: Barriers Between You and Your Big Dream

There are going to be barriers between you and your big dream. But that’s good news (as well as bad news) because now you know they WILL come up, you can just get over it, under it, through it, round it. Another piece of good news is that most barriers look bigger than they really are! Once you get through them, you will look back and see they were not that big a deal.

Perhaps you know someone who seemed to have such an easy time of it…but trust me, they had barriers too. When you continually overcome the barriers, it gets easier and easier to get over, under, through or round any barriers that get in your way.

To listen to this week’s podcast, click here: Barriers Between You And Your Big Dream

Homework:
Think about the barriers between you and your big dream and just imagine going over, under, through, round those barriers. And whatever barrier you think might be standing in your way right now, get the help you need to get through that barrier!

You can also subscribe to this podcast on itunes here.

May all your dreams become reality.

Love

Donna.x

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Guest Post: Create an Encouragement Box by Jamie Ridler

When I saw this post from Jamie, I just HAD to share it with you guys – I have an encouragement book but I forget to dip into it when I need it…but this encouragement BOX idea is FABULOUS! It’s right here by my desk twinkling at me! Let me know if you try it, and feel free to send me (and Jamie!) some encouragement to fill our encouragement boxes!!

Jamie Ridler is a creative living coach and the director of Jamie Ridler Studios. From the Creative Living with Jamie podcast to the Sparkles creativity e-course, Jamie’s work helps women find the confidence and courage to discover and express their creative selves so they can be the star they are.

BIG love and thanks to Jamie who is one of my favourite people on the planet right now! Jamie, thank you for letting me share this wonderful practice. xx

Love

Donna.x

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OnTheBeach – Taking Inspired Action

When you are working towards a goal (say, having a life full of purpose, passion and joy for example!), what sort of action do you take? Do you take the next logical step, even when every fibre of your being is screaming at you to do something illogical and seemingly unrelated? Or do you follow your inspiration? Taking your whims and fleeting random thoughts as instructions to do something utterly fabulous? For most of us, it is the former. The logical steps. The ‘next’ steps. And there is nothing intrinsically wrong with that! Next steps will get you there…

But there are shortcuts to where we want to go. Little cut-throughs that we tend to ignore because we can’t see where they go. Have you ever seen one of these when out for a walk? A path that leads…somewhere. But because you can’t see where it goes, you stay with the path you’re on. I have never been good at ‘staying on the beaten track’. Whenever I see a path that goes…somewhere, or a road I’ve never been down, or a door I’ve never opened, I want to go that way and find out what’s down there. In the car, this has usually meant one of two things – I either get lost, or I find a shortcut. And I like a shortcut, a rat run, a different (sometimes quicker, sometimes easier) way of getting from A to B. I also don’t mind being lost. After all, I’ve had plenty of practice!

And I am the same in life. I listen to my intuitive nudges, my inspiration, the little whispers that tell me to do something seemingly unrelated to what I’m working on. And sometimes, I admit, I do get a bit lost or distracted. But many times that little inspiration takes me somewhere utterly fabulous. By following the inspired actions, I have found resources, people and fun stuff that I would never have seen if I’d stayed on the beaten path. And the more I take inspired action, the more I recognise the inspiration, the more I see the little lightbulb go on, and the more I move forward into the fabulous life I am creating.

Inspired action is the whisper from the universe to help you get what you want from life, but sometimes it looks like a distraction. Take the case of Chris, who was looking for a job, and got a nagging thought to call an old friend who just happened to have started a new company and needed staff. Coincidence? No, inspiration. The universe is always trying to help us along, but we think we know better and just ignore those whispers. And sure, sometimes the whispers seem to lead nowhere…but I am a big believer that no inspired action is EVER wasted. Sometimes it is just what you need in that moment. The other day I got a whisper to go to a local reservoir to watch the sun set. It was just what my soul needed, irrespective of what I was ‘working on’ right then.

How do you recognise inspired action? Notice that I said ‘recognise’ – this is something that is already there within you, whispering. It is not action that ‘seems like a good idea’. It is not action that you ‘thought’ would be a logical next step. It is not action that always makes sense! In fact, sometimes it is difficuld to explain to someone else why it is something you need to do! It is inspired, coming from your intuition, sometimes enormously illogical, but you know it’s ‘right’. I know you have experienced this before, we all have. And we all have the ability to tap into this inspiration more and more – unfortunately many of us are too used to going down the logical path. But logic was only invented to justify our intuitive decisions!!! So listen to your inspirations…and TAKE ACTION!

Love

Donna.x

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Call On Your Inner Actor

Last night I went to see Macbeth at the Royal Shakespeare theatre in Stratford. As ever, the actors are incredibly convincing – you can feel their joy, their pain, and their madness. This morning I woke up a little tired, and as so often when tired, I fell into the well worn groove of the character in me that is impatient, wants life to happen faster, better, bigger, sooner, NOW! I play this character well because of how often I have played that part. And then it struck me. Just as the Shakespearian actor can ‘get into character’, so can we.

And we can ‘get out of character’ too. To be honest, impatient Donna doesn’t really help me get to where I want to be. She is not that helpful. Not only is it an uncomfortable part to play, it does not add any value to my life. No audience is paying to watch me become this character. So I decided to get into a different character – a different me, a more relaxed, positive, supportive me. My body language changed, I relaxed, I felt lots better…and from this character, I can be more creative, have more fun (and remembering our September daily practice of feeling good, I felt better!)

What characters do you easily slip into when you are tired and depleted? It could be the irritable mom, the thunder-faced boss, the negative pessimistic person, the victim (the whole world is conspiring against you), the whiner (‘it’s a bloody shame for me!’), the short-tempered person or many more. Are they characters you enjoy being? Are they characters who are helping you live with purpose, passion and joy? Are they characters who will take you all the way to fabulous? Or are they characters who are no fun to play, or to be around, and no help to your wonderful life at all?

Call on your inner actor, the thespian lurking within you and get into a different character – a feel good character, an optimisic, positive, encouraging, vibrant, joyful, fun, easy-going, relaxed, laid-back, supportive character who dances her way through life with a big smile and a cheeky wink! Instead of channeling your inner Lady Macbeth, channel your inner Tigger!

Leave me a comment to let me know what character you don’t want to play and which one you will step into instead.

Love

Donna.x

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You Are A Catalyst

Imagine this – you are a person who affects hundreds of people every day. Your thoughts and ideas are highly sought after. You are looked up to by people around you. You are a catalyst for other people – you may be a muse for someone, a launch pad, a sounding board, the wing beneath someone’s wings. Sound good? Sound true?

It should, because it is – every single day YOU have the capacity to affect the lives of many others – people you work with, live with, travel alongside, interact with in shops and bars, phone, e-mail, text, friends, family, acquaintances, strangers. Don’t believe me? Have you ever had this experience – you are having a rough day, you are fed up, scared, tired, worried – and a complete stranger does you a kindness. And suddenly the world doesn’t seem so bad after all.

That kindness could be letting you out in traffic, beaming at you for no apparent reason, being polite (surprisingly effective), cracking a joke, doing something very random (kids waving at me from the back seat of a car always entertains me on the motorway). You may never see this person again, but they may have had a profound impact on your life, or just brightened your day.

You have the potential to have that profound impact on someone today. And every day. We do not live in an isolated society (even though it feels like it sometimes!) – we are all affected by those around us. And my question is, are you using your impact in the way you want to? Or are you careless with your words and actions, completely oblivious to how you are impacting someone else’s day?

Not just with strangers, with everyone – your family, friends and colleagues – do you have a positive impact on them? Do you encourage them to shine? What’s in it for you? It feels great to do something good for someone else – to encourage, to nurture, to be kind and loving. There is no feeling quite like knowing that you have positively affected someone else’s life AND you attract the same back.

- Something to Play With -

This week, make an effort to encourage others – be interested in your loved ones dreams, be optimistic about new ideas, and best of all, live your life to the full and inspire those around you. Want to share your thoughts on this article? Leave a comment below.

- Beach Card of the week -

Well, it’s just the perfect card to go with this article!! “Help someone else – give them something – a smile, a gift, a blessing, your love.” Ain’t that spooky?

If you like the ‘Beach Card’, come and join me on Facebook where I share a daily Beach Card.

Love

Donna.x

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