The discipline required to be a free spirit

1 Apr

I quipped that it was snowing blossoms this week, as the white frosty blossom tree outside my house began to release her petals. But then it actually snowed! Whoa! What a treat!

So from a frosty spring day, here’s this week’s Friday Feels newsletter! Snippets from my world of coaching, meditation and breathwork – with the intention to share information that brings joy, wonder and self-reflection.

1. Song of the week

You Are The Sunshine Of My Life by Stevie Wonder (listen on Spotify and YouTube)

You are the sunshine of your OWN life! Your own inner light – let that shine out and keep you toasty when it’s snowing outside 😛

2. Quote of the week

“It takes discipline to be a free spirit.” — Gabrielle Roth

One of my mentors and a wonderful teacher for me in the last two years, Steph Magenta, said these words during breathwork training I took part in this week. It really landed for me because freedom is one my highest values I subscribe to and try to embody. Which actually requires a lot of discipline! This doesn’t mean we have to be tight and forceful and bully ourselves into doing things (or not doing things), but I believe we can hold ourselves to higher standards.

For me, discipline is deciding to do something and sticking with it. For example, getting up early to go for a dip, rather than snoozing. Doing my finances, rather than avoiding them. Going sober for long stretches at a time, rather than mindlessly drinking alcohol. Eating clean, rather than stuffing my face with sugar that causes inflammation in my body. Being present to others around me, rather than picking up my phone to scroll. Planning for my business, rather than getting distracted and abandoning my own strategies! You get the idea.

Where in your life can you invite more discipline? Start small and let momentum build! And love yourself enough to change and let go of what no longer serves you.

3. Practice of the week

letting go of complaining, blaming and justifying! (I posted about this on Instagram this week – see my confession here!)

Sure, I get it! There can be so many reasons why we are suffering and things are hard. So it’s important to be kind and gentle with ourselves. And to also be curious about the complaining, blaming and justifying. Because chances are, somehow we are letting ourselves off the hook. The responsibility lies somewhere outside of us – that’s why we’re struggling! The economy. The Tories. Fuel prices. Your partner. Your parents. Your siblings. The neighbours. Your boss. Your job. Your line manager. Your health. Your pets. The environment. The list goes on! Where are you pointing your blame at? Much of this type of thinking is habitual and it can be deeply ingrained.

For me, I continually remind myself that I am fully responsible for my life. So how do I show up in the world? Paying close attention to my reactions and triggers. It can be damn challenging at times – I want to strop and point the finger elsewhere when things are hard! But with so much love, I turn my attention back to myself and ask “what’s the story here?” and wonder how I can let go of the complaining, blaming and justifying. Not to suppress the stories, but to be curious, move through them to find a deeper truth. And that’s how we embody a deeper personal power and find freedom through responsibility. I am responsible for my results in life. Including my health, relationships, finances and attitude. How about you?

4. Teaching of the week

The Strangest Secret – I love this classic lesson by Earl Nightingale. I often share this video with my clients and I used to listen to this on repeat when cycling to and from work in my corporate job, to remind me of this wisdom! Especially when I was feeling scared about the idea of taking the leap and leaving my job to work for myself. I had to embody feelings of being brave multiple times a day!! What jumps out for you as you listen to this? This is a teaching to bookmark and come back to, for sure!

5. Client win of the week

“It’s ok to slow down, I am not going to get in trouble… and I see me!”

A client was reflecting on her pattern of burnout. She’s fallen into the trap of confusing busy-ness with productivity. And wrapped up in that busy-ness was also a belief that by being busy, she was also “a good girl”. This was conditioning set at childhood, as she had grown up being praised for her hard work at school. That’s pretty much the only time she felt seen by her parents. So in order for her to feel seen, she knew she had to keep busy! And if things weren’t going well with her business, she’d put her foot down *even* more, despite her body crying out for her to slow down.

As we explored this deeper, she also noticed a fear that she’d get in trouble somehow. So she was scared to slow down. Hence the burnout! And at times when she did, feelings of being alone or unappreciated by others would creep in. So the cycle of busy-ness not only fed her belief that she was a good girl, but also kept those icky feelings at bay. Once we were able to hold space for these realisations to come through, she breathed a big sigh of relief. “It’s ok to slow down, I am not going to get in trouble… and I see me!” she shared in our coaching session. Exactly!

This is why I love blending business coaching with mindset work and breathwork, so we can really tune into the feelings in the body, and observe the stories in the mind. You can’t evolve beyond your conditioning if you don’t know what the stories are in the first place.

Get in touch with me about 1:1 coaching and how we can identify those stories that are holding you back from your full potential.

Also, I am pumped to be hosting a free mindset coaching class! Are you keen to grow your biz, but scared of burning out? Is your income patchy? Let’s “Get Your Sh*t Together”! Join me for this free coaching class on how to prioritise yourself and get the results your heart is crying out for.

“Get Your Sh*t Together” Free Mindset Coaching Class
Tuesday 12th April at 12:30pm BST
Sign up to the free mindset coaching class here.

P.S. What is this Friday Feels post about? In case you’re reading this for the first time (hello!), I post a weekly blog with snippets from my world of coaching, meditation and breathwork. My intention is to share useful, joyful or interesting tidbits, which may serve you in some way 🙏 I am grateful we’re connected – thank you for your time + presence x

Photo by photos_by_ginny: https://www.pexels.com/photo/dried-leaf-cover-by-snow-at-daytime-845906/