Tuesday, October 22, 2013

I'M IN LOOOOOOVVVVVVEEEEEEEE...

I'M IN LOVE.....

With my life that is :) What did all you all in cyber space think I was going to expose my full life out on this blog...LOL...

Anyhow, as I started off I AM IN COMPLETE LOVE WITH MY LIFE RIGHT NOW, probably more than I have ever been before. There is no stress, no anxiety and no sense of the little voices in my head nagging at me. Instead there is just this absolute sense of calm, amazingness and obviii some crazyness. 

Therefore with that being said, after reading the below on Robin Sharma's blog today, I couldn't help but think that this not only summed up how I feel, but also that it was worth sharing with everyone out there in cyber space. 

Hope this brings a smile to all your faces and encourages you all to LOVE your Lives. And if you aren't in COMPLETE LOVE with your life right now, do what you need to do to make it so that you are....

Happy reading 

- A

I'm in LOVE....

...with the idea that ordinary people can do extraordinary things once they start believing they can. 

...with the notion that we all have some unique version of genius within us, begging to see the light of day. 

...with the principle that great things inevitably happen to people who consistently do good things. 

...with the philosophy that our lives do not reflect lucky breaks but hard work and massive focus.

...with the rule that being kind is never a mistake. 

...with the habit of relentlessly delivering more than is expected. 

...with the regimen of living in a way that honours what you believe to be right, even if the world laughs loudly at you. 

...with the prescription of doing one thing each day to make your character stronger, and your heart bigger. 

...with the concept that good manners and personal excellence never goes out of style. 

...with the truth that our lives reflected what we've settled for not what we deserve

...with the insight of "just because you've never done it before doesn't mean you can't do it today. 

Sunday, October 20, 2013

Thinking back To when we were all Kids...

Think back to that first stumbling block that you ever faced. You know that one episode in the sand box, school yard, park or anything alike. Do you remember how you faced it? What you did? Did you cry out for help, then wipe away those tears, dust yourself off and look the word NO, or the IDEA OF FAILURE in the face and say THAT'S NOT HOW THIS IS GOING TO GO DOWN. Or did you cry, walk away and just think if I have to work for it, it's not worth it. What did you do? Do you remember?

Just take a moment to think about it.

This week, I had the chance to hear some awesome successful entrepreneurs talk about their experiences as part of Chicago's Ideas Week. And one of the speakers talked about how he could look back to the way he hustled and sold baseball cards as a kid and realized in his older age that the way he acted then was completely representative of how he reacted to challenges in his life now. And then he asked us all to think about it in terms of ourselves. Did we all think that how we reacted 20 odd years ago was representative of how we reacted now to the challenges that we face in our lives?

In all honesty, I thought about it for a long time. And likely because I wasn't sure what my definition of a challenge was as a kid. I mean was I challenged when my parents forced me to eat all the yucky Indian food off my plate before I could leave the kitchen at dinner time. Or was I challenged at school when I struggled to be, look or act like the cool kids. What was it?

Truthfully after thinking about it for some time, I realized that every single one of those elementary moments (e.g. learning how I could make my "plate" appear empty so I could be allowed to leave the dinner table), was a challenge and if I thought about it carefully, the way I acted then was and is the way I act now. I think the only difference is that now I feel fearless and pretty much unstoppable. I have the confidence I wished I had as a kid and while my palms still get a bit sweaty, I do react the same exact way.

So what is my reaction? Well when I think back to the Indian food I was forced to finish off my plate, I started off crying, you know the good old girl kinds of tears that get you pretty much out of everything and anything. And then after that worked a few times, I realized just how exhausting crying like that was. I mean I know I am dramatic by nature, but an actress I am not, and I  just can't cry on command like that every single day. So then I realized I had a choice. I either give in and let my parents win or I come up with a solution. And a solution I came up with (annnd not one I can openly share online with fear of my parents finding out, lol), NO ONE was going to stand in the way of me getting to my late night TV, especially not GROSS INDIAN FOOD. And after that if I look at all the struggles and all the challenges I have faced since those very days, I have never given up. I have stayed so completely committed to the things I want and have just learned to look challenges in the face with creativity, determination and belief. If I want it to happen it's going to happen one way or another. No one, no how, no anything is and was ever going to stand in my way.

So what was it for you? That first challenge, that first stumbling block? And did you act the same way then that you do now? And if not, do you wish you did?

Leaving you with some things to ponder. Til next time..

- A

Sunday, October 13, 2013

What are you all THANKFUL for?

Earlier this year I was in a bit of a rut. You know living the life of a Negative Nancy, where the glass always seemed half empty. And while I never let anyone see the negativity that was brewing inside of me, I knew that I desperately needed to do something to get out of the state I was in. I mean things were spiralling out of control and in more ways than one I was a complete and utter emotional wreck. 

So what to do? With out fully seeing or knowing the state I was in, a close friend of mine recommended a book to me that I have at many times talked about on my blog. And while the book shall remain nameless to all of you out there in cyber space, I will say that I was a serious sceptic at first. How was this book and the train of thought it was trying to get me to get into going to help? I mean I can be naive but I am not plain old gullible, at least I don't think so, lol. Anyways, I decided to let go of all my scepticism and just trust what the book had to say, I mean at that point what did i have to lose? 

One of the very first things this book focused on was getting out of the negative state you were in by providing a series of exercises you had to complete. And I don't mean jumping jacks and crunches, I mean positive mental type exercises. And while the book promised these so called exercises would turn you into a golden bright happy ray of sunshine, it was honest in saying that these exercises would not instantly work, so you had to be committed to doing them for at least 30 days. 

So fine, you crazy self proclaimed book, I said staring at myself in the mirror, I will commit to your exercises and try to get out of this annoying Negative Nancy state. 

The first of the exercises was simple. Every morning when you awake you turn to that amazing (/ annoying) thing that helps you get out of bed - your alarm clock - set it for 7 minutes, grab  your notebook and pen and start writing a list of all the things you love about your life. And I mean ANYTHING. My lists always started off simple - I love my bed, I love the comfort of my PJ's, I love MY APARTMENTS, I love my family, etc - and then would evolve into specifics about my life. And while I felt silly the first few times I did it, I will say that my mind shift started to change. It was suddenly really hard to think of all the negative things I didn't like about my life, when after this morning exercise I was drowning in soo much love and positivity. And while no one called me sunshine immediately, I will say that it became one of many nick names on my African Adventure and on my current project team. And it feels pretty damn good, especially because I got out of the state I was in all on my own with out anyone forcing weird oils, exercises, and lectures on me. I changed because I wanted to :)

Now I know all of you people out there in cyber space are wondering what the point of this lovely story is. So let me get down to business. I am not suggesting that you all commit to doing this exercise for the next 30 days (I mean not unless you want to), but what I am suggesting in the spirit of my part Canadian roots, is that we spend this Thanksgiving doing a bit of an adjusted version of this exercise. i mean what do you all have to lose?

Thanksgiving whether Canadian or American, isn't just about watching football, stuffing your face with turkey and pumpkin pie and ending up in an utter state of food coma, it's about being around those you love, being surrounded by what you define as family and really just taking in all the great things in your life. So this Thanksgiving (Sunday), I challenge all of you out there whether you are Canadian, American, Batswana, British, and anything else in between, to set your alarm for 7 minutes, take out a piece of paper and a pen and write out your list of ALL THE THINGS YOU ARE THANKFUL FOR :)

Here is a snip-it from my list to get you all started: 

I am Thankful for the amazing sleep I just had. 
I am Thankful for the dreams I had that let me wake up smiling from ear to ear. 
I am Thankful for my family (including the baby ladoooooooo that will be joining us all sooon, eeeek!!).
I am Thankful for the love that surrounds me. 
I am Thankful for second chances. 
I am Thankful for my re-belief in love, happiness and building life long partnerships and relationships. 
I am Thankful for the friends I have. 
I am Thankful for my silly, carazzzzzy, funny ways. 
I am Thankful for the opportunities in front of me. 
I am Thankful for my battle wounds.
I am Thankful for..........ARE YOU CRAZY, I CAN'T GIVE IT TO YOU ALL OUT THERE IN CYBER SPACE. Not everyone can know the details of what makes me have this goofy smile for every second, minute and hour of these days.

So what are you waiting for!!! Before the Turkey arrives and before the day gets away from you, start your "THANKFUL" lists. 

Wishing you all a Happy Thanksgiving from my Canadian Side :) Till next time. 

- A

Sunday, October 6, 2013

OUT with the OLD and IN with the NEW

"Live the life you Imagined" 

But what if you suddenly wake up and realize you are living a life far beyond what you could have ever imagined? Almost as if you are surrounded by "PINCH ME, IS THIS REALLY MY LIFE" moments. 

This quote was written on a pillow that I walked by as my Bots crew and I raced to find a brunch spot that would allow us to recover and debrief on our awesome Sun City weekend. And while I snapped a quick photo of the pillow that had this quote, it wasn't until I finally got on my flight home that I realized, I have been living a life far beyond my wildest of dreams. 

They say that it all comes together at some point, almost as if you wake one day and realize that all the bad stuff, all the growing pains, heart aches, failures and everything's in between just suddenly make sense. And I don't know if I believed the fact that there was actually a light at the end of the tunnel, until I had my "AHA" moment as I waved "See You Soon" to Bots and got on my plane. 

Since I started this blog, I have talked a lot about how I never imagined to be where I am today in a good and in a bad way. And that is the plain and simple truth. It's never meant to have been a cry for help or a sob story, it's a simple fact. I never imagined that I would be sitting where I am now, with certain people gone from my life for good. A year ago, hell maybe even 6 months ago, I had such a different vision as to how things would go down. And I have no idea when that vision left, or vanished or changed for me, but it did. It could have been on my climb up Khale Hill, or in one of my many deep discussions with one of the most incredible couples I have ever come across or it could have been the love, appreciation and worth that I finally came to feel for myself after being surrounded by such beautiful, amazing, inspiring people. But that moment when it changed, doesn't matter, what matters is that I set out on a journey where I dedicated the awesome Ellie Goulding Song - Anything Could Happen to and in the end anything and everything that I could have never imagined happened. 

I don't even know if I could sum it up for you all out there in cyber space but I can try. So let's see in chronological order of course if I can get you all to SEE THE INSANITY that just went down:

Waved good bye to my life in North America including all the dreams I once had, took the LONNNGESSST flight of life, got madly addicted to suits, began insanity and realized how INSANE it actually is, took on a project that I never had done before and was COMPLETELY scared to do, started a count down to Ethiopia only to realize that booking plane tickets online is something new in Africa that doesn't always work, lol, ate all the injera to my hearts content, travelled to one of the most beautiful places on earth, got lost in the middle of the Indian Ocean with one of my bestest friends (LOVE YOU J), star gazed under the amazing African sky with the sand under me and the waves at my toes, began waking up at 5am like it was normal, started half marathon training only to realize that I have picked the one hobby that makes your feet SOO DAMN UGLY (two black toe nails check!), developed one of the coolest things ever and watched it come to complete fruition, learned that I could actually build a computer,  found me a woman mentor that exceeded everything I could have ever imagined, applied for an extension and got no response, developed a social calendar that made me busier than I am in North America, built a family of some of the most amazing people, got addicted to Amarula, road tripped to Sun City, walked across the Botswana / South Africa border like it was the partition (literally), drank, drank and then drank some more, sang and danced my heart out, giggled till it hurt, began to pack for my return, headed back to South Africa to play with the elephants and giraffe's, desperately tried to get wifi in the middle of no where, scrambled to get letters and emails sent, changed my flight 24 hours before I was set to come home, GOT EXTENDED!!!!, had a couple wild crazy nights with my entire crew, met people I least expected, had my socks knocked off, had a couple of heart palpitations, ate amazing food, realized what Amarula does to people that are lactose intolerant, got some amazing life, love and professional advise, barely slept, packed up everything including my Bots memory box and painting from Linda (shout outtt) and my SSI Bracelet (joooooooannna) annnnnnd an extra scarf or two, laid it all out on the line, left it all up to the Universe and 40 hours later landed back in North America. 

And now I'm back to living in between two awesome cities, with a vision that is far beyond what I ever imagined, with a sense of maturity that I needed to develop in order to really believe and know that I was truly ready for that next chapter, that next phase, that next part of my life that I always dreamed of. 

So you see out there in cyber space, when you really believe, have faith and give love anything could happen, so long as you let it :)

Til next time 
- A