Travel can be fun and exciting, no matter if it is for business or pleasure. However, stress is often an unwelcome accompaniment, so it is imperative to maintain a solid fitness routine. How can this be accomplished, especially since you will likely be visiting an unfamiliar location and might also be preoccupied with business commitments, touring, and/or other travel-related activities? The key is to do your research beforehand to seek out healthy restaurants, fitness centers, and walking trails.

The Mayo Clinic offers valuable fitness advice for maintaining a healthy lifestyle on the go. To begin, be sure to conduct some research before booking a hotel in order to get the best experience out of your trip. On a recent trip to San Francisco I was able to book a hotel with a great 24-hour gym by searching through a travel review site. This site gave me a list of hotels in San Franciscoand from there I could see which ones had the best fitness centers for the budget that I set. When packing your travel bags, be sure to include fitness equipment, such as walking shoes, exercise dvds, and headphones so that you will have a wide variety of fitness options, no matter if you’re headed to the gym or leisurely spending the afternoon in your hotel room. Additionally, The Mayo Clinic also encourages travelers to maintain their usual fitness routines in order to promote consistency in their workouts and overall lifestyle, which helps to lower stress levels. The familiarity of the routine will likely prove a comfort to travelers, especially if they are encountering tense business situations.

Thankfully, your fitness routine does not have to be postponed until you reach your lodging accommodations since many airports are now working to encourage good fitness habits among travelers. For example, the San Francisco International Airport offers a yoga/zen room, and the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport features walking paths in several concourses. NBC news reports that the InterContinental Hotels Group will open EVEN, a hotel chain that will promote healthy choices for travelers, such as fitness centers and nutritious meal options. Nancy Trejos with USA TODAY explains that even United Airlines distributes frequent flier miles for customers who purchase a gym membership.

Finally, when it comes to nutrition, be sure to plan ahead for your meals. Lynn Eastep, a contributor at uhhospitals.com, urges travelers to consume plenty of water, to fill up on a variety of fruits and vegetables, and to keep nutritious snacks on hand at all times. The key is to be prepared so that when tempting, fatty foods beckon, you will be well-prepared with healthy snacks and a well-hydrated body that is satiated by filling fruits and vegetables.

Michael Manning is a ftness and healthy living enthusiast who tries to see the best in all situations. He loves to hike, run, weight lift, travel, camp, cook, and be outside. Traveling the world and seeing nature’s beauty is his hobby and staying healthy through that is essential to me. Any questions please email him at mikemanning@gmail.com

To get the point across I will use a fitness example. A lot of times when I am working with people, they see others who have achieved great goals with their fitness, but they notice that there are less than desirable qualities in the person, which they do not want to become themselves. One of those qualities might be vanity. Another might be obsession with exercise, even addiction. We can begin to build a list of the things that you don’t want to become, so that you can begin to invest your energy into who you want to become instead.

1) Start out by listing all your fears of who you don’t want to become. Take a look at all those people who are examples of what you don’t want to become. Maybe you were that yourself in the past. Write them all down as a list.

Don’t Want To Become

Vain

Addicted to exercise

Don’t want losing weight to be the focus

others have high expectations of me

imprisoned by trying to be perfect

2) Now that you have this list, what you want to do, is flip it over on the other side of your piece of paper so that you can decide who it is that you want to become instead. Sometimes this takes some effort to think about, the flip is not always obvious. You will know when you have struck upon it though, because you will feel light about it.

      Don’t Want To Become                The Person I Want To Be

Vain                                                   Humble and grateful for the body I have.

Addicted to exercise                       Exercising the right amount for my body

Don’t want losing weight to        Focused on creating health, energy and
be focus                                              wellbeing

others have high expectations    I am in control of my life
of me

imprisoned by trying to be            I am free, loving and accepting
perfect                                                 myself right where I am at

And you could build this on and on. In fact the longer the list of what you don’t want, the more clarity you will get about what you do want to become.  And once you are clear on the person that you want to become, you need to invest your imagination into becoming that person. Don’t give the fear of becoming the other person a moments notice. Any time you notice someone else living out the version you don’t want to become, simply remind yourself of who you are.

3) Begin creating in your mind the person you want to become. It starts with claiming that for yourself, stating that you are that, and stepping into it throughout each and every day. The choices you make and the actions you take will either imprint the new creation of yourself or will continue to play out the version of yourself that you do not want to become.

“I am humble and grateful for the body I have been blessed with.”

“I am focused on health, high energy and wellbeing”

“I am in control of my life”
As you begin to state these affirmations, you will find that parts of you want to step in and contend with this, old conditioning which wants to convince you that you are not that person. There are many tools that you can use in order to be able to do this, such as the Emotional Freedom Technique and Psych-K. And the person you don’t want to become, is the person you still judge. When the people show up who present those aspects to you, send them love, they are only reflecting a part of yourself you don’t like or don’t want to become.

The above exercise is a great way to set in motion the energy of your imagination to create the person you want to become. Affirmations will work, but only with the feeling, determination and patience to fuel them. Any time you feel the fear of your shadow side, remember you are being given an opportunity to use your imagination wisely. This is what I can recommend as the best way to begin moving in the direction of being the person you want to become.

This is just a start, for a more comprehensive delve into this, so that you can step into the person you want to become, take me up on the offer of a complimentary coaching session. Contact me at matthewmashdown@gmail.com and we can set up a skype or phone session and get rocking!

― Albert Einstein

Do you ever get intuitive insights in meditation, or in fleeting moments, that you have never read in a book? And then found that nobody in your circle believed you when you shared them?

“Intuition means “soul-perception.” It shows the difference between true and false reasoning. Errors are made by people who fail to distinguish between a real “hunch” or intuition, and their conceptions born of intellect, experience, or blind belief.”

- Paramhansa Yogananda

Especially when it comes to health and fitness. There are so many books out there with conflicting information.  I believe the truth is that they all work for certain people. Experts are correct for certain people.  The raw diet works for certain people, and makes others sick.  The Body For Life fitness program has been the metabolic booster for some, and not for others.

Tuning into your own internal guidance system will guide you in helping to make the right choice for you.  I therefore believe that learning to trust your bodies own intuition is foundational to enjoying living in your body.  As long as you rely solely on another persons belief system, you sacrifice your own self.

What has happened when you have tuned out your intuition?  Have you found yourself making choices that didn’t work for you and then ended up blaming someone else?

This has happened many times in my life.  I learned to tune out my intuition because there was nobody around me who validated what I was saying.  And then I would pick up a book and the hairs on my body would stand on end as I read something that I had felt intuitively for a long time.

It becomes a lifelong practice of discernment.  When two conflicting opinions are provided by two experts, tuning into your intuition will guide you to understanding what is right for you.

We will always find someone else who can validate an insight that we have had. Where our courage comes is in being able to trust that insight for ourselves and acting on it when we don’t have it outside of ourselves, and be willing to risk being wrong.

We are not taught this in school.  Yet, if our intuition is fostered in the school system then more people would grow up listening to their own internal guidance, and not solely to the steadfast opinions of another individual which are open to error.

What have you picked up intuitively that you have not read in a book yet?  Or that you disagree with in a book that you have read, or expert that you have listened to.

Trusting our intuition comes through a process of deep practice of meditation, and the clearing of the emotional toxins and beliefs that prevent us from hearing that intuition.

We have no need to prove our intuitive insights to others, for they may never believe them, but we can choose to act upon them, and explore where it may lead.

The truths that others know intuitively for themselves on their path may not be the same ones that will work for you.  Even as you read this, meditation afterwards will allow you to know the truth in it for you. Kriya Yoga has been the path that has opened up my intuition more than any other I have experienced, you will know if it is yours ( especially if someone else just mentioned it to you yesterday). 

How much have you relied on your trained intellect over and above your intuition?

How much do you rely on intuition to guide you the intellectual truths for you on your path?

What stops you from trusting your intuitive insights?

Please share your thoughts, comment in the comment box below. Share your experiences with listening to your intuitive awareness. How has it differed from what authority figures told you growing up. Have you ever felt mislead by your intuition?

Find out how Matthew can serve you to tuning into your intuition and allowing it to guide you on your personal path. Through his coaching people have improved all areas of their life and found greater levels of happiness. Click here to see what others have said and contact him directly at matthewmashdown@gmail.com .

Links that will help you with tapping, including a cool online presentation taking place on Wednesday August 29th.

After a life changing accident at 14 years of age, I experienced some interesting awakenings within myself , of gifts associated with my sensitivity. I did not share them with friends for the longest time out of a fear of persecution, from the science minded skeptics and from the religious folks, living in a society known for their stiff upper lips. Maybe it has been lifetimes of persecution that lead me to do this, cellular memories I have not yet allowed myself to visit, but I felt I needed to shut them down, to ignore them, in order to protect myself. In time I began to see the great gift in my sensitivity, as well as meet the challenges that come with that gift.

Some of the gifts we possess are freely acknowledged by society, but we are not encouraged to explore them because of the “pipe dreams” associated with them. Instead of following our gifts and passions we have been encouraged to follow the safe routes associated with security. Some of the gifts are ones that are completely misunderstood by large parts of society, gifts of a more spiritual nature. And yet they are gifts that others think are no big deal, because they are a part of their daily experience. Experiences that modern science research, such as that conducted through the world reknowned organisation IONS ( Institute Of Noetic Sciences ), has studied extensively.

The veil is thinning, and more and more people are coming through remembering past lives. Ian Stevenson of Chicago University has studied some of these in great detail, ruling out all the frauds and deluded individuals. And as a result many people remember a time when their gifts were not accepted, where they were persecuted for them. TImes are changing, and yet we find we need great courage to stand up and be ourselves in the world. Those who have the courage experience great blessings.

The gift of intuition is incredibly valuable to each of us, and though it may not always be welcomed by others, we need to welcome it in ourselves if we want to make the best choices in our life. Our  intellect and our intuition can work together in harmony to create the whole minded individuals who bring great change, geniuses such as Albert Einstein, known for his many quotes of a spiritual nature. When we listen to our intuition, we make choices that are in the highest good of everyone involved. Too many of us have experienced painful life experiences when we placed greater faith in others, or our old conditionings. Our intuition may need to be trained up again, something which meditation practices, such as Kriya Yoga, can do for us.

The gift of creativity in its many guises is another underused gift, and when nurtured is truly a benefit to many people. Our creativity may not have been received by others when we were kids, or may have even been stamped out of us as a result of our schooling, but it is a gift that we have been blessed with that will change the world, sometimes in small ways, sometimes in big ways. When we can learn to give that gift without expectation, as an embodiment of our gratitude for that gift, we become free. Give yourself permission to express that gift freely.

Whatever gifts you possess- creativity, artistic flare, psychic abilities, clairaudience, intellectual genius – don’t hold them back any longer. You have been blessed with these gifts because the world needs them in some way at this time. Maybe a handful of people will benefit from your gift, maybe it is the world at large. Either way, it is you who gives permission to yourself to share that gift. Don’t worry about what certain people will think of that gift, imagine the many lives that you can enhance with it.

“I share my gifts without expectation. It is safe for me to share my gifts with the world.”

Have the confidence to unwrap your gifts for the world, be seen and be heard. I am available for coaching sessions throughout the week, and I will happily give you a free session so that you can determine whether I am a match for you or not. Click here for more information.

- Sri Chinmoy

If there is something that perpetuates feelings of low self-esteem and self-loathing, it is comparing ourselves to other people, in a self deprecating way, who we think are better off in some way than us. Having worked in the fitness industry for 10 years it was obvious to see this, as people were never subtle about checking out others unreservedly. It would be a case of either looking at the person they thought was fitter than them and simply eyeing them up and down with jealousy pouring through their iris’, or making curt comments about others who they felt superior to, to the friend on the Stairmaster next to them. And it happened just as much amongst the trainers themselves, as it did amongst the general public.

It also shows up in terms of competitiveness on the work front, or in the finances, comparing paycheck, cars, homes and more. People around the world are battling low self esteem as a result, striving forever to be simply good enough, feeling not good enough, and focusing on the outside world mirrors that reflect back that feeling of not good enough. And it is not limited to the material world. I have seen people comparing the level of their intuitive awareness and intellectual abilities, hoping to be able to out do their friends and family in that ability. And believe me I am just as guilty of the above traits as anyone else.

It is sad to see the number of people who turn to hating themselves, to see where these thought patterns lead people. Simply do a search for “I hate myself” on twitter and you will come across many many teenagers proclaiming their self hatred publicly. Some of them may be joking, some looking for sympathy, and some not really hating themselves as much as they insinuate, but the subconscious mind does not know differently. How much of this has come out of a comparison with others? I do not know the answer to that, but I have seen it often enough, and experienced it myself enough, to know that it plays a part.

Here is what I propose you can do to help you break out of the habit of comparing yourself to others:

1) You are unique, there is only one you, one person just like you that has gifted our world. It sounds cliche to some, but we have to believe at a cellular level that we are unique expressions of life, or else we will forever feel less than others, because there may just be someone who can do what you do, a little better. But you have had a unique life and experiences, and there is nobody expressed in creation in exactly the way that you are. Remind yourself of that, overcome your fear of not being unique, because you are.

2) When you see someone who has a life or trait that you want, let yourself know that. “Wow, that is just what I want!” Celebrate it, instead of inciting misery within yourself. This is how others inspire people. The same person who inspires one to reach higher, another jealously reacts to. It is all up to the individual who witness the inspiration as to how they take it. Bless those who have what you want, congratulate them for their successes if you feel inspired. True happiness comes when we can celebrate other peoples successes genuinely.

3) Compare yourself to who you used to be. You may have made great changes and advances in your life, but if you are still scoping out the person who is doing better than you, you are only propagating those feelings of not being good enough. Take some time to look back at who you were before, not as a way of holding on to that person, but as a way of noting all the changes that have occurred within you. You may feel that other people do not see all the changes that you have made in your life, but if you do not acknowledge them for yourself, then it is no surprise that their opinions are affecting you. Take some time today to sit down and write a list of all you have accomplished in the last year, small and big changes, and do a little dance of gratitude. And as you move forward in life, strive to do better than you did before.

4) Tell yourself “I am good enough”. Instead of telling yourself that you have self worth issues, tell yourself that “I am good enough.” Unconsciously many people are waiting for a parent or loved one to tell them that they are good enough, but they may be waiting a long time. You may have gifts that your parents do not value, and so you may never hear those words from them. When you believe inside of yourself that “I am good enough”, you will begin to step into that role, and you will rely less on other people to let you know that this is the case.

5) Give yourself the approval you are looking for from others. Whatever your endeavour, whatever you are seeking approval of from others, be willing to give it to yourself first. If you don’t, then someone could give you it, but you won’t hear it, it won’t compute. Take some time this week to look at yourself in the mirror, and exlaim “I love and approve of you {Your Name}” And don’t wait for a certain expectation to be met before you give yourself that approval, give yourself that approval so that you will allow further expectations to be met.

Allow others to inspire you with their successes and their achievements, get clear on what success means to you, and stay focused on transcending your own limitations and you will feel better and better about yourself with each passing day.

There are people all over the world who will benefit from knowing the above information. If you found value in this, please share it by clicking the links down below, as it will surely benefit some of those you know as well.

Still struggling with this after reading this blog? Lets talk on the phone. I offer a free intro coaching sessions in which we can help build up your confidence in your abilities to do what you came here to do. Check here for more information. 

If you place high expectations of what success looks like, and do not allow yourselves to feel successful unless those expectations are met, you will likely walk around, allowing yourself to feel “not good enough” or “less than.” I wrote about the importance of getting clear on the meaning of success for yourself in a previous blog.

If you still refuse to allow yourself to feel successful, or you continue to feel like a failure, and struggle with feelings of low self worth, then I encourage you to follow through this EFT script, which I know will help you find some peace within yourself, and alleviate some of those lower energy feelings.

Kriya Yoga was first introduced to the west by the yogi Paramhansa Yogananda, and is now being practiced by thousands on a daily basis as a result. I was someone who was raised in a religion to believe in a punishing and vengeful God, by a controlling and patriarchal organisation, one that lead me to believe I could not have direct contact with a higher power. Yogananda reminded me that I can, something that I believed in at a deep level of my being. When, at the age of 14 I had a near death experience, I questioned much of what I had learned from school and church.

Someone spoke to me of the book “Autobiography of a Yogi” by Paramhansa Yogananda, and I sought it out, but I was not aware of the profound shift it would create within my life. I learned about a completely different God, a God of love and compassion, one who simply wants the best for His children. But reading about Her was not enough, I wanted to embody Her at the deepest level of my being.

Last year I was initiated into Kriya Yoga, and practice it daily, or at least as often as I can. There are no words to describe the effect the practice has had on my life, and many of my experiences are my own personal experiences, which would lose their affect if shared with others. But what I can tell you is that there are few days without growth, and no days without miracles, and a deeper sense of inner peace is becoming a more regular state of being.

I have learned a great deal about surrender as a result, and especially in this year of 2012 where so much is changing on a personal and global level. The mind wants to create less than favourable outcomes of what may happen based upon particular choices, guided by old conditioning, when I expect the gavel of a judgemental God to wallop me over the side of thehead. But as I allow myself to surrender to this idea of God that resonates with my heart, it begins to take root within the cells of my being, and I am able to find a peace that has often alluded me in the past.

I spent many of my teenage years battling the teachings of the church and resisting the control of it, but only fell further into guilt, shame and outright confusion. I lost trust in those who would share their spiritual teachings with me, and pushed away even those who would offer me wise counsel. A part of my ego fell into the trap of believing that the only guru I needed was the one within me. It took me a while to cotton on to the fact that the inner guru was actually well hidden beneath a veil of untruth, and that only through a frequent reflection of my inner guru in the form of a true outer guru, would I be able to get anywhere near making contact with my inner guru.

As such, it has been a journey of surrender, surrendering to the guidance and wisdom of a truly enlightened being, and along the way letting go of other teachers who may have misguided me, or were just missing parts of the puzzle. There is a big difference between the teacher who knows something at an intellectual level, and the master who embodies the teachings. I cannot convince you that the guru I am connected to is enlightened, or that he is the right one for you, it is something that you experience yourself if you feel the call.

Fears that remain unhealed are percolating up within the consciousness of humanity at this time in greater amplitude, and if the fear is bought into, it paralyses the mind and the heart from taking loving action. It is through choosing to feel peaceful and calm that we are able to listen to the wisdom of our intuition, and act in alignment with this higher source of wisdom. Kriya Yoga brings me a peace that no mental exercise has the power to duplicate. Mental exercises such as affirmations are powerful exercises and I continue to do them, but it is in the stillness of meditation that awareness presents itself with which I am able to do watch miracles unfold.

It takes practice, because the monkey mind wants to hold on to its previous conditioning, and create obstructions to the divinity within us, but it is like the lifting of weights for fitness. The concentration and discipline we create pays off in the end. It appears I have a journey ahead of me, but the Holy Grail is within reach, and I have faith in Kriya Yoga. For you it may begin with quiet moments of meditation and heartfelt questioning, and I know that you will be guided along your own unique path in this life, to follow a particular teacher or master, or not. But at all times, choose the calm inner spaces and you will know the path you yourself are being called to walk.

“Humanity Our Uniting Religion,

Breath our uniting prayer,

Consciousness, our uniting God”

- Yogiraj Gurunath Siddhanath 

If you are called to learn more about Kriya Yoga and tap in to the guidance and wisdom of a true master, then I encourage you to check out the upcoming NorthWest Retreat being facilitated by Master Yogiraj Gurunath Siddhanath. There are just a few weeks remaining, but I can assure you that if you want it enough, and it is the correct time for you, you will find yourself being guided to the means to make this possible.

Kriya Yoga Retreat with Yogiraj Gurunath

- Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos, Author of “Delivering Happiness”

We were fed all kinds of images of what success should look like, in all areas of our life. Success in relationships “should” look like this. In order to be considered successful in fitness you “should” look like this. And the corker for many, you are successful when you have x dollars in the bank ( x being a rather larger number than your current status ).

If success has been defined for you a certain way, and after years of pursuing it, you have not achieved it, it can soon begin to feel like failure. You may feel like you are not good enough and never will be. My Gratitude Dance video, and work as a GratiDude has touched and inspired lives around the world, I hear about it often. We did not make the money in that venture that we had anticipated making, and I for one took on feelings of shame of the failure of it for some time afterwards. You may want to be knocking me over the head right now, so was I. That video has been viewed over 450,000 times on youtube, played at events around North America regularly, been featured on Good Morning America, and lead to speaking opportunities around North America. But, because we struggled financially, some part of me  chose to focus more on the “failures” than on the lives that it changed and allowing myself to feel successful in any way.

Remember, that what is important in manifesting our desires, is not what the outer “reality” is ( which we do need to accept before we can make changes), but how we feel about it. Someone else may have been in the same position as me and felt on top of the world. Due to my conditioning about money, picked up along the way from society, I did not feel like a success. That is when I made up my mind to change my idea of success. And when I did, I changed how I felt. When we feel successful, we attract more things that make us feel successful. Even in failed relationships, I am able to see successes. Sure, I take the valuable lessons from the failures, but sometimes, what can look like a failure to outsiders looking in, can be a great success to you. A relationship that falls apart because you successfully stand up for the self-respect you desire, can break down and look like a failure to others. But from your perspective it could feel like a great success. It all comes down to perspective.

When we place very high expectations upon feeling successful, we will not feel successful unless that condition is met. In the time it has taken me to repay large debts over the last few years, I have acknowledged the many successes along the way, even though there are still steps to be taken. I am pretty damn happy about the progress.

So, those areas of your life where you are feeling like a failure, take another look. What successes have you experienced in that area? List them all off, take the time to think about it. It doesn’t matter how big or small, because what we focus on expands. We are working on the conditioning of the muscles that get you to look at successes in your life, to build a habit. Now, looking at that list, how do you feel? Are you allowing yourself to embrace some of those successes? Are you able to see more successes than failures when you look at it from this perspective? If you experience resistance to allowing yourself to feel successful

How about making this your affirmation of the week. “I am successful!” Every day take 5 minutes to review the successes you have achieved that day. And every failure you have experienced, seek out the gift. Create a journal and fill it in daily.

If you still refuse to see yourself as successful, then we need to have a chat. Grail Quest Coaching is all about helping you to formulate a healthy vision of success from the outset, so that you can pursue and build upon them daily, to create a life and self that you feel happy about. Contact me at matthewmashdown@gmail.com for a free coaching session.

“Owning our story can be hard but not nearly as difficult as spending our lives running from it. Embracing our vulnerabilities is risky but not nearly as dangerous as giving up on love and belonging and joy—the experiences that make us the most vulnerable. Only when we are brave enough to explore the darkness will we discover the infinite power of our light.”

- Brene Brown

Some people see vulnerability as weakness. Vulnerabilty such as admitting they made a mistake , or sharing parts of themselves with others they have kept to themselves for a long time out of feelings of shame or guilt. I believe there is great power in vulnerability and that we can express it without being needy or desperate, and that through giving ourselves permission to be vulnerable we allow for the awesomeness of life that we have yearned for deeply.

People have great visions for their life, the work they want to do, the relationships they want to enjoy, the recreational life of their calling, and yet they are unable to achieve or create them due to a lack of vulnerability. The creation of their happiness depends upon the releasing of their shames and guilts, but because they judge themselves for it, they are not open to the possibility that someone else has an understanding and compassion for them. You can do all the visualising, affirmations, and meditation that you like, but if something comes up that needs to be healed, it needs to be addressed, not stuffed back down. We manifest our desires when we are in vibrational alignment with them, and shame and guilt feelings are not in alignment with our happiness.

“There can be no vulnerability without risk; there can be no community without vulnerability; there can be no peace, and ultimately no life, without community.”

- M Scott Peck

If you have opened up to new relationships in your life recently, then you will be called at points to be vulnerable. Through this process we will be vulnerable to the possibility of being hurt once more, vulnerable to the possibility of being wrong, vulnerable to showing our emotions to another who can support and help us.

You may not be hurt in the relationship you are about to step into, but you may be, and you may be carrying with you the energy of previous pain from relationships. But when you allow yourself to be vulnerable, you also open up to the joy, the love, and the peace of mind that you would not otherwise have allowed yourself to feel.

I have been blessed to witness the vulnerable sides of hundreds of one-on-one coaching clients over the last 5 years, people who have allowed themselves to be vulnerable and have improved their lives as a result of it. They have shared their fears, and transcended them with grace and faith, and are living in greater happiness, moving towards their dreams.

We need to find a safe, compassionate person with whom to share our deep wounds. My deepest healings have come through finding a safe place to reveal my shames and guilts. And it does need to be a safe place. We reveal our unhealed shadow side or flaws to the wrong person and they can use it against us in times of differences. We reveal it to a compassionate, understanding person, who has been through or understands our situation, then we allow for healing to occur. This is where the power of healing lies in our hands and what makes vulnerability powerful. Without that vulnerability we do not actually end up stepping into our power, we dance around the source of it. The dysfunctionally independent person will find it very challenging to heal those shames.

Every time we write a blog, a book, share our thoughts and opinions on facebook, we are being vulnerable. I remember the first time that I was writing a blog article, and had it ready to send, it took everything within me to hit the send button. We are vulnerable to criticism and judgement from others. Now I am writing a novel which I know will reveal aspects of myself that some have never seen before, and could possibly open myself up to all new possibilities, and believe me the conditioned ego does not always create the best possibilities. But I am holding the space for joy and love in my new endeavours. You will be vulnerable when you share the gifts you possess that you have hidden for a long time.

The more I tried to run away from my story, the more the unconscious vibrations would continue to attract into my life more of what I didn’t want. When we face our shadow with courage, and shine the light, we change our vibrations, and allow ourselves to attract the guidance, support and love we need to fulfill our purpose. I still continue to find myself facing challenges, and sometimes painful situations, but I am also feeling much more authentic happiness in my life with a loving relationship that is greater than any I have experienced to date, as it aligns with the deepest parts of me. I trust myself more than I ever have, and have attracted a relationship which mirrors this.

What areas of your life are calling for a deeper sense of vulnerability? Who can support you through the challenges you are facing at this time?

Your ego will tell you that all that awaits is pain and humiliation, but if grace had a voice it would tell you that your hearts desires lie just beyond the moments of great vulnerability.

“I understand now that the vulnerability I’ve always felt is the greatest strength a person can have. You can’t experience life without feeling life. What I’ve learned is that being vulnerable to somebody you love is not a weakness, it’s a strength.”

- Elizabeth Shue

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