3. It's all about "YOU"

Your values are clear, you have a goal to work towards and you have the plan to make it happen. But there is one important thing standing in your way; YOU. This week we are going to complete the "Mighty" by focussing on you.

M - Mindset

I - Identify your goals

G - Get specific

H - Have a vision

T - Time-bound

Y - You

- PAUSE AND BREATHE

O - Own it

A - Be Accountable

K - Know when to celebrate

Your success in becoming that Mighty Oak starts with YOU. If you are in tune with yourself, it allows you to do bigger and greater things. It allows you to move forward in all aspects of you life; including with that goal you just set.

Whatever makes your soul happy... do that. For years I did whatever it was that made everyone else happy. If I am to be truthful, I got walked all over. So, trust me when I tell you this; find something that lights you up. Find something that is just for you and only you and make it part of your world every day. No more excuses. No more "I don't have time" just do it. Read that book that's been on the shelf for years, take that walk, paint that picture. You will be amazed at how much your life will change when you are finally living for you.

Conquer your fears and step out of your comfort zone. Get more comfortable with being uncomfortable. Trust your gut, try it and don't let the opinions of other or your own fears stand in your way. Confession from this little acorn; I was terrified to put my life coaching business out there. Thoughts of "Was I good enough?", "Could I actually help people?", "What if people don't come to me?" all rang through my mind. But here I am at blog post #3, reaching people, connecting with other like-minded entrepreneurs and making it happen. If I didn't take that first uncomfortable step, you wouldn't be reading this right now.

Affirmations. To some this may sound silly but affirmations are a great way to shift negative thoughts and feeling into positive ones. They have the power to motivate you towards your goals and give you the self confidence and the self belief to move forward. For affirmations to truly work you need to do them every day, 2 or 3 times through out the day, and truly believe in what you are saying. "I am strong", "I am beautiful", "I can achieve anything". Come up with your own powerful affirmations and you will be amazed at how they begin to take charge of your thoughts and feelings.

Look at the bright side and be grateful every day. Being grateful gives you a more positive outlook, lowers your stress and anxiety and to be perfectly honest, makes you a much nicer person to be around. If the window to the world you are looking through is smudged, it is preventing you from seeing all the little miracles around you. Clean your window and take another look. Even when things are not going your way, being grateful can help you cope with those hard times. If someone was to ask me how I was today, I could say... "I am so tired. I only got 4 hours of sleep last night, my cat puked on the carpet, I had to wait over 1/2 hour for my grocery order and it is so cold outside." But I choose to be grateful. I am so grateful that I can crawl into my warm bed early tonight and that my dog cleaned up most of the cat puke. I am grateful that I was able to finish off my favourite podcast episode while I waited for my groceries and that the sun is shining and I am snuggled under a warm blanket with a cup of tea by the fire and not outside. Choose to focus your attention on what you appreciate, the big or little things that make you grateful. Notice them, acknowledge them and make them known to yourself and others and I promise you that their effects will be even broader.

Give yourself permission to Pause and Breathe. Life is busy. It is full of stressful situations, negativity and challenges. Bring yourself back to the now and reestablish inner calm by pausing and breathing. In other words, calm your body so you can calm your mind.

-STOP

-Focus your attention on your breath

-Breathe in through your nose to the count of 4

-Hold your breath to the count of 7

-Exhale through your mouth to the count of 8

-Repeat this 3-5 times

Being in tune with yourself is the key to reaching your goal. It all starts with you and your mindset. By doing what makes you happy, conquering your fears, believing in yourself, being grateful and giving yourself permission to stop and breathe, you will put yourself on the course to success.

Thank you for reading The Weekly Seed.

Laura Ballantine