 Not too long ago, I was cheated on and lied to by someone I deeply cared for. This was a devastating and somewhat traumatizing experience. As expected, my broken heart went through the 5, agonizing stages of grief. It was extremely difficult. But I can confidently say I made it to the other side and I’m feeling better than ever.
I've truly accepted my situation. Actually, I thank my lucky stars everyday it happened at all. Had I not gone through what I did, I wouldn’t be living the amazing life I am right now. Look. I’ve found gratitude and acceptance amidst pain and betrayal. But that doesn’t mean the case is closed. The final step to ‘getting over’ and ‘moving on’ is...forgiveness. Forgiveness is a toughie. The biggest misconception about forgiveness is that it’s for them. Truth is, when you choose to forgive, you make that decision for yourself. And when you’re ready to clear the air from your consciousness, it doesn’t mean you have to be friends with, much less communicate with the person you’re forgiving. You don’t have to tell them you forgave them. And you definitely don’t have to trust them. It does mean you want to let go of what’s no longer serving you. And you commit to releasing the old so you can make room for the new. Forgiveness is actually an act of self-love. Holding grudges hurts you more than your offender. The person who wronged you might not even care how you feel. Chances are they’ve blocked it out of their mind. You’re the one still worried about it. And all that negative energy towards the past can and will continue to build up causing physical, mental and emotional health issues if you neglect to do anything about it. That’s why I encourage practicing forgiveness every single day. Make it part of your meditation practice. Simply imagine the person you want to forgive and send them a message of forgiveness. In fact, you can do this exercise right now. Let go of the narrative. Do it for your own sake. Forgiveness doesn’t right wrongs. Rather, it heals your heart so you can open it once again. It allows you to move on from a place of love instead of fighting forward from a place of fear. Who or what do you need to forgive? Remember: Forgiveness is for you, not for them.  Usually when I’m hit with a burst of inspiration, motivation or a great idea, my first thought is something like…
Wow! That would be so cool. How could I do that? Followed by this thought… Well, that probably wouldn’t work. Or this thought… It’s actually kind of a stupid idea. Forget it. Sadly, what could’ve been my next great invention or best selling book ends up disappearing into the abyss. When this happened to me the other day, I wondered, “Why?” Why are you so quick to shut yourself down? Why is your first instinct to push it away? The muses of creativity visit you often. They arrive when you least expect it. They stop by with a purpose just for you. In dreams, visions or driving down a snowy highway...they come. But instead of listening and taking action, you submit to your excuses. You’re dominated by doubt. It’s more comfortable resting in resistance. Even though you know avoiding the call for too long ultimately leads to deep discontentment. What's stopping you? Why don’t you grab the pen and paper? Make the phone call? Submit the application? What’s in your way? Well...you are. I can’t figure out who, but someone once said, “I believe every person has a million dollar idea inside of them.” So what sets the achievers apart from the non-achievers? I think a big problem with not achieving your goals is that you’re afraid of your own potential. It’s scary to consider what would would happen if it did work. Subconsciously, you worry your life would change (even though you desperately want to switch things up). You’d have to field unwelcome opinions and criticism. They’d see you come out of hiding. They’d treat you differently... The work is the scariest part of all. Ideas are cheap. The follow through is the gateway to freedom. When you silence the negative voices and push through, the result is happiness. Doing the work is what makes you successful. Saying, “Bring it on!” Instead of, “Turn it off!” is the practice of great healers, artists and entrepreneurs. Thing is, everyone would be a billionaire if they knew they could kick the work’s ass. Look. You are a creative genius. You are a one-of-a-kind creature. You are unstoppable. It's time to get out of your own way and push through. The next time a muse taps you on the shoulder and you have an aha moment? DO SOMETHING. DO ANYTHING. TAKE THE FIRST STEP. Here's to living the life of your wildest dreams!  I used to single-handedly run my business. At the time, this made perfect sense. The work I was doing could easily be managed on my own.
As I acquired more clients, I created a lot more work for myself. The growth was exciting, but eventually it got to be too much. Along with working a full-time, corporate job, I was putting in 15-20 hours a week with my company. Besides that, I was teaching yoga and attempting to maintain a healthy social life. Even though I needed to, I wasn’t willing to give anything up. Unsurprisingly, all this added up to feeling pretty burnt out. The fiery passion that used to motivate me began to fizzle and fade. The worst part was the inability to give 110% to my employer, my customers or my students. It felt like I was never doing enough. I was rarely, if ever satisfied in any area of my life. I caught myself slipping and decided to do something about it. My current method was simply unsustainable. I knew if I was going to realize my big dreams of running an impactful, successful business, it was time to start delegating. Finding, hiring, managing and keeping good employees is no joke. You want trustworthy, hardworking mind readers (amiright?). But the truth is, no one’s perfect. And to grow, you have to experience some growing pains. Part of that process includes detaching from your baby and passing off some important responsibilities. Building an empire is kind of like dating. You have to kiss a few frogs before your find your prince. I was lucky enough to snatch up the perfect girl to join my team. She’s my cousin, Katie. And I feel so thankful for all she does for me. Bringing her on was one of the best business decisions I’ve ever made. But I had to do some work before I even considered hiring and training someone in. Do you think you’re ready to grow your team? Admittedly, I’m not an expert on hiring or management. But through experience, I’ve learned a few things about acquiring your first employee and how to keep them and you happy in the process. Here are 3 tips I hope will help you out:
TAKE ACTION! Only you know when a good time to start hiring is. Get clear on your big picture vision.What kind of company do you want to run? Small, medium or large? Figure out where you can let go and let someone else help you out. Then go back to the 3 tips I gave you and start your search. Here's to building beautiful businesses and helping as many people as possible!  In my business, I have the privilege of working with extremely inspiring people. They’re artists, healers and teachers. Collectively, their intention is to make the world a better place.
These incredible folks are also small business owners. Naturally, they need to make money to keep their doors open and put food on the table. Therefore, sales and marketing are essential for their success. Many of my clients have shared their distaste for self-promotion. They feel sleazy and gross trying to get people to buy what they’re selling. It’s difficult for them to talk about their strengths. Spreading the word about how wonderful and life-changing their services are makes them uncomfortable. It’s not that they don’t believe in what they’re doing. Rather, they think their experience and credentials are enough. They think... Shouldn’t the beautiful space speak for itself? Hello! This location is PERFECT. I mean, who wouldn’t want to come here? Or... There’s TONS of scientific evidence backing up the benefits of the practice. Obviously, everyone needs yoga in their life. And I’ve been teaching for 15 years! Look. You can be the most amazing acupuncturist, yoga teacher or massage therapist in the world. But if you fail to execute a communication strategy or hand out a single business card? You’re going to have a really hard time sharing your gifts with those who need you most. Yes, your current customers will refer you to their friends and family. You’ll get a few drive-bys. Someone will find you online. But if you want substantial growth? You need to commit to a sales and marketing strategy aimed at reaching more people, faster. Create an email list and start a monthly newsletter. Post on Facebook or Instagram a few times a week. Attend networking events. Find out where your dream clients are hanging out, and meet them there. I get it. You’re not ‘business minded.’ You hate social media. Writing isn’t your strong suit. Well, guess what? There are 10’s of 100’s of people waiting to hear from you. By not selling yourself? You’re doing all of them a huge disservice. Don’t keep quiet and patiently wait for potential customers to find you. Understand that by persuading and encouraging people to give you a try, you truly are making the world a better place. Let this understanding motivate you to put yourself out there! Take what works and leave the rest. I hope this helps you communicate to the world how truly amazing and inspiring you are. :)  I love being in love. So much so, I've spent the last 13 years of my life in relationships.
Having a boyfriend is amazing for so many reasons. The emotional support, cozy cuddles and inside jokes, among many other things, make coupledom rewarding and enjoyable. Of course romantic partnership has its challenges and downfalls, as well. You have to compromise, communicate and make a lot of sacrifices to keep the peace and love strong between 2 people. Now that I'm a single woman for the first time in a long time, I'm having some important realizations... I was feeling really down and out in one of my favorite yoga classes the other day. My mind was running circles around recent events. Disturbing images and unsettling feelings were taking over my experience on the mat. Then I asked myself, “What’s different between where I am now versus where I was 3 months ago?” The only difference is that I had a boyfriend then, and now I don’t. Yes, this is significant. But then again...not really. I’m still me. I still have the most amazing friends and family. I still get to practice at a beautiful yoga studio. I still have a great job. I still get to eat healthy food and drink clean water. It occurred to me that I’d been letting my happiness be controlled by 1 element in my life. My focus was on the 1 thing I didn’t have when I could’ve been looking at the 1,000’s of wonderful pieces that were still there. How much happiness are you investing in 1 area of your life? I think it’s normal to get stuck in tunnel vision. When work is going well and you’re hitting your number? You’re on Cloud 9. You feel powerful, successful and excited. But when you have a down month? You feel like utter crap. Suddenly, nothing in your life is going right and you think you’re kind of a loser. Perhaps you finally shed those lingering 5 pounds you’ve been meaning to lose for all of 2016. You’re absolutely elated! Your clothes look and feel better than ever. You walk around like the hot babe you know you are. Then you attend a few holiday parties, get off your diet plan and gain all 5 pounds back. Now all you want to do is hide away in your apartment. And you feel like a big, fat failure. Maybe you’re planning to finally get engaged. You’ve been with your lover for 4 years and you couldn’t be happier. You’ve picked out the ring of your dreams and he knows the exact size of your finger. You get a manicure in preparation for a big night out. But...he never pops the question. You feel discouraged and disappointed, and you wonder if you’ll ever get married. Any of these scenarios sound familiar? It’s easy to fixate on the 1 thing that’s going either super right or terribly wrong. I catch myself in negative thought loops more often than I’d like to admit. Let’s make a pact to focus on the big picture, especially over the next couple weeks.The holidays tend to trigger strong thoughts and feelings. Remember: Your circumstances don’t dictate your happiness...YOU do. Even if that 1 thing doesn’t go as planned? Your life is still full of beautiful blessings. Give your attention to what you have instead of what you lack.  The other day my friend commented on how resilient I am. After she said that, I thought to myself… Resiliency is such a beautiful word. So I looked up the definition and this is what I found:
noun
It definitely resonated. Even though I’m going through some personal difficulties? I do my best to remain cheerful and hopeful, like always. But then I realized when life challenges you to be resilient? You never actually return to the original form as the definition states. Curve balls happen. You don’t get the job. Your business plummets. Unexpected things come out of left field. I know when I’m suffering, I want nothing more than to get back to comfort. The goal is to return to health, happiness and overall ease as quickly as possible. And I believe that’s a good target to aim for. Just don’t forget to embrace change. Yes, you need to be strong and resilient. But you also need to accept that every experience is transforming you into a better version of yourself. I, for one, barely recognize 15-year-old Greta. I’m sure in another 10 years, I’ll have a hard time relating to myself as I am now. That’s because the highs and lows of life have bent, compressed and molded me into someone else. I’ve become better, brighter, and more knowledgeable, year after year.And honestly? I have no desire to go back to my original form. Here's my call to action: Let your struggles stretch you to your limits. Push the status quo. Accept challenges as change makers. Use them to become someone new rather than staying stuck in old. You're stronger than you think you are |