Sometimes life’s best lessons come in mysterious ways
Just recently I experienced something that had me question my identity and tested my values. It was not a pleasant experience and yet it has brought more clarity to my life than a lot of the hard work I’ve put into personal development and finding my true self over the past five months.
So who am I? I’m a wife, a mother, a daughter, a sister, a friend, a rabbit and a chicken owner, a health coach, a mom-preneur, a student, a teacher, and so much more. I’m the sum of all of the roles I fill and all of the roles play their part in me interacting with the world. The blend of what I’ve learned through filling those roles and always striving to become a better, more rounded version of myself make me and what I have to offer to others unique. Who I am and what I offer does not speak to everyone and that’s ok because there are lots of women out there for whom my support, my experience, my knowledge, my skills and my genuine concern for their challenges is just the right fit.
This might not sound like a revelation to someone who has never taken the leap of faith to follow their passion. For those of you who have or at least got your toes into the cold water of entrepreneurship, you’ll understand that taking this leap comes with a lot of challenges; many of them rooted in lack of self-confidence. I live my passion. What I do is inseparable from who I am. It’s not like a job I leave behind after I close the office door (which I don’t have by the way) or a hat I take off when I come home. At the beginning a new passion is like a vulnerable bud of a flower, it’s very easily hurt by criticism or lack of support. At the same time you don’t get the outside validation you get from a boss or colleagues when you are not in it for yourself. It’s important to protect that vulnerable bud and have strong people around you who believe in you even in those moments you don’t believe in yourself. I’m very grateful for having those people in my life.
I was recently asked to reduce myself to the role of “being just a mum” (stripping off my passion for health and well-being and helping others) if I wanted to be part of an online community. This led to conversations and reflections that made me realise that being true to my values and embracing all facets of who I am are more important than the desire to belong. As a result I found a new strength, feel more grounded and centered and I know it’s been a very important step for my self-confidence and to better serve the women I feel called to serve.
Have you ever tried to hide part of your identity or forget your inner most values in order to fit in or be liked? How did that feel? We all need a feeling of belonging and being part of a community especially with less family support in your neighbourhood. I believe that before you can truly belong, you need to decide who you really are, feel centered and grounded within yourself and then find a like minded or diverse an open minded community.
Here are two community options that may or may not appeal to you:
Community for women who feel tired, overwhelmed and have trouble losing weight
Click here to join
I’ll be holding an event for this community, on Thursday, 8 September at 19:30 at transforma, Avenue Jules Bordet 13, 1140 Evere
During the event I’ll share my own story and we’ll work on challenges, make a wish list for solutions and anything else that comes up that is relevant for women who want to increase their energy level, bring confidence and serenity into their lives and create the body they can truly fall in love with again
Click here to register for the event (please do share with your friends)
We are just getting started, there is more coming, be sure to join our community to receive updates.
Family Lifestyle Boutique on Facebook
The purpose of the Family Lifestyle Boutique (click to join) is to provide a platform for information, questions and discussions about Family Health, Well-being and Fun!
Topics could be about physical health, psychological health, child development, nutrition, exercise, massage, family activities, parties, gifts, interior design (I’m thinking clever storage for example :-)), family life organisation, holidays, etc.
We can all benefit from helping each other by sharing our own experiences and relevant information on these important subjects. I would like to create an open, respectful and inspiring atmosphere in this group.
Personal experiences have led some of us to discover a passion for a specific subject and we decided to take that passion and combine it with experience and knowledge to help others on a bigger scale. This is only possible through being brave enough to take this passion onto a professional level.
I would like this group to work on a give and take basis. Here you have the unique opportunity to address your questions to the experts in their fields and get free support, advice & information. At the same time I would like to encourage all members to support local, small passion-preneurs in their endeavour to help and grow; this way every member of this group can also contribute a piece to helping more people.
