I get my inspiration in many different ways, here are a few people and books that inspire me.
A grateful heart
The saying that ‘it takes a village to raise a child’ applies to me as it takes a number of guides, supporters and friends to keep this small business and business owner up and running.
Firstly Dr Brené Brown, whose work has fundamentally changed me and how I am in the world. Here’s her blog and her videos on empathy and on TED
We all need people to encourage us, and especially those who hold up a ‘believing mirror’ to show us who and how we can be in the world. Four special women have done this for me. So a wholehearted thank you to;
I’m not sure I’d be doing this if not for Karen Knott at Prime Time Business. I turned to her when I wanted to muster up the courage to show up and be seen and wasn’t sure how. Her immediate belief in me and the difference I wanted to make in the world made such a difference and, working with her I learned the tools and techniques I needed to bring this business to life, together with the confidence to do it. She continues to hold up the believing mirror to me and I can’t thank her enough for her unwavering and continued support and friendship.
The sensitive way in which Karen Anderson therapist and coach guided me through Brené Brown’s Daring Way course encouraged me to to hop on a plane from London to Las Vegas to do the Rising Strong workshop with her. And it was THE most transformative weekend workshop I’ve ever done. I thank Karen for sharing herself and her skills; for creating and holding a space where I was comfortable being me and for gracefully teaching me a range of tools to live a wholehearted and authentic life. Karen is an absolutely wonderful therapist and I am so grateful for her support and friendship.
Helen Rebello of The Tranquil Path is simply a magician. Thanks to her intuitive therapy I feel much more relaxed and grounded, more able to ‘get out of my head’ and more at home in myself. She has gently and gracefully assisted me to connect with me in a way that I never have before and which is deeper and more wonderful than I ever imagined. Helen, I can’t thank you enough.
I would not be writing my book if not for the magic that my yoga teacher Emma Peel has weaved. When I started having 1-1 Yin Yoga lessons with her I was really struggling to write. Immediately everything changed and in the following months so many beliefs I had about myself and what I could do went forever. Thanks to her guidance, inspiration, encouragement and help I’m now connected to myself in a way that I’ve never been before and I feel so much more alive. Emma you are an amazing teacher and I can’t thank you enough for everything, mostly for making my world more beautiful.
I know the ladies in my Mastermind Group and Business club will always be there and I thank them for that and the wonderful work they do in the world, (in alphabetical order);
Linda Anderson, EFT angel and mindest magician who helped me through challenging times.
Melanie Mackie, who really sees me & encourages me to dig deeper.
Priya Tourkow, Great couples therapist.
Stacey Chapman, Amazing Acupuncture & fabulous Web support, who has supported me every step of the way getting this fabulous website up & running.
And also
I first turned to Beverley Glick Story Archaeologist to help me to dig into my story, to uncover and understand the themes in it. She is incredibly good at this, and she has so many more gifts. Working with Beverley has given me the confidence to tell more of my story here and to a live audience, and I also thank her for her continued and gentle support in my quest to find my gold.
Jeremy Lazarus at the Lazarus Consultancy who started me on this path by teaching me NLP tools and techniques which enabled me to heal and find myself and to believe that I could help others.
And last but not least thank you to the others in this small and growing community providing support to childless women. It’s wonderful to know that we’re all providing something different and are happy and willing to support each other. A special thank you to Pamela Jeanne, Lisa, Tracey and Jody
Here’s a selection of books that I love, well quite a long list really 🙂
Rising Strong: Dr Brene Brown (Random House 2015)
Daring Greatly: Dr Brené Brown, (Gotham, 2012)
The Gifts of Imperfection: Dr Brené Brown, (Hazeldean, 2010)
I Thought it Was Just Me: Dr Brené Brown (Gotham 2008)
Big Magic: Elizabeth Gilbert (Riverhead books 2015)
Self Compassion: Stop beating yourself up and leave insecurity behind: Kristin Neff, PhD. (Hodder & Staughton, 2011)
Broken Open: Elizabeth Lesser, (Rider Books 2004)
The Artist’s Way: A course in Discovering and Recovering your Creative Self: Julia Cameron. (Pan Books 1993)
Playing Big: Find your voice, your vision and make things happen: Tara Mohr, (Hutchinson 2014)
The Wise Heart, Buddhist Psychology for the West Jack Kornfield (Rider books 2008)
The Untethered Soul, the journey beyond yourself: Michael A. SInger (New Harbinger 2007)
Letting Go, The Pathway of Surrender: David R Hawking, M.D.,Ph.D. (Hay House 2012)
Better than Before – what I learned about making and breaking habits: Gretchen Rubin (Two Roads 2015)
Year of Yes – How to Dance it out, Stand in the sun and be your own person; Shonda Rhimes (Simon & Schuster 2015)
Light is the new Black; Rebecca Campbell (Hay House 2015)
Bird by bird – some instructions on Writing and Life; Anne Lamott (Anchor Books 1994)
How to Meditate, a practical guide to making friends with your mind. Pema Chödrön (Sounds True 2013)
The Places that Scare you, a guide to fearlessness: Pema Chödrön (HarperColins 2001)
The Charge, Activating t
he 10 Human Drives That Make You Feel Alive: Brendon Burchard (Simon & Shuster 2012)
Storycatcher. Making Sense of Our Lives through the Power and Practice of Story; Christina Baldwin (New World Library 2005)
The Secret of the Shadow, the Power of Owning Your Whole Story: Debbie Ford (Harper Collins 2002)
Do/story/ How to tell your story so the workld listens. Bobbette Buster (Do Book Company 2013)
Dig for the Story in Your Soul: #Storywisdom to Help you Author an Authentic Life. Beverley Glick (Beverley Glick 2015)
The Grief Recovery Handbook: John W James and Russell Friedmand. (Harper Collins 2009)
On Grief and Grieving: Elizabether Kubler-Ross and David Kessler (Simon & Schuster 2005)
Transitions. Making sense of Life’s Changes: William Bridges, (Lifelong Books 2004)
The Firestarter Sessions, A Soulful and Practical guide to creating success on your own terms; Danielle LaPorte (Danielle LaPorte 2012)
Feel the Fear and Do it Anyway: Susan Jeffers, (Vermillion, 2007)
Man’s Search for Meaning: Viktor E. Frankl (washington Square 1959) 
The Happiness Project: Gretchen Rubin, (Harper Collins, 2009)
Still 25 Inside: Lindsey Agness, (Rodale, 2010)
The Alchemist: Paulo Coelho (HarperCollins 1999)
Turn Your Passion into Profit: Corrina Gordon-Barnes. (YouInspireMe 2012)
NLP
NLP at Work, Sue Knight, Nicholas Brealey, 3rd edition, 2010
Successful NLP, Jeremy Lazarus, Crimson Publishing, 2010
Words that Change Minds, Shelle Rose Charvet, Kendall/Hunt Publishing Co, USA, 1997
A river journey as a metaphor for life
I’ve taken several river trips over the past few years, including two through the Grand Canyon on the Colorado River. They were life changing and some lessons I learned were:
- If the climb is hard, then it’s okay to ask for help.
- If you don’t give up the view from the top is amazing.
- If you look at things in the same way that everyone else does, you’ll only see what they see. Taking a different perspective can be life-changing.
- In unfamiliar waters or where there are big rapids, the ride will easier with an experienced guide.
- If you have the right people on your boat (and in your life) the ride will be smoother and much more fun.
- The current will always take you downstream no matter how hard you work against it so it’s better to know where you want to go rather than battling against the flow.
- If you’re stuck on the rocks, in order to get free you may need to leave some baggage behind (what baggage is keeping you stuck?).
- If you always sleep in your tent, you’ll miss the stars.
- If you scout the big rapids and plan your course (set goals) the ride will be smoother.
And most importantly, if you’re in the right current and you let the river do the work, then you’ll get where you want to be. If, however, there are lots of rapids in your path or you’re stuck in a backwater and can’t get out, then you will benefit from some help to give you a push, to discover which current is right for you, and to steer you into it.
