The Art of Becoming Unbusy

 

Unplug. 

Disconnect. 

Turn off the noise. 

Silence the notifications.

Get back to the real world, not the false façade created by social media.

Consider what is really important to you and worthy of your undivided attention.

Stop saying 'yes' when your body is screaming 'no' at you.

Stop trying to push through the resistance, there's a reason why the resistance is there - find out what that is. 

Get back to nature, fill your lungs with pure oxygenated, fresh air - not some artificial crap!

Bathe in the sun's light. Feel its warmth on  your skin, boosting your vitamin D and your serotonin levels.

Break up with the need to fill each moment of every day.

Learn to love, enjoy and appreciate moments of silence, moments of stillness.

Unsubscribe from the crap that incessantly fills your inbox, the stuff that you never read and then have to spend time deleting in order to clear away the clutter.

Allow your nervous system to truly rest. The human body was never designed to spend all of its days in the constant throes of fight or flight mode.

Stop feeling like there's some place else you need to be other than where you are at or thinking about the next thing you need to tick off your 'to do' list.

Focus on what is at hand.

Enjoy the moment you are in.

Make sure the things you are doing are only to please yourself and not everyone else.

Stop running from that which you are scared of by keeping yourself in a constant loop of 'busyness'.

"Busyness" fuels anxiety. Anxiety is created when we're too focussed on what is coming next, rather than being grounded into the present moment we are in.

Work out your true priorities and ditch everything else.

Create more space for joy, love, laughter, rest, relaxation.

Create space to breathe, to genuinely exhale, to be.

Let there be space for fun and creativity, whatever that is for you, for everything is open to interpretation.

If you continue to ignore the warning signs your body is giving you because it can no longer carry you through your busy day fuelled with 'busyness', to do lists, anxiety, coffee or whatever crux you lean on to simply get through, there will come a day where it will completely break down on you and say 'No more. That's it. I've had enough. I am done". I deliver this message from a trusted source of a lesson well-learned many, many years after receiving the first warning signs that things were not right.

There's no badge of honour for burnout.

There's nothing you need to prove to anyone.

Break free from the conditioning of a robotic society.

Set your own pace.

Find your own flow.

Hear the sound of your heart beating, gently, softly.

Live in the moment.

Love with your whole heart.

Love where you're at.

Be. Happy. Here. Now.

With Love

Shanelle

Embracing My Internal Autumn

 Autumn is well under way here in the southern hemisphere. Although I live in Coastal Central Queensland, I don't really get to see the physical effects of the leaves on the trees changing to their beautiful reds and browns and eventually falling off the tree to leave it bare and barren during the cold, frosty winter.

I have however, been experiencing my own internal season of autumn. I celebrated
my 41st birthday last week and have noticed a subtle, yet significant shift in my energy, focus and attention. I see things that are falling away and rather struggling to fight to hold onto them like I once would have, I am allowing myself to surrender to the universal flow. On so many levels, I am releasing what is no longer serving me.

The night of the full moon, I spent some time releasing people from my social media accounts, letting go of groups that I don't actively participate in any more, unsubscribing from a barrage of emails that clog my inbox on a daily basis, keeping my attention distracted and off-task. And it felt good. For way too long, I've felt distracted and overwhelmed with social media. My new plan is to simplify. I've made a promise to myself to not sign up for anything 'free' for the next month. I did a pretty good job of that in April and want to continue on that journey, because it feels good to me.

It's hard work. It's a challenge to unwire your brain from busy and constantly on the go. It's tiring. And yet I know the reward will be worth it. Once the untangling has happened and I can see all the bits clearly. I will know when the time is right to step forth and to step into my path wholly, completely and full of presence.

I've started saying 'no' to more things that once upon a time I would have felt obligated to say yes to in order to keep the status quo. That feels so freeing and liberating on so many levels. My wellbeing is currently my number one priority. And yes that may seem selfish to some, yet I see how greatly my life is affected when I am not this for myself.

I am accepting where I am currently at with my health and seeing this time of deep healing as a blessing rather than a curse. I am choosing to focus my attention on the present moment and on the day that I am in, rather than beating myself up and running an internal commentary that constantly berates myself for not doing more, being more or being someplace else other than where I am currently at.

I am choosing to see the joy in the moments and have allowed myself to achieve one thing a day - no more and if I am not up to that one thing, then I let go of it gently, knowing that tomorrow is a brand new day to get that thing done. No more unrealistic lists of things that appear to be life and death. I have proven to myself that life goes on regardless of what is or isn't ticked off my list that day.

My key takeaways from this internal autumn that I am currently undergoing:

* You are allowed to take the slow lane for as long as it takes to renew

* No is a completely acceptable and allowable response

* The hustle isn't for everyone, slow down and align with what fits right for you

* Things falling away is a natural progression, mother nature shows us that at least once a year. We can't keep holding onto all of the things forever - whether that be physically, emotionally or digitially

* Each day you open your eyes is a blessing. Choose to find joy in the moments.

I'm curious to know if you are also experiencing a season of shedding at the moment? Or if you are currently feeling overwhelmed in life, what could you allow to fall away?

Until next time,

Big Love

Shanelle

My happy place. My healing place. My grounding place.

 My happy place. My healing place. My grounding place.

Its fair to say the last couple of months have been a little shaky and nothing like I'd envisioned life 'post job' to be. Yet I understand everything happens for a reason and am choosing to see the blessings arising from really slowing my life down

Some days are good and others not so great. My body lets me know when I've overdone it and really need to rest. I've struggled with sharing openly this part of me. I've had a few realisations this morning that I'd like share, in case they resonate and give you permission to take the slow lane for a bit.

Firstly I feel a lot of shame around not functioning fully at 100% all of the time. I've felt defective because a fast-paced life just isn't my thing. Being able to put words around my feelings has been another challenge and I'm working through that at the moment.

My nervous system is currently recalibrating after too many years of being under constant stress and pressure to perform and achieve. This has been a constant theme for much of my life. I grew up in a home fuelled by anxiety and have had jobs that have been fast-paced, so my body is used to running on adrenaline pretty much as a norm. The fact that my health is showing me that things are not in balance shouldn't come as a surprise really. But it's been a major challenge to slow right down, to pause the achievement button for a bit, to allow myself to fully embrace the space of being in between, to become aware that the agenda I'd had for myself is not in alignment with my greater good at this present moment.

There's a lot of "undoing" happening right now on many levels. The greatest gift I can afford myself is time, space and patience to allow my body to come back into its natural balance, where it is thriving rather than merely surviving. I'll post again soon to share with you some of the ways and the processes I'm embracing to help me with this.

And here is your permission slip to slow down, to breathe, to recalibrate, to come back home to you.

Big love

Shanelle xxx

The Unravelling

Sometimes she blows in softly, with subtle changes in the air. Other times like a giant hurricane, turning your inner world upside down. 

In this life we spend much time unravelling the ravellings we have ourselves twisted in. Breaking generational patterns, behaviours and beliefs. Trying to make sense of who we truly are and who we are truly meant to be. After all, what is our purpose here on this Mother Earth?

Emotions override everything. They underpin our thoughts, behaviours and reactions. What are these emotions and where did they come from? Are they even mine or are they ones I’ve been taught to feel? So many questions and often times without obvious answers. The real answers require the peeling back of many layers, a commitment to go deeper than deep, to where the pain point really lies. A true commitment to honour thy self and thy soul. To do the soul work and face the dark night of the soul. To delve where it is dark and coax out the pain. What is it really trying to teach us when we release all of the blame?

Of course the unravelling is a much more pleasant experience when we feel supported and guided, rather than attempting to go all lone-ranger. And the beauty is that you don’t need to unravel alone. Seek out a professional who is qualified in supporting someone to unravel their ravellings, who can truly hold the space. For it’s in this unravelling that we need a sacred space to observe, to ponder, to dissect and unfold. There is no place for judgement or blame in an unravelling. The support of a sacred space holder is quintessential to the unravelling and its effectiveness. One must feel completely safe and completely and wholly trust their support person.

You can’t do a half-assed job of unravelling. For if you do, you’re sure to find yourself back in the unravelling space time and time again. So if you’re ready to unravel your ravellings, be courageous and brave even though you may feel the fear. There is no better time than now to work your way through that which is holding you back from living your most fulfilled and passionate life. When you unravel your ravellings, the light can truly shine from the cracks within.

In love, light and gratitude

Shanelle

What Are You Currently Tolerating?

Have you asked yourself this question lately? You might be surprised at the answer when you take a few minutes to tap out from the merry-go-round of life just to reflect upon this answer for yourself.

So often we get caught up in the cycles of life, accepting things as they are and going about our days because in some sense it’s just - well easier. It’s too much trouble to change the habit/pattern/thought/belief. Well so it seems. For some reason, we’re wired to see change as a painful experience. That’s not necessarily the case though. Self reflection can be a useful tool to see just exactly what we’re putting up with that isn’t in alignment with our authentic self.

As an example, I have recently purchased a brand new laptop. Or should I say, I have finally gotten myself a new laptop and I no longer need to stay stuck at my desk because it shuts down as soon as I take out the power cord or curse and swear at the computer because it randomly decided to shut down in the midst of writing something hot on my heart or that it takes forever just to load one simple site and if I wanted 2 websites open at the same time, well I was definitely living on the edge!! I say this as I write, sitting in my bed, because that’s where I am feeling the most comfortable in this moment. I can actually write freely and easily because things work easily and effortlessly on my brand new machine.

It wasn’t until I had printed something the other day, that I realised just how long I had been tolerating working with a piece of equipment that no longer matched my needs. The memory was full and it just didn’t have the capacity to perform at the level I needed it to for me to be able to be functionable in my business. I’ve been Zooming on my phone over the past 12 months, and that’s made presenting my own classes  via mobile quite an interesting feat. 

All too often we adjust to our situation rather than changing the situation. Had I purchased a new computer 12 months ago, when I knew I had outgrown the old one, the  past 12 months would have been a much more pleasant experience technologically for me, given how much time we’ve spent online this past year. Maybe you need to get your car fixed, or the dishwasher fixed, or stop watching the news because it’s impacting your mental wellbeing, or start making better food choices to lead you in the direction of health, or clear out the clutter that’s stopping your home from feeling like a beautiful temple or whatever it is that you are currently putting up that is stopping you from being in your zone of genius. Your zone of genius is where you function the best  - with ease and grace (and very few curse words!)

So I challenge you to sit with this question for yourself. Make space and create some silence in your day to hear the answer. You may want to journal this or you may want to ask yourself this in your meditation practice. I’d love to hear what you are currently tolerating. Because once we have awareness, we can then start to take action.

Big Love

Shanelle

PS.
Have you downloaded your free copy of "3 Tips to Connect with Your Passion & Purpose" yet? Click here to get yours!

Lessons Learned One Month After Leaving My Job and Stepping Fully Into My Business

 

It’s been just over a month since I left my job as a travel agent and took up the reigns of stepping fully into my business. There have been moments of joy, elation, tears and frustration. Keep reading as I share with you some of the important lessons I’ve gleaned so far (I am sure there will be plenty more to come!!)

• There is a transition phase when moving from one life chapter to another. One just does not simply jump from a career spanning 13 years into a business that has all of it’s sh*t together with all parts moving easily and effortlessly with sunshine, rainbows and lollipops! I am now solely responsible to myself and to my business for being the face, the marketer, the ‘doer’, the accountant, the cleaner, the social media person ….. The list goes on! (I do enjoy the multiple hats just quietly, some days it gets a little daunting!)

• Transition is a natural process and I feel as if I am actually going through a metamorphosis physically as well as on a soul level. I wrote in my journal the other day that I felt like my butterfly wings have literally fallen off! My body has highlighted some physical challenges which are currently being dealt with under the guidance of my GP. They have been humming away in the background, but since having the time to slow down and reduce my adrenaline and stress levels, they’ve amped it up a notch to let me know that I really must do something about them - no more putting things off! I am also taking the time to look at the underlying spiritual aspects of what is going on, because that’s my jam and I love looking deeper into things. This means learning to surrender to what is, resting when I need to and not taking on too much or trying to fill my days with unnecessary ‘stuff’. I am here for quality in my services, not quantity - I don’t need to serve the masses or be booked back to back day in day out  to be ‘successful’ and fulfilled.

• I learned today that I am not alone with my experiences (see points 1 & 2), and we are never as alone in our experiences as we may think we are. Worrying unnecessarily is such a waste of energy!

• Help is always on hand when we need it, it’s just a matter of reaching out and asking for it (this has been a HUGE lesson from a life-long helper who has struggled to ask for help herself!)

• Learning to work with my natural flow allows me to work when I am at my best and rest when I need it. Mornings are great for me, by the afternoon, things start to go a little pear-shaped. I am learning to lean into that more and just do the important stuff in the mornings while I am able, the rest can wait.

• Time flies extra fast when you love what you do, when you get to create your days your way. This means that it’s really important to focus on 1 or 2 priorities and get them done, rather than ‘multi-tasking’ and getting nowhere fast.

• The beach is a great place to take a breather - whether it be first thing in the morning or stepping away from my desk for 30 minutes to enjoy a quiet cuppa listening to the soothing sounds of the waves, my bare feet planted in the sand and quite often enjoying a slow walk along the foreshore.

• Rituals, self care and soul care must be prioritised. If I am not functioning at my optimum, I am not in the best space to serve and work with my clients, and I am doing them and myself a disservice.

So there you have, a few of my key lessons. Have you ever transitioned from one career to another? What lessons did you take from it? What were your highlights?

Big Love

Shanelle

ALIGN

Are you:

• Tired of feeling like there's more to life, but you're not quite sure how to embrace walking your own path with confidence, ease and grace?
• Done with everything in life being beige? You've done what you can to fit in with the crowd up until now, but it just doesn't feel right. It's exhausting and you know it's time to truly connect with your inner wisdom and intuition?
• Ready to make the changes that you know will make a massive difference to your life, but don't feel comfortable undertaking this on your own and could use some extra support and guidance?

 

Finally able to start walking your true path feeling confident in who you are, what you are here to do and the message you have to share with the world with the ability to do this with ease and grace?

Understand what makes you unique and why you're not a weirdo for wanting different things to everyone else. Having a blue print of who you are, what your natural talents and abilities are so that you are better equipped to navigate life and its challenges?

Implement small, yet effective changes that would make a massive difference to you and the way you show up in the world? Complete small tasks daily to help you form new habits and that 'working' on yourself can actually be a fun and enjoyable process?

Work with a coach/mentor who is able to guide and support you during this process of personal growth and change? Someone who is able to hold space for you to unravel from who you think you 'should' be, to feeling comfortable in your own skin?

REGISTER NOW!

I am opening the doors  for a short while to accept applications to work with just a couple of hand-selected clients to ensure that they receive my full attention, support and guidance during this program. If you are ready to say 'yes' to you, then register today!

Register Now!

 

Failure - Friend or Foe?

Failure is your friend if you are using it to learn from. If you realise that you will fail more times than you succeed. If you are using it to pivot and tweak and try new ways, new strategies.

It is your foe when you start weighing your self worth against your ability to fail at something. When your negative self-talk kicks into high gear.

How can you flip it I hear you ask? Well, like many things, with practice and repetition, a skilled is learned and a muscle becomes toned.

Get excited about failing.

Know that you will fail more times than you succeed.

Accept that failure is part of the process.

Stop tying your self worth into your ability to produce what you deem to be a successful result.

Look at failure as an opportunity to learn and grow.

Have a failure-full Monday!!

Big Love

Shanelle

The Link Between Our Body & Our Emotions

 Something that has always fascinated me is the link between the body and the emotion/s that we harbour in a particular area and how that can manifest as pain in our physical bodies.

The back section of my copy of 'You Can Heal Your Life' and 'The Body is the Barometer of the Soul' are well-thumbed from me checking what is going on when I feel pain in a certain part of my body or a friend tells me that they have a pain. They have become my go-to guides.

To me, it just makes sense that we are all energy, our emotions are energy and emit a certain frequency or vibration. If left unexpressed or held onto, these emotions can manifest as illnesses in certain parts of the body. I know I may be preaching to the choir to some of you who are already up on this, but stick with me for a bit.....

What I have been noticing more and more lately and myself included, is a lot of people feeling like they are harbouring anger, holding onto it., feeling trapped by it because it has nowhere to go We're taught from early on, not to be angry and it's not nice to express our anger. But guess what happens when we don't express these feelings? They go and hide out in the body. Anger they say harbours in the liver.

We're taught to be good girls and boys, to say and do nice things. But we all know that with life comes the downs with the ups. There are times when we need to let it all out, to let the rage come through us and out of us in order to shift the energy, to clear our vibration and to move forward or out of the current situation we are in. There are healthy ways in which we can choose to do this - writing a letter and then burning it, screaming or punching into a pillow, getting out into nature and screaming at the top of our lungs - whatever you feel called to do.

Now I am not talking about taking this anger or rage or fury out on anyone else. I believe that we need to learn healthier ways to deal with anger - it is after all a natural emotion. It can become troublesome when it becomes our initial and normal reaction to situations, this is when we need to go and take a long, hard look at ourselves and what is going on within and around us, and where the source of the anger is coming from.

For the most-part though, we can begin to take a different approach to anger when we notice its presence. What if we when we noticed anger appearing, we had a gentle conversation with it. 'Hello Anger, I can see you are here again, what is it that you would like to tell me today? What message do you have? What are you trying to tell me that I am not getting? What do you need from me right now?' And just sit with that. Whether it's an internal conversation with yourself or something that you choose to work through in your journal - just do that. There is no right or wrong.

If you are noticing pain in a particular part of your body, tune into that. Acknowledge that it is there. Ask it what emotion it's relating to. Ask it what it wants you to know. Ask it what it's message is for you. We have an innate wisdom within ourselves that often goes untouched because we are afraid of delving into the unpretty and undesirable thoughts and feelings we have, we give our power away to others, often paying them to 'fix' the problem, when the real solution lies within. There is much insight for us to gain when we can begin to have these conversations with ourselves.

And quite often, the best and the simplest thing we can do for the pain in our body, is to send it love. It's here because it wants to be recognised, to be acknowledged. Send some love and see what happens.

In love, light and gratitude

Shanelle

When In Doubt..... Write

Hello!

It's been quite some time since I've posted on here. I've been getting some pretty big nudges to get the words out of my head and out there. I am aiming to ease into posting more regularly. And talking nudges, this is something I came across in an old journal from 2017:

I really enjoy flicking back through my old journals to see what wisdom has dropped in. Over the years my journals progressed from very dark, 'I hate the world and everyone's an ar%$hole to being more flowing and fluid with a 'knowing' that visits me when I put pen to paper. I've recently learned that this form of writing is channeling. It's funny because I was always in awe of people who channelled, thinking it was some amazing skill they had been gifted with. However, we all have the ability to channel if we slow down, become quiet enough and take the time to actually connect. It can be as simple as asking 'what does my soul want me to know today'  and then allowing the words to come through without thought or consideration, just letting them flow onto the page. I am grateful for stumbling across Lee Harris and his work.

So I will see you back here real soon with some more of my life's musings and insights.

In love, light and gratitude

Shanelle

Finding Your Own Beat

Following on from my post this morning ..... (looks as though the writing bug is back for a visit lol!)

There is more I'd like to share with you ....

Now is the time to march to the beat of your own drum. What makes your heart sing? What sets your soul on fire? How would you really love to spend your days? What fills your heart up that it's full to overflowing?

We are being called upon to stand up, to rise up, to carve our own paths, to embrace our uniqueness, to use our creativity, to connect with each other, to learn, grow and share from each other. To step outside of where it is comfortable.

The energy is changing. We don't have to keep doing things the way we have been. We have a choice. We can choose to change or we can choose to stay the same. Nothing changes if nothing changes.

But what if you went after what's calling your heart and soul? What if you went and did the thing you've been longing to do - the course, the business, the retreat, working with the mentor, the coach?

If you don't, it will always be a "what if?". And "what if's" don't get us very far. The only way to learn and grow is to take a chance on yourself. To start somewhere. To make a decision. To begin. To take the first step. And it may be something small, seemingly insignificant to start with. Although nothing is ever really insignificant. All the pieces have a place and they all fit together.

Perhaps it's a conversation you need to have, perhaps it's a matter of getting the idea out of your head and onto paper, perhaps you need to take yourself outside into the fresh air.

Ask yourself -

What is it that I really want?

Where am I now?

What can I do right now to take me one step forward towards my vision?

Who can I talk to and share my goal/dream/vision/desire?

Who can support me with this?

It's only when we ask ourselves these questions and take the time to answer them, that we can begin to formulate a picture of what we want, otherwise we keep showing up, doing the same thing over and over, expecting a different result and not sure why it's not happen.

All it takes is one single choice.

Sending love, light & gratitude

Shanelle

Rebel .... with a cause!

Some reflections of late have shown me that I have actually been a rebel (and continue to be lol!) for most of my life. Not in the rule-breaking sense, but in the sense that I don't need to do what everyone else is doing for the sake of being like everyone else. I don't need to be cool and I don't need anyone's approval, except for my own.

I've always known that I am different. Often times being different has led to me being left out, to standing on my own, to not being part of the "cool crowd". And you know what, I am totally okay with that.

I'm working through a 5-day challenge with Jana Kingsford at the moment where some homework is to look at what we stand for and what we stand against. One of the things that came up for me, is that I am really against doing what everyone else is doing. It doesn't sit right for me and doesn't feel authentic in any way.

As you may know, I struggled last year. I struggled to find my voice, to find my way,to stop comparing myself to others, to find a way to make this work for me and my family, to carve my own path, to be unique and I continue to work through these. I don't want to give "cookie cutter" style experiences. I can't solve your worldly problems through you purchasing a solution in a box from me. I'm not your typical coach. I have so much more to offer and often times I don't speak up about that.

What I do stand for is:

* Living a heart & soul centred life that is in alignment with my purpose and passion of helping others to connect/re-connect with themselves and creating a life they love

* Being the best version of me, embracing and accepting my imperfections and flaws, learning and growing from my experiences which in turn allows others to be the best version of themselves accepting their imperfections and flaws, learning and growing from their experiences.

* Knowing that there are endless possibilities and options, that there is more than one way to reach an outcome. Flexibility is the key!

* Our reality is created by us and it is possible to create a life you'll love.

And just so you know, what I stand against is:

* Judgement of self and others

* Negativity

* Excuses

* Being one of the herd

* Doing what everyone else is doing for the sake of doing something

So there you have it, a little piece of my heart (and mind lol). This is me. This is what I stand for. The work that I do will always come back to this. At my essence, this is me. Stick around for the ride if you'd like to see what comes next!

In love, light & gratitude

Shanelle

A Poem

Let go of that which no longer serves you.

Leave the past in the past.

All you have is here and now.

A chance to begin anew.

A chance to start afresh.

That which has hurt you before,

Can no longer do so.

Release it. Release it. Let it go.

Embrace each day for the opportunities

And wonder that comes with it.

Allow yourself to be fully present in each moment.

Fill your heart, your mind, your body and your spirit with love.

Let it flow freely from your being,

Spreading out into the world,

Making a difference where ever you go.

Fill your heart with light,

Shine your beacon on the dark spaces,

For we all have dark spaces;

That aren’t quite as scary when we allow the light to shine it.

Take this moment and make it yours.

Treasure it.

Honour it.

Do with it what you like.

All you have is here and now

And what you do

Is entirely up to you.

Shanelle Schick 2016