You were radiant, confident, and light beamed in every direction from the core of your being. Music followed you, angels serenaded you, and everyone was elevated by your presence. Wisdom shown from your eyes. Kindness emanated from your touch. And your power was simply awesome.
You looked, well... pretty much... exactly as you do right now.
Wow,
The Universe"
So you have the Universe on your side. If it can see the potential in you, plenty of doors are soon to open up to guarantee your ultimate success. Everywhere you go, people are looking up with admiration, asking for advice and certainly will consider your knowledge as you have proven to the world the type of genius you are. Keep on moving forward no matter how much you are struggling as it is just temporary. Keep on feeling like you have won the lottery and walk with your head held high. Life has a way to help you change your perception about reality, the good and the bad, the hard and the easy, the pretty and the ugly and everything else that surrounds it. As long as you do not allow it to bother you too much, you will certainly get closer to your ultimate happiness.
It is sometimes hard to comprehend living the life of the rich and famous especially when starting from humble beginnings. No one can really fathom the time and energy that it takes to get to that level. The determination and sacrifice required can sometimes be hard to believe. It is only people like you and the ones who succeeded who can understand what it takes to make it out there. So when you look at where you are today, which may seem to be not much, learn to not give up as it may time some time to look at from a Penthouse on 5th avenue and remember all of what you went through to be where you are today. From this point forward, you may appreciate life and be thankful for everything you have now and what you will have later. Always be grateful for the humble beginnings as it makes you a humble famous and rich individual at the end.
As freelancers we are dreamers and we like to see our dreams come to life quite often, but what happens when your creativity is nowhere to be found? Let's explore some of the most common causes of lack of creativity and some quick fixes to get you back on track.
Stress:
Stress is a major creativity foe with the ability to suck those reserves dry and make you feel terrible. Who can't create while panicking about the bills, the crying baby, or the ever-mounting stack of dirty dishes?
The fix:
Ask for help. It may seem like common sense, but so many people forget to ask for help. Anything from dishes to childcare can be outsourced to help you get a better handle on your current situation. If finances are the problem you may also want to make a budget and stick to it through lean times to feel more in control.
Fatigue:
All performers and athletes know that fatigue will ruin their performance. Yet freelancers often burn the candle at both ends and stay up into the wee hours of the morning only to return to their desk again a few hours later. This can make your thinking foggy and leave you with little to no energy for getting out of bed, much less creating.
The fix:
Get adequate rest and go to bed around the same time each night. Keeping a regular waking schedule will also help you to get better sleep. Other ways to sleep better include avoiding caffeine in the late afternoon and avoiding working in your bedroom.
Meaningless Work:
We all have bills to pay, but if you're taking on work that you hate, then you are much less likely to be successful. You may also make yourself miserable and anxious as you slog through this never ending work to get the money in the end.
The fix:
Provide value to customers who can help you to get the work that you love. Of course it goes without saying that top quality work will earn top quality clients. In my opinion, this is one of the best explanations of feeling great and finding meaningful work that I have seen yet from the amazing Charlie Hoehn.
In the end it's important to keep yourself healthy, get enough sleep, and ask for help when you need it. If you are still feeling drained you may want to explore your diet or other factors in your work environment to find what works best for you. Creativity is often essential to freelancing, hopefully these tips will help you to nurture yours.
It’s hard not to have a wellness woman crush on Elle Macpherson. The 51-year-old beauty glows without a hint of makeup. She’s been strong before it became the new skinny. And she's passionate about making wellness easier and more accessible.
Elle’s a longtime entrepreneur who started the trend of models moving from the catwalk to the boardroom. For 20 years, she collaborated with Bendon Lingerie on an eponymous intimate apparel line, which was the best-selling brand in the UK. She's recently taken the helm of the collection, brought on a new partner, and is planning for an August launch in the U.S
Her latest entrepreneurial venture is WelleCo, a line of alkalizing powders and supplements with big ambitions to become a lifestyle wellness brand creating beauty, home products, and more. Her signature product, The Super Elixir, is part of the booming nutricosmetics trend, which is the idea of nutritious products promoting health and beauty from within.
When I first met the native Aussie in her adopted hometown of Miami, the conversation spanned everything from pH strips (Elle's a fan), to where to get the best green juice in Miami (we concur that it's Jugo Fresh), to the stress of college admissions (she's a mom).
Here, she shares the tips and tricks that have guided her personally and professionally since her catwalk days and that are guiding her at WelleCo. Elle also shares her morning breakfast shake, which has just three ingredients.
A Q&A With The Well Model
Do you have a morning ritual?
I wake up 45 minutes to an hour before I need to get up. Before anything, I drink 500 mls of water and then I sit quietly with my back straight in a chair in the semi-darkness. I have a 33-day program of daily meditation that includes breathing and focus on a particular quality or value I would like to improve.
Sometimes, I do a guided meditation. I also read from a selection of books. I love to have a program pre-mapped out because I find it easier to stick to it over a longer period of time. Sometimes my practice will take as little as 10 minutes to complete. Sometimes I like to spend 40 minutes.
Any rules that you live by for a healthy body, mind, and soul?
Love, peace, happiness, and fulfillment — I make sure my choices support these intentions. If it doesn't fit, I don't persist.
What advice would you give your twenty-something self?
Wear sunscreen! A regret from when I was younger was that I didn’t protect my skin from the sun — even though I think I look better with a tan. I have plenty of freckles all over my body, and I haven’t done anything about it.
There’s no point in doing lasers because I’m in the sun all the time anyway, but I think sunblock is really important now. Always 50+ SPF. When I’m not in a bikini, I’ll wear surf leggings to protect my skin.
Best advice you've ever received?
Find co-dreamers who support your vision.
And the worst advice?
Models can't move from the billboard to the boardroom.
What do you love about being an entrepreneur?
I love the unexpected twists and turns on the journey as I realize my vision. It can feel daunting at times, challenging myself or taking steps forward into new territory, and I fear of the unknown.
But I don’t need to know the outcome. I just need to keep taking steps toward my goals that support my core values and intentions.
I love the saying "leap and watch the net appear."
Any go-to-supplements?
Without fail I take my daily Alkalising Greens. It is packed with goodness to boost nutrition, keep my body in an alkaline range and my energy levels up.
If I want to lighten up or I am looking for a nutritious snack, my Super Elixir Nourishing Protein is a winner. I use it as a meal replacement and a clean source of vegan protein if I am on-the-go. My favorite Breakfast Thick Shake recipe is below.
That’s it! I like to keep it simple — quality over quantity.
How do you break a sweat?
I make exercise part of my everyday life. I have a much simpler and gentler routine now. I prefer not to go to the gym; instead, I make sure I find at least 45 minutes in my day, usually for a sport outdoors, which is easy in Miami. I love to paddleboard, surf, swim, or water ski. I also love to hike or bike. I am more likely to stick to something I love and that fits into my life.
How has your health and wellness routine changed over time?
I’ve learned that an acidic body is out of balance. Today’s diet of processed food, sugar, alcohol, too much red meat, dairy, and coffee (especially for me!), combined with stress and lack of sleep can affect the way the body functions.
Why did you start WelleCo?
I was run down, stressed, gaining weight, and just feeling not good. Dr. Simone Laubscher introduced me to the concept of an alkaline diet, and it wasn’t until then that I hadn't really understood that my body was deprived from good nutrition and that my seemingly healthy lifestyle was actually acidic. And through nutrition, I was able to put my body back into an alkaline state and I felt better. I thought to myself,If I do most things right and I feel this bad, then what must it be like for everyone else who doesn't look after themselves? We created THE SUPER ELIXIR based on Dr. Laubscher’s years of practice as an easy, efficient, all-in-one, high-grade solution to getting back on the right track to wellness and feeling good on the inside.
You wake up in a positive mood and feeling great about how everything is going in your day. You feel excited and happy what today has to bring. You see the best out of every situation. You have a very positive outlook on life and enjoy life to the fullest. Then you speak to someone who is having a negative outlook and is draining you of your positive energy. They are having an awful day or always sees the negative in everything they see or do and bringing you down. Being around pessimistic people can impact you in a negative way which can lead you to feeling frustrated or leading you down the path of misery yourself.
Even though it is challenging to stay upbeat around negative situations, with the right mental tools you can still keep positive no matter who and what you are faced with these 7 great ways to stay positive around negative people will keep that smile on your face.
1. Don't take it personally.
What is being said to you is being said in the heat of that moment and what they feel at that time is maybe not what they would feel after or on reflection. The other person maybe having a bad day or week and you may have just got caught in that moment that they express themselves in how they feel. You maybe unaware of this and it's good to not take every word or action personally.
2. Create a bubble.
A good tool to use if someone raises their voice or comes out with a range of emotions about their day, is make a bubble around yourself to protect you. By creating your imaginary bubble you are still listening but creating a protection around you to not let their emotions or thoughts get through to you on a subconscious level. It also allows you to distance yourself from their emotion. Which leads you to not taking anything what they say personally.
3. Stay in the moment of positivity.
Even though it's easy to slip into the negative mood that surrounds you, it is more powerful and beneficial to stay positive as it helps you to continue your day more efficiently but also to help the other person. By staying neutral in the situation of not being taken in by the others person's emotions it can be empowering for you but also for the other person. As you are showing them another way to look at the situation by not creating or being involved with that emotion. This is not always the case but is a lot better than mirroring their thoughts and behaviour.
4. Focus on yourself.
Focus on you rather than the other person. It is only yourself that you can change and not the other person. You can control how you act, how you react and most importantly what you focus on. Focus on your positive feelings that you had before and recharge those feelings. Bring light into your body and mind. Imagine a light shining through your mind coming from the crown of your head and going through all your body. Ask yourself these questions:
• How am I reacting to this situation?
• How can I make that reaction more positive?
5. Reverse your reaction.
When someone is being negative towards you such as negative talk, shouting, passive aggressive, arguing etc- be the opposite and be positive. By doing this you are choosing to not allow what is happening to affect you and bounce off of you (in your bubble) and taking control of the situation than letting the other person taking you down with them. It is challenging to not go with them but so much more rewarding for you and maybe them to take the positive route. Sometimes when you stay positive and the other person will either mirror you or have a little hope in the situation they are in.
6. Choosing your moment to help.
If you know the person or have a connection you may want to help this person. Choose your moment to offer advice. It maybe not that moment, that day, that week. Even when you want to dive in and solve the other person's problems by giving them all the answers or go out your way to making them feel better. All you are doing is draining yourself especially when someone is in a moment of no hope or feeling sorry for themselves. I'm not saying don't give people advice and support but choose your moment when they have come back down from their emotions and being in their heads. Sometimes they need time to reflect and look back than deal with the situation head on.
7. Practise gratitude.
Being grateful is very rewarding and can be very challenging to do. When mastered it is a powerful tool to keep with you. It is quite easy to stay positive in a happy, joyful situation but by being with a negative person or situation you are practising and strengthening your skill. When presented with these challenging times we can be thankful for the opportunity to practise positive thinking.
If you know the person who is being negative remember the times when they have been positive. Remember this is a behaviour and not their core self and this will change especially if they are a positive person most of the time. Sometimes people air their frustrations and feel better afterwards so make sure your bubble is around you so you don't absorb any of these emotions.
Staying positive around negative people is very challenging, but putting in place these seven tips makes even the most negative situation easier to face. No matter what situation you are faced with it's important to remember: a positive attitude is always an option for you to choose. You have the power from within to make it a positive day!
